News

New research will use space telescopes to monitor energy efficiency of buildings

8 December 2020

The University of Cambridge is one of 21 organisations awarded a share of over £7 million in funding meant to put the UK at the forefront of the latest advances in space innovation. The funding will support companies and universities with radical ideas for how we tackle climate change through earth observation or address...

New green materials could power smart devices using ambient light

3 December 2020

Researchers have developed environmentally friendly materials that could harvest enough energy from indoor light to power wireless smart devices. We are increasingly using more smart devices like smartphones, smart speakers, and wearable health and wellness sensors in our homes, offices, and public buildings. However, the...

BEIS launches the new MacKay Carbon Calculator

3 December 2020

The MacKay Carbon Calculator provides a model of the UK energy system that allows you to explore pathways to decarbonisation, including net zero by 2050. Using the MacKay Carbon Calculator, you can create pathways to find out how we might reduce the UK’s greenhouse gas emissions to net zero by 2050 and beyond. You choose...

UKRI award for Smart Sustainable Plastic Packaging from Plants (S2UPPlant)

19 November 2020

On 19 November 2020 UKRI announced 10 university-led research projects that will receive £8 million in funding from the Industrial Strategy Challenge Fund. The investment is part of the Enabling Research competition in the Smart Sustainable Plastic Packaging Challenge (SSPP). It aims to help tackle plastic waste in the UK...

Professor Peter Guthrie appointed Vice-President at the Royal Academy of Engineering

13 November 2020

Congratulations to Professor Peter Guthrie who has been appointed Vice-President at the Royal Academy of Engineering. Peter Guthrie is the first Professor in Engineering for Sustainable Development in the UK, and was the Director of the Centre for Sustainable Development from 2000 to 2016. He continues to work on various...

Launch - Green Recovery: A Blueprint for a Green Future

13 November 2020

Cambridge Zero was pleased to announce the launch of the “Green Recovery: A Blueprint for a Green Future” report this month at the Cambridge Zero Climate Change Festival 2020 . The report is an ambitious multidisciplinary report from the Cambridge Zero Policy Forum on how we can ensure a green recovery from the COVID-19...

Easy-to-make, ultra-low-power electronics could charge out of thin air

28 October 2020

Researchers have developed a new approach to printed electronics that allows ultra-low-power electronic devices which could recharge from ambient light or radiofrequency noise. The approach paves the way for low-cost printed electronics that could be seamlessly embedded in everyday objects and environments. Electronics...

THE ‘P’ WORD – Plastic in the UK: practical and pervasive … but problematic

2 October 2020

The Resource Efficiency Collective ( Dept of Engineering ) report, The 'P' Word, was released last week, which focusses on use of plastics in the UK. Plastics are ubiquitous in modern society, owing to their usefulness, durability and how cheap and easy they are to produce. This makes plastics both a blessing and a curse...

Cambridge to divest from fossil fuels with 'net zero' plan

1 October 2020

University plans to cut greenhouse gas emissions to zero by 2038. The University of Cambridge aims to divest from all direct and indirect investments in fossil fuels by 2030 as part of the University’s plan to cut its greenhouse gas emissions to zero by 2038, more than a decade before the date set by the UK government. The...

Whittle Lab research key for accelerating the development of zero-carbon flight, says Prince of Wales

27 September 2020

Last week HRH The Prince of Wales gave the opening address to the American Society of Mechanical Engineers Turbo Expo conference, the largest annual conference on the subject of flight and land-based power generation, due to have been held in London earlier this year but which is being held online due to the pandemic. In...