Jim Skea

RCUK Energy Strategy Fellow and Professor for Sustainable Energy

Jim Skea

Jim Skea is currently Research Councils UK Energy Strategy Fellow. The Fellowship was established in 2012 in response to recommendations from the International Review of Energy Research undertaken by the Research Councils in 2010. There are two roles: the synthesis of a Prospectus to explore research, skills and training needs across the energy landscape; and a related research programme focusing on the effectiveness of systems of energy innovation internationally. The Investing in a Brighter Energy Future: Energy Research and Training Prospectus was launched in November 2013. Jim is supported by a small team based at the Centre for Environmental Policy. The team members are Dr Aidan Rhodes, Dr Matthew Hannon and Iris Kammerer.

Until June 2012, Jim was Research Director of the UK Energy Research Centre (UKERC). He led the UKERC Phase I Energy 2050 project which led to publication of the book Energy 2050: Making the transition to a secure low-carbon energy system. He has also published recently on the impact of intermittent renewables on electricity generation, security of gas supply and UK, Japanese and German reposnses to the Fukushima accident.

Jim has particular research interests in energy, climate change and technological innovation. He has always worked in interdisplinary settings and has previously been Director of the Policy Studies Institute, Director of the Economic and Social Research Council's Global Environmental Change Programme, Professorial Fellow at the Science Policy Research Unit, Sussex University and Visiting Assistant Professor at the Department of Engineering and Public Policy, Carnegie-Mellon University. He was appointed Professor of Sustainable Energy at Imperial College London in 2009.

Jim has strong links to policy processes. He is a founding member of the UK's Committee on Climate Change and is Vice-Chair of Working Group III (Mitigation) of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. In the past, he was a member of the Commission on Environmental Markets and Economic Performance and acted as Launch Director for the Low Carbon Vehicle Partnership.

He is Vice-President of the Energy Institute and a member of the Advisory Board of the Scott Institute for Energy Innovation, Carnegie-Mellon University, Pittsburgh.

He was awarded an OBE for services to sustainable transport in 2004 and a CBE for services to sustainable energy in 2013.

email: j.skea@imperial.ac.uk
phone: +44 (0) 20 7594 6288 
websitevisit Jim's website


Aidan Rhodes

Research Fellow

Aidan Rhodes Prior to joining the Fellowship team, Aidan was a key member of the Knowledge Exchange team at UKERC from January 2010. He was responsible for helping to manage the National Energy Research Network and to deliver UKERC's role in the Energy Generation and Supply Knowledge Transfer Network (EG&S KTN). Aidan led the delivery of events and reports for the Future and Emerging Opportunities section of the EG&S KTN, and is responsible for the content of the KTN website.

Previously, after completing a PhD in analytical electrochemistry at the University of Durham in 2008, Aidan worked at Imperial College as a Research Associate managing the Centre for Sustainable Electricity and Distributed Generation and participating in several large national and international research projects in the technical and policy aspects of electricity networks. Aidan has also completed a fellowship at the Parliamentary Office of Science and Technology, where he researched and wrote a briefing paper on energy storage.

email: aidan.rhodes@imperial.ac.uk
phone: +44 (0) 20 7594 7308


Matthew Hannon

Research Fellow

Matthew Hannon Matthew works as a Research Fellow as part of the RCUK Energy Strategy Fellowship. His research examines the conditions that can accelerate the development and deployment of energy technologies with the potential to address critical challenges facing the global energy sector, such as climate change, energy security and fuel poverty. Within the Fellowship's current research programme, Matthew is responsible for leading the country case study on Finland and the technology case studies on heat pump and wave energy technology. Prior to this he undertook his PhD thesis at the University of Leeds from 2009 exploring how the application of innovative energy business models could help to drive forward sustainability transitions.

email: m.hannon@imperial.ac.uk
phone: +44 (0) 20 7594 7377
websitevisit Matthew's website


Rui Hu

PhD Student Energy Innovation Policy

Rui Hu Rui is a Doctoral Researcher at the Centre for Environmental Policy, Imperial College London with a research interest in innovation system and energy policy. He is particularly interested in China’s wind energy innovation system, as well as China’s strategic policies to transform it into an innovation-oriented nation.

Rui’s PhD research is supervised by Professor Jim Skea and Dr. Matthew Hannon, with joint sponsorship from the RCUK Energy Strategy Fellowship and China Scholarship Council. He is currently working closely with the Fellowship Team on a research programme for measuring the effectiveness of energy innovation systems across a number of major economies.

email: r.hu13@imperial.ac.uk
phone: +44 (0) 20 7594 9306
websitevisit Rui's website


Iris Kammerer

Research Support to the RCUK Energy Strategy Fellowship Team and Personal Assistant to Professor Jim Skea

Iris joined the RCUK Energy Strategy Fellowship Team in December 2012. Iris provides administrative and research support to the RCUK Energy Strategy Fellowship Team and also acts as Jim Skea’s Personal Assistant. Prior to starting her position at Imperial College London, Iris fulfilled various administrative roles  at the University of Westminster and the Institute of Education. Iris works part-time from Monday to Wednesday.

email: i.kammerer@imperial.ac.uk
phone: +44 (0) 20 7594 9294