Energy & Environment Scheme

UK Research and Technological Excellence

EN-RTE-26

UK research on weather, oceans and biodiversity underpins major policy decisions across government, from flood defence to fisheries to climate adaptation.

Location

South West England

Timeframe

TBC

Delivery Partner

Met Office

The Eden Project

Wellcome Trust

Plymouth Marine Laboratory

Key Partners

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Attendees

MPs, Peerage & Parliamentarians

Focus Areas

Environmental research; Weather and climate; Marine science; Biodiversity; Regional innovation

Headline Outcomes

Members will understand how world-leading UK research institutions turn environmental observation and scientific expertise into practical policy and economic value.

Energy & Environment Scheme

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Overview

UK research on weather, oceans and biodiversity underpins major policy decisions across government, from flood defence to fisheries to climate adaptation. The Cohort will explore the South West via a residential across the Met Office, Eden Project and Plymouth Marine Laboratory to see the research in practice.

Learning outcomes: See research in operational settings; understand how evidence informs policy; examine the regional skills, infrastructure and investment supporting scientific leadership.

Energy & Environment Scheme

Other Modules

Oceans and Water

The UK’s climate resilience, food systems and maritime economy depend on healthy seas, yet the science informing ocean policy is rarely visible. This proposed module will work with the National Oceanography Centre to explore marine monitoring, coastal risk, biodiversity and the blue economy.

Land Use at the Eden Project: Biodiversity, Climate and Resilience

The Eden Project is an example of what can be done with post-industrial sites and where it is leading the UK with its work on biodiversity, land use and agricultural research.

UK Research and Technological Excellence

UK research on weather, oceans and biodiversity underpins major policy decisions across government, from flood defence to fisheries to climate adaptation.

National Security Centre: Energy Resilience

Energy, water, food and digital systems are all serious national security concerns, with state actors, cyber attacks and climate shocks treated as the same problem set.

World-Class UK Research: Behind the Science at the Natural History Museum

The cohort will go behind the scenes at the Natural History Museum and Kew Gardens to see the institutions giving the country a global lead.

International Interconnector (Viking Link)

Interconnectors are a structural part of the UK's power grid, importing cheap power when wind is low and exporting it when wind generation creates a surplus.

The Cost of Energy

With UK energy prices among the highest in Europe and industrial users especially exposed, understanding the numbers behind the energy crisis has never been more important.

Water as a Utility

The UK has not built a major reservoir in a generation, water supply is now the binding constraint on housing and industrial growth in much of the South, and public trust in the sector is at a low.

Energy Crisis War Game

Energy resilience plans rarely get tested until supply tightens, and the decisions ministers and regulators face in that window are both political and technical, under immense time pressure.

The Grid and Utilities

Grid and water capacity is now the single biggest constraint on new homes, new factories and new clean power, with connection queues running into the 2030s and ageing infrastructure under growing strain.

Offshore Wind and Solar

Offshore renewables are critical to the energy transition. The UK has built a world-leading position that is now under pressure from grid delays, supply chains and cost.

National Parks and Outdoor Access

National parks cover a tenth of England and Wales and depend on a thin layer of rangers and volunteers to stay open, maintain access, manage habitat and host millions of visitors a year.

The Future of Energy and Energy Jobs

With the energy workforce hoping to almost double by 2030, specific skills and training is required to ensure the industry can flourish.

Land Use: Agriculture and Food Security

Land use, farming and food security are now one shared question for rural Britain, with farmers asked to deliver food, energy, biodiversity and decarbonisation on the same land.

Havant Thickett Reservoir

Seeing firsthand how a major national water infrastructure project is being delivered and to understand the balance between environmental stewardship and long-term water security

World Oceans Day Symposium

This session on World Oceans Day brings together leading scientific institutions to help Members understand the policy levers, governance challenges, and constituency-level impacts across the catchment-to-coast system.

Biodiversity Symposium

A day behind the scenes of the Natural History Museum focused on the biodiversity crisis and what it means for policy, constituencies, and delivery.

Environmental Research

A residential visit to see some of the world's leading marine and biodiversity research at the Plymouth Marine Laboratory and The Eden Project.

Sweden Energy Visit

Seeing the manufacturing centre in Lund where most of the worlds interconnectors are designed and built. Also visiting the largest producer of heat pumps in the world and the Swedish parliament.

Viking Link Interconnector

Tour of the Viking Link interconnector on the East Coast UK, looking at cross country energy transmission and the UK's connection to European energy markets.

Visit to paper recycling facility demonstrating the circular economy from collection through to recycled product manufacturing.

Hinkley Point C Visit

Day visit to Hinkley Point C, exploring the construction of the UK's first new nuclear power station in a generation and its role in delivering low-carbon energy for 6 million homes.

Energy Grid Symposium

Half-day symposium examining energy grid transformation in the UK, exploring diverse energy sources, stakeholder perspectives, and the challenges and opportunities of transitioning national energy infrastructure.

Spains Hall Estate Visit

Day experience exploring natural flood management techniques, examining beaver reintegration, natural debris dams, and reforestation as sustainable solutions to flooding and drought challenges across the country.

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