More about our work in the energy system

Getting energy “right” is essential to create a sustainable world. If we don’t wean ourselves off fossil fuels it’s hard to imagine modern society operating within environmental limits. Forum for the Future aims to create an energy system that is fair, smart, flexible, resilient and [net] zero-carbon as soon as possible.

Our energy system often looks locked into its high-carbon ways. It’s dominated by a handful of powerful players; existing energy infrastructure and high cost barriers prevent new entrants and alternative solutions reaching scale; and established, ‘proven’ solutions are often preferred over innovative alternatives.

But change is coming: companies and communities alike are frustrated with the options available to them; powerful new players are sniffing around the sector; established companies are starting to explore new business models; small start-ups abound; and smart grids, meters and gadgets promise a radically different future.

Forum for the Future wants to accelerate that change. And we think we can make a difference because of our experience working with both established companies within the energy system and potential new entrants. But we’re under no illusions about the scale of the change we’re trying to bring about, and we know that we need to build partnerships and collaborations to reach our goal.

What needs to change

We think the transition to a sustainable energy system will require:

  • New low- and zero-carbon technologies – new energy production, distribution, storage and demand management technologies need to be brought online and up to scale.
  • New business models – and products and services (with an associated switch from selling units of energy to selling the services that energy provides, such as heat, light and power).
  • New financial mechanisms to channel investment towards innovative energy solutions.
  • The introduction of ‘smartness’ across the energy system (albeit in a manner that protects privacy and ensures system security) –.not just smart grids and gadgets, but smart behaviours and planning too.
  • Challenging the one-way relationship between energy ‘producers’ and ‘consumers’, so that ‘consumers’ interact with, and understand, energy much more thoroughly – and play their role in demand management, load balancing and energy generation.
  • Government policy (from macro-decisions around a new fleet of nuclear power stations, to incentives for households to invest in energy efficiency measures) to take account of long-term risks, rather than just focusing on short-term energy security.

What we’re doing about it

Our initial efforts will be focused on the following themes:

  • Bringing solutions to scale. We will develop a range of practical and policy approaches that will accelerate the transition of sustainable heat, electricity and transport solutions from niche to mainstream. We will also create a network of “sustainable energy scalers” working to crack this problem.
  • New financial mechanisms. We will work directly with investors, companies and communities to develop new financial mechanisms that channel investment towards sustainable energy solutions. We will initially focus on financing practical solutions that are appropriate for communities, and which incorporate community ownership.
  • New products, services and business models. With an initial focus on promoting energy services, we will help design the products and services that will bring about, and thrive in, a sustainable energy system. This will involve working with entrepreneurs, new entrants and ICT partners, as well as with established energy companies.

And, in 2011, we will launch the following projects:

The Energy Scalers network

Many potential sustainable energy solutions already exist and are being piloted, and many more have been proposed, yet few achieve mainstream success. We want to understand the reasons behind this and use this knowledge to develop and scale up sustainable solutions.

We will start by creating a network of ‘sustainable energy scalers’ to develop a range of practical and policy approaches to accelerate the transition of sustainable heat, electricity and transport solutions to the mainstream. This will bring together a broad coalition of entrepreneurs, innovators, financiers, policy-makers and many others to address the barriers to change.

Energy Services Frontline

Every day in the UK, local authorities waste money on gas and electricity to heat and light buildings inefficiently. Yet budgets have been cut and frontline jobs and services are under threat. Councils need to take a more innovative approach to buying energy – and there is a growing appetite for change that saves money.

Energy Services Frontline (ESF) aims to make innovative energy services the norm for local authorities across the UK. These range from performance contracts that guarantee energy savings, through to ‘pure’ service models, where suppliers provide services (such as comfortable and well-lit classrooms) for a fixed price. The project will bring together a consortium of key players to design and pilot workable models for energy services – and create the conditions for change across the country.

ESF builds on our successful Climate Finance project, in which we worked closely with local authorities to find smart ways to raise and use money to cut carbon.

The Energy Accelerator

History tells us that significant change does not often come from the companies which have found success in an existing system. We need to accelerate start-ups and promote new business models within the energy sector.

Through our Sustainability Accelerator – modelled on the ‘accelerator programmes’ for technology entrepreneurs pioneered in the US – Forum for the Future will offer an intensive programme for energy entrepreneurs to provide them with the business skills, connections and resources vital to success.

Building on our track record

  • Forum has a strong record around energy that we hope to build on and we have worked with both established players and entrepreneurs.
  • Our Gatecrashing the Energy Sector project promoted innovative sustainable energy solutions from outside the establishment.
  • We have experience of technical issues through projects like Refit West, which looked at how to retrofit private homes to reduce their energy consumption and piloted a model that can be rolled out nationwide.
  • We have tackled behaviour change in our work with the National Trust on Low Carbon Villages.
  • We developed and promoted new financial mechanisms to fund energy projects in Climate Finance and Funding Revolution.

For more information on our energy work, contact Iain Watt or Hugh Knowles.