Outreach and Events

We are a research leadership project driving innovation for wave, wind and tidal offshore energy. One of our objectives is to ensure the next generation of engineers, scientists and policymakers are ready to fulfil the roles created by the clean energy transition. We aim to engage young people, particularly groups that are currently underrepresented in these sectors, with the exciting and growing marine energy sector.

A book to communicate offshore renewable energy to children

Gaia's Energy Adventure follows one girl's journey of discovery as she learns about the clean energy solutions that can mitigate the climate crisis. The book aims to communicate the often complex subject of offshore wind, wave and tidal energy to 4-6 year olds as well as encouraging girls and those from other underrepresented groups to consider a career in engineering.

The book was developed as a response to an equality, diversity and inclusion scoping study, which reported that gender beliefs and stereotypes are often embedded at an early age, and by the time children reach primary school (aged 4-5 years), they often have a firm idea of their place in the world - making this an important stage to tackle diversity issues.

The book - Gaia’s Energy Adventure - aims to help disrupt this trend by portraying the main character as a young girl of ethnic minority origin. Gaia explores the engineering and environmental aspects of offshore renewable energy and learns how these technologies can harness energy from the wind and oceans giving us a better, brighter future.

Devon County Show

Our stand was part of Innovation Avenue - a showcase of cutting-edge research. We enjoyed teaching children (and grown ups too!) how the motion of the waves in the mini wave tank is converted into an electrical current. Over the 3 days, we spoke to over 300 people and hopefully inspired some future engineers.

The Green Man Festival

Our tent in Einstein’s Gardens at the Green Man Festival is an interactive learning experience for young visitors where they can design their own wind turbines and learn about the buoyancy of floating offshore wind turbines. Every afternoon our researchers transformed into storytellers, reading Gaia’s Energy Adventure to the young visitors.

Marine Futures

We joined this event on the North Devon coast which is dedicated to introducing young people and their teachers to the exciting new careers in offshore renewable energy. This is particularly relevant for the local coastal communities in the area with proximity to the world-class careers in the floating offshore wind developments in the Celtic Sea.

The Journey to the Bottom of the Celtic Sea

"Journey to the Bottom of the Celtic Sea", explores the development of Floating Offshore Wind in the Celtic Sea. This video, which features Supergen ORE Hub Director Professor Deborah Greaves, and colleagues from the University of Plymouth, explores the proposed developments and enhances our understanding of the seabed, technologies and the opportunities it offers the South West.

Find out more about the Cornwall Floating Offshore Wind Accelerator project at the University of Plymouth.

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Educational Resources

To help young people engage with the amazing feats of engineering behind offshore renewable energy devices we offer educational resources including templates for designing a paper wind turbine, colouring designs and links to online videos.

For videos and other useful information to help young people learn about offshore renewable energy, visit the Educational Resources page.

To request our paper resources, please email us.

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