Rethinking Renewable Energy with Professor Susan Krumdieck - HF Podcast #4
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- Опубліковано 9 чер 2024
- Listen on Apple Podcasts: apple.co/2XhZfaJ or on Spotify: spoti.fi/2wmaAeW
In Episode 4 of the Happen Films Podcast, we speak with Dr Susan Krumdieck. Susan is an American-born, New Zealand-based Professor of Mechanical Engineering at Canterbury University. Her research has developed novel methodologies and tools needed to rapidly downshift fossil fuel use while recovering real value for people and environment.
Over the course of her research she has worked on development of every type of renewable and alternative energy technology, culminating in founding the emerging field of Transition Engineering. Transition Engineering actions social responsibility and sound science to deliver change projects that down-shift the exposure to fossil fuel supply and climate change risks. Transition Engineers work in the gap between fossil fuelled expectations and constraints of flourishing.
This is a topic that fascinates us both. The first time we met Susan was in 2016 when we interviewed her for our film Living the Change (happenfilms.com/living-the-ch.... It was a game-changing conversation for us, as while we weren’t exactly ‘techno-optimists’, we soon realised how little we new about the realities of the mainstream renewable energy story. Susan might break your bubble about that story, but she does it with great passion and always with a tone of what we called ‘hopefulness’ and she calls ‘purpose’.
Susan’s approach to renewables, and that of Transition Engineering, is to begin with our vision for the future. These days, rather than simply researching new technologies to make renewables more efficient, she is rethinking how we use our technology, how much of it we even need, and what alternatives exist to technology itself that could improve our lives while reducing our exploitation of the earth.
We hope you enjoy the podcast!
Book: Transition Engineering: Building a Sustainable Future, by Susan Krumdieck - www.routledge.com/Transition-...
Article of interest: Susan’s response to the film Planet of the Humans - susankrumdieck.blogspot.com/2...
Follow Susan:
- Website: www.transitionengineering.org/
- UA-cam: / signsofchangeconf
- Blog: susankrumdieck.blogspot.com/
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Thanks for tuning in to this episode! We'd love to hear your thoughts on this conversion.
The podcast is also available on:
Apple Podcasts: apple.co/2XhZfaJ
Spotify: spoti.fi/2wmaAeW
Stream/mp3 download: happenfilms.com/podcast/episode-4-susan-krumdieck
The film we interviewed Susan for: happenfilms.com/living-the-change
If you'd like to support the show you can do so at happenfilms.com/support. We really appreciate it! :)
Loved it! I was introduced to Susan and her work, in your film. Thank you for including us in the conversation and circling back with this amazing woman who is a visionary and change maker and has the red to back it up. I loved the part where the camera came back to you both interviewers and you were nodding in unison. Too cute. Lots of love and PURPOSE from Cali!
This is fantastic, opening our minds to seeing issues from a different prospective. Not a quick fix, that we have been sold.
I literally broke down in tears when Susan talked about hope vs purpose and the idea of "pushing back".
It resonated so much with me because the current crisis can easily be perceived as a loss of control over our own lives.
So to have Susan paint this beautiful picture of participatory communities and citizens taking the initiative in creating the future that they yearn for feels really empowering.
I can feel a seed germinating inside of me that very much longs for being part of creating this future and your podcasts and videos are the rain and the sunshine for this seed. Thank you for sharing your work with the world, it matters!
Lots of love to you all ♥
Franziska I don't need to write anything, you said exactly what I am thinking ! Beautifully written , thank you.
"Though the problems of the world are increasingly complex, the solutions remain embarrassingly simple." Old Mate Bill.
You guys are heroes, keep these coming please 🤗 very much appreciated.
"I reserve hope for things that I don't have control over. I feel purpose." 44:00 Very powerful! Thank you!
We have to realise that on a planet with finite resources going forward we will have to use the old adage of less is more I think. The doco from Michael Moore The Planet of the Humans really turns your head around to make people think of the predicament we are in.
Watch the 'Just have a think' episode that analyses 'The Planet of the Humans'
I remember in my first engineering job having a discussion with the boss about the engineering process. I thought the first step was to clearly define the problem. Then he pointed out the first step is actually, get everyone to admit that there IS a problem.
INFINITE RESPECT FOR SUSAN! GOD BLESS YOU ALL!!
Such an interesting conversation, thank you ♥ my stepfather works as a prof of microbiologist and he has been talking for a long time that the current green energy options just aren't the answer and now I understand that argument more. I also thought through this interview about another UA-cam channel I watch a Swedish lady who lives in rural very north Sweden in a stunning natural area. They have been fighting for a decade now against the clearing of pristine forest there for humongous wind farms, meanwhile Sweden is considered an example of renewable energy by the world. Downscaling and community anchored living plus some varied green energy seems like the only way
This was incredibly thought provoking, thanks for sharing!
Was interesting to watch this after seeing "Planet of the Humans" by Jeff Gibbs and Michael Moore... personally, I'm fine with living with no electricity and living with the cycles of sun and moon, our natural lighting "system"... I feel after looking into food forests and regenerative ways of living and harvesting the natural energy of the land naturally, like the many ways permaculture has taught feels like more tangible solutions to me.
Obviously being a bit cynical but you need some electricity to watch this video..
Thank you so much guys, inspiring as always.
More photosynthesis and less consumption. Turn off the lights at night, the air conditioners during the day and more mass transit. Cover crops every where all the time.
I love how I got a targeted ad for Australian gas watching this. Great interview
This was an incredibly interesting introduction to professor Krumdieck's ideas. Another book for my reading list.
One thought about the concept of putting a cap on cars (etc.) as a way of ratcheting down CO2 (etc.) production: it is likely only possible at a city or local regional level, not individual nor country-level. At a personal level, there are probably already a LOT of people who have scaled back their consumption, who simply don't count in the overall statistics, because the statistics measure the consumption of people who ARE buying and using a lot. At the country level, this is a very difficult political approach to sell, and will simply cause any government trying to impose this vision to collapse and be kicked out of office. Implementing a cap requires broad consensus, and might be possible at a city scale - in some cities, some of the time, with the same sort of political problems in others. In large countries like the USA, with relative freedom of movement possible between cities, a lot of people are also going to vote with their feet, and live in whichever environment appears more prosperous. This means that the impact on WORK, businesses, and incomes needs to be factored in from the start too, and cities will compete with each other. Nonetheless, a "difficult" challenge does not mean "impossible"; I hope we can find civic-minded politicians who will implement ideas like this successfully. If the model can be made to work at a city scale in multiple locations, there will eventually be sufficient political impetus to get it implemented at a state/province and federal/country level.
I just came here cause Susan and I share the same last name lol, but I'm glad I clicked on this video cause these are some real issues we don't hear enough active solutions for and it's refreshing and inspiring to hear these conversations
Found this at last. This is very good. I first came across this
About a year ago, then lost it.
Yes to all of this!
Very interesting 👌👌👌👍
This video was so insightful about the true impact that humans have. Before this video I hadn’t followed the complete impact this “renewable utopia” would have. We must instead follow it through to the full impact of whatever actions we decide to take.
I also found it fascinating how one of the possible solutions was to move towards communal living that would cause less human movement on a daily basis. I think the sociological and psychological aspects of human life a crucial to understanding possible solutions to the current crisis.
Thank you all for the insightful and difficult work you do!
I have a dream of the world's cities and towns having the same high quality safe bicycle infrastructure as the Netherlands.
This is very interesting. Can you address the pollution from all the vehicles bringing our Amazon orders from around the world? Are we striving for self-sustainability? Can you address the garbage problem? Shouldn't every community dispose of its own waste? Are the number of vehicles the problem or the amount of driving? When you use electric, isn't pollution still created, just in a different place(at the power plant)?
Wow! great questions.
>Globalized, just-in-time shipping, Amazon... Yes, these are much more energy intensive than the way things used to be. The supply chain is one of the key areas for Transition Engineering. The 90% carbon downshift world does not have Amazon 'click, pay, deliver, get, throwaway packaging' in it. Amazon can be transitioned to a system that connects people with local producers in CSA type of systems that have multiple benefits of efficiency.
>Self-sustainability? In my book I explain how sustainability is actually the long-term system-level element of survival. But survival also includes safety and security. Human survival 99.999% depends on social networks in families, organisations, places and trade partners. So don't get too focused on self-sufficiency. It sounds like the answer to the failing of the global corporate supply chain, but let's keep our view at the systems level.
>Garbage is a massive problem, and always has been. Archeologists depend on the waste management systems of people throughout time (midden heaps) to have nice time capsules of human activity. Of course our current garbage profile is fossil fuelled, market driven, growth driven, and it is now a problem for so many generations in the future that we can't even contemplate it. Push-back! the garbage problem is actually an accumulation of design problems of materials, products, marketing, manufacturing, again global consolidated supply chains. Every community should push back and put standards on what materials and packaging and products are acceptable to be sold. All local communities have to deal with the waste that comes into their area.
>The number of vehicles, the km of roads, the number of km driven AND the lack of affordable housing integrated with work and services are all the problem. Our projects like this one: www.aemslab.org.nz/from_the_ground_up show that the re-developed urban form is so much nicer than the car one, that the transition can take off when the pieces all come together.
> All electricity production incurs environmental impact. So the frontline for downshift of impact is downshift of electricity use to focus on the really important uses.
What a call to action!
I like the suggestion to facilitate organically developed human place and infrastructural systems, and to prioritize long-term survival over unneeded (by the species) profit opportunities, that will end with reciprocal benefits for all members.
I cant wait to start planting the trees I'm growing
Engineering with a conscience. Conservation. Reducing consumption by choice, not waiting for legislation to force change, as governments today are fully in the hands of corporations, out to maximize profits for shareholders. Living thoughtfully, making responsible choices. Realizing the choice between quality of life and possibility for life to exist on this planet.
Great episode, and I like that it ended on a hopeful note!
I'm a change/improvement manager by trade, and have been practising the push back that the professor mentioned on supermarkets for some time now. It started by changing my buying habits and diet to remove plastic from my shop, and from there to avoiding super markets wherever possible. Where I'm having difficulty is promoting that idea to others. The ones who push back on my ideas are usually a) not interested/apathetic or b) happy/defensive about the with the way things are (or were, before 2020 happened). Do you have any advice on how to engage with these types of people, and maybe get them to think critically about their resource usage?
First Rule of Transition Engineering - Human Beings are not to be referred to as "Consumers". Just try it for a while. I believe that there was a presidential speech by Ronald Reagan where he called Americans "consumers" instead of "citizens" - well in the time to Reaganomics and Neoliberal ideas is stuck.
So if you and others are not "consumers" then you are customers. This means that in fact you are not helpless to just mindlessly consume what the market provides. That would be like a relationship in a cult. People are participants in markets. If you talk to people about how companies can easily be challenged to change their products to the way you want them, then maybe they will get that they have power and will think about what they want.
When you feel like you don't have any choice, and you can't do anything about it you are more likely to react uninterested or defensive.
So my advice is to talk to your friends about power to participate in how things are.
@@profkrumdieck Thanks for the reply.
Damn she's good! Give it! Absolutely! Smart woman. How did you find her!? Amazing.
Not just lower energy use, but ask what we are using the energy for. I'd like to see in her 100yr forecast if she added a no cost currency in the mix.
Transition engineering. Nice.
Money disempowers empowered change.
Sounds like (industrial) process design in a way. mix of a lot of disciplines, even outside of engineering
Siiiiiiick
Should look at riccarton Bush
What about hydrogen through hydrolysis? Even NASA seeks water in Mars for fuel to get back to earth. Several inventors (who are normally smothered by Big Money} have developed devices for internal combustion engines that produce hydrogen on board the vehicle, eliminating the need fossil fuels and also for the huge infrastructure needed for building and recharging electric cars. Magnetic repulsion is also a great source of clean energy.
How I wish she was vegan then all her hard work would be perfect, to make our world almost healed , for the future generations
The energy nanny-civilisation model didn't work - until all fossil fuel reserves are now depleted to the ground in a matter of 300 years...
Why not letting people know the real problem we all are facing: Thermodynamics;
"In any system of energy, Control is what consumes energy the most.
Time taken in stocking energy to build an energy system, adding to it the time taken in building the system will always be longer than the entire useful lifetime of the system.
No energy store holds enough energy to extract an amount of energy equal to the total energy it stores.
No system of energy can deliver sum useful energy in excess of the total energy put into constructing it.
This universal truth applies to all systems.
Energy, like time, flows from past to future".
Dr sabei
Technology offers solutions but comes with its own problems. If most people start growing some of their food in their backyard, front yard, etc., we will solve so many problems in the world.
When you grow your own food according to permaculture, you will promote your own health and the health of the planet, reduce energy and material consumption, and look at waste as a resource (e.g., compost).
Money v empowerment. This only shows Planet of the Humans is right.
We need to apply a qualitative wealth system, not a quantitative one. Comes down to a different qualitative exchange model. What do we create to empower the most people in the most sustainable way possible, to redundancy? ;)
Kate's book donut economics is hopeful bunk. She has no 'engineering' to get there. We iconise the hope of change, not solid trajectories for change. Looking forward to your book, Susan, but think about how exchange systems can make this easier.
Hi Swoon - Chapters 6 and 7 of the book "Transition Engineering, Building a Sustainable Future" deal with the inability of current economic models and beliefs to penalise unsustainable activities, and the transition economics respectively. I hope you can get the book and appreciate how it picks up from the donut economics awareness of having gone down a dead end, and makes a start a the pathway of downshift.
www.crcpress.com/Transition-Engineering-Building-a-Sustainable-Future/Krumdieck/p/book/9780367341268
The so called modern science and technology has accelerated the destruction of the earth?????
What's your idea on this.
The business plan and political imperative of continuous consumption growth is definitely enabled by science and technology. There is no way that humanity could have got all that coal, oil and gas out of the ground and into the air without mechanical, aerospace, civil, electrical, and chemical engineering. All those systems are going to transition to low energy use. That transition can be engineered by the professionals who currently design them and operate them, or it can be accomplished by collapse when it's too late. www.transitionengineering.org
This is top-down social engineering, for me, the worst possible solution. This assumes that the people at the top (very few people) have the same values and ambitions as the masses, and because climate change is a global problem, these few have to speak for everyone. Talk about a solution being MUCH worst than the problem.
I choose freedom and choice, even with the potential bad outcomes.
Luckily we have an energy option that she neglected altogether, advanced nuclear. (no, not what we are using now and in the past) Indonesia is leading the way using American technology invented and tested in the 1960s. Oakridge National lab proved the concept and the Nixon administration canned it for a technology that worked better in submarines and aircraft carriers. (Thorcon Power)
Molten fuel fission generates high output heat with hundreds of industrial applications, making electricity is just one of them. These are very simple reactors that utilize uranium, but more advanced versions will utilize our existing waste stores as their fuel. All of this at less than the cost of energy generated from coal in the third world.
Abundant clean, affordable energy gives people freedom which is the most important thing we could ever provide, even if the outcomes are not exactly what we planned or hoped for.
Vision of the future. Ye. Total;;y. Why I think futurists are a sham.