AURORA WORKSHOP/WEBINAR 30TH APRIL 12PM CET
UNIVERSITIES, SCHOOLS AND ENERGY COMMUNITIES
THIS IS AN OPEN MEETING AND FREE TO ATTEND – SIMPLY LOG INTO
https://shorturl.at/DicQZ

Please pass on details of this event to your networks and encourage people to attend. We are at the start of a citizen revolution in how we get engaged in the energy transition. We can all profit from this approach and make a major contribution to tackling carbon emissions.

DO NOT MISS THIS EVENT
REDUCE ENERGY BILLS AND LOWER CARBON EMISSIONS

AURORA WORKSHOP/WEBINAR 30TH APRIL 12PM CET
UNIVERSITIES, SCHOOLS AND ENERGY COMMUNITIES
THIS IS AN OPEN MEETING AND FREE TO ATTEND – SIMPLY LOG INTO
https://shorturl.at/DicQZ

Confirmed speakers from the European Union Include:
Directorate-General for:
• Education, Youth, Sport and Culture – Gyula Cserey
• Energy – Achille Hannoset – Keynote address
• Climate Action (Clima) – Monica Pisani
We will have speakers from:
• Spain who will share their experiences in setting up the first School based energy community in the country;
• Denmark – the first AURORA University based community energy in Aarhus;
• Ireland – Outlining plans for sustainable and local energy communities across the country; and
• France – talking about how schools could lead a European wide citizen science programme to tackle carbon pollution.
Breakout sessions will allow you to take part and they will be followed by a Q&A session where you can explore further with the experts on how you can replicate what they are doing. So make sure your school, your University is represented and join the energy revolution that will save money on energy costs, reduce carbon emissions, and allow you to invest in the energy transition. But best of all see the profits from the fossil fuel industry diverted back into your community.
WHAT COULD BE BETTER THAN THAT.

TIME TO CELEBRATE THE FIRST ENERGY COMMUNITY SCHOOL PROJECT IN SPAIN
The EU has set itself the ambition to “Develop a Citizens Energy Package to increase citizens participation in the energy transition and strengthen the social dimension of the European Union”.

In Spain the EU AURORA project is tackling climate change by putting these words into action at the Palomeras Cultural Centre School in Madrid, in partnership with the AURORA project and the energy co-operative Ecooo.

The school, managed by its own teaching staff, is embracing photovoltaic self-consumption and air source heat pumps to tackle the challenges of climate change for the benefit of its students and the educational community. More than 300 children in Vallecas will soon say goodbye to extreme classroom temperatures.
Backed by the AURORA Project, led by the Politecnical University of Madrid Campus Sur and supported through the European initiative of the same name, the school is now well on course to raise €150,000 in four months through a participatory loan campaign. This effort will allow the school to replace its outdated gas boiler, break free from fossil fuels and the energy oligopoly, and become the first school in the region to lead a citizen-driven climate revolution.

How will this be done?
The school will install 43 kWp solar panels and air source heat pumps to ensure proper climate control while reducing CO₂ emissions. The initiative improves the school's resilience to extreme weather, boosts sustainability, and reduces energy bills — savings that will be used to repay the loans at a 1.5% annual interest rate before tax.

How do citizens get involved in collective financing
Citizens participate in several ways. Anyone can contribute from €100, while university and vocational training students can invest from just €20. It’s also possible to invest in the name of minors, with consent from their legal guardians.
The minimum goal of the campaign to raise €50,000 has been achieved — with the solar panel installation as a priority. The second target of €150,000 will allow the school to cover all of its energy needs through the installation of the air source heat pumps. Funding has now reached €114,000 , enough to install one of the two air source heat pumps required. The push is now on to raise the remaining funds by end April 2025.

Ecooo: Citizen Energy for Real Change
With over 20 years of experience in energy justice, Ecooo was selected by the Politecnical University of Madrid to lead this project. They have a track record in collective self-consumption and energy communities, and are driving to build fairer and more democratic energy models.
Projects like this one show that energy transition is not only necessary — it’s possible with active citizen participation. Local communities can take control of their energy, reduce their environmental impact, and generate tangible benefits for everyone involved.

Join the change
If you want to help push the school to achieve its full ambitions and become the first school in Spain to undergo a full energy transition, thanks to grassroots citizens support, it is now possible for anyone in Europe to join and make a contribution. If you'd like to be part of this energy revolution and help build a fairer and more sustainable future, we invite you to join the AURORA Project. Complete the form at https://colegiocentroculturalpalomeras.com/formulario-inversion-program…
I have !
You will then see how it all works and perhaps, perhaps, be inspired to replicate what is happening in Spain, in your school, in your neighbourhood. By working together as a European Education Community we can trail blaze the energy transition. Just imagine the impact if the other 400+ schools in Madrid alone went down this path. But why stop at Madrid, any school in Europe can follow this model, you could be next !

Martin Brocklehurst
AURORA Project – Tackling Climate Change
EU Climate Pact Ambassador
PS If you want to find out more join the Higher Education, Schools and Energy Community online workshop on 30th April 2025 at 12.00-14.00hrs (CET)
https://videoconf-colibri.zoom.us/j/95738464568#success

WORKSHOP ON HIGHER EDUCATION SCHOOLS AND ENERGY COMMUNITIES
30TH APRIL 2025 12.00 – 14.00HRS
MEETING URL - https://shorturl.at/QCQ49
Come and join as workshop designed to show you how to set up an energy community in your school, your University.
Learn about the first school in Spain that has set up an energy community and is about to install renewable energy, both solar and air source heat pumps.
Learn about the first University in Denmark that has set up an energy community, funded, installed and now operates solar energy for Aarhus University and links it to the AURORA Energy Tracker app, helping students and staff to lower their own personal carbon footprints and to see the energy being generated.
Learn about the first school that is about to receive approval for an energy community to install solar energy in the UK and set a national precedent.
These schemes avoid any capital cost to the education budget, raise funds through share issues, lower energy costs for the site and pay a return on investment and still leave funds left for the next phase of the scheme.
What is not to like about diverting fossil fuel costs back into your community, cutting carbon emissions, lowering energy costs and leading the charge towards renewable energy.
The workshop is an open event and full details on the programme can be found at:
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1GhBGE0ye5WzW8-K3WFBwRm-k1HSKi6RX03B…
The event is supported by the EU policy departments, DG Energy; DG Education and DG Clima. Log in early to the event to avoid disappointment as spaces are limited to 300. Make sure leading members of your educational institution come and find out how they can be leaders in the energy transition in your community.
Spread the word through your networks about this event and imagine if every school and every University in Europe set up its own energy community what the impact would be.
Martin Brocklehurst
Project AURORA – A citizen science project tackling climate change
WE CAN MAKE A DIFFERENCE
2 APRIL 2025

POST ON THE EU EDUCATION FOR CLIMATE SITE
Call for Delegation Members
Citizen Science Global Partnership Delegation (CSGP) to UNEA7 5-12th December 2025 Nairobi Kenya.
The Citizen Science Global Partnership will be leading a self-funded global delegation of citizen scientists to the United Nations Environment Assembly (UNEA7) in Nairobi Kenya.
As part of our efforts to build a broader coalition of delegate members the CSGP would like to offer the opportunity to EU Education for Climate members to join the delegation. Spaces for delegates to join the CSGP delegation will be limited so early submission of your interest will be essential.
The Global Citizen Science Community has attended four previous UNEA meetings starting in 2017. Each has added substantially to the growth of the global citizen science community and to our strengthening working relationship with UNEP. As a direct result of attending UNEA we have:
• set up the Citizen Science Global Partnership, initially as a loose coalition of Regional Citizen Science Association and now as a fully-fledged NGO;
• developed and adopted a Charter for Citizen Science and multilateral environmental agreements;
• become an accepted part of the UN Science Policy Business Forum;
• gained recognition as a key partner with the UN major Groups and in particular the UN Major Group Science and Technology;
• set up and developed the World Environment Situation Room (WESR) Citizen Science Portal, building a close working relationship with the UNEP Chief Scientists Office; and
• seen adoption of citizen science as a method for delivery of the Kunming Montreal Framework for Biodiversity, the first multilateral environmental agreement (MEA) to recognise the value of citizen science.
This year for the first time the focus of our activities will be to make the case that UNEA needs to support global citizen science programmes tackling urban air pollution and climate change. We believe that educational institutions can play a major part in these programmes. In the lead up to UNEA7 we will be working to develop common global citizen science tools, techniques and data management systems with the aim of presenting these ideas at UNEA. Work on the common methods for climate change mitigation will be led by the EU Climate Pact Partner, AURORA – Tackling Climate Change
Potential delegates will need to submit their names to Martin Brocklehurst (martin.brocklehurst@me.com) who will lead his fourth delegation to UNEA7 and copy the E Mail to Ram Dayal Vaishnav (ram@citizenscience.asia) who this year is providing administrative support for the delegation.
As the delegation forms we will set up a series of meetings to plan the activities of the delegation and to support delegates navigate the UNEP application process (only members of accredited NGO’s can take part), resolve Kenyan visa issues and generally support delegates on their trip to Nairobi. As in previous years all delegates will need to self-fund their travel and accommodation unless EU Education for Climate Members can secure sponsorship for delegates or unless delegates can get Member State support.
Regards
Martin