Carbon Recycling Member gives a talk at U3A

The U3A (University of the Third Age) is an international movement whose aims are the education and stimulation of mainly retired members of the community—those in their third ‘age’ of life. There is no universally accepted model for the U3A. Its original conception in France as an extramural university activity was significantly modified in the United Kingdom where it was recognized that most people of retirement age have something to contribute and the emphasis has been on sharing, without formal educational links.

“On the 16^th of June I had the pleasure to introduce the topics of Bioenergy, biofuels and Carbon Capture and Storage to an avid audience from the University of the Third Age (U3A) of Edwalton and Gamston. Speaking at an U3A is always an extremely rewarding and inspiring experience: it is rare to find a public more invested and more curious than senior citizens brought together by their desire to learn. I was happily surprised that they specifically requested talk on Bioenergy, as it is a concept of capital importance which is often used in the context of sustainability and Net-zero emissions targets, but very rarely explained properly. Improving the literacy of the U3A group of Edwalton and Gamston, Nottinghamshire in these very important topics felt like a privilege. Indeed, I hope that my explanations will help them feel more confident in their consumption choices and their voting preferences. Preparing this talk gave me the opportunity to update my knowledge of global and national energy consumption patterns, and of the UK strategy to reach net-zero CO2 emissions. Even though it was done by videoconference, it also constituted a welcome human interaction in these times of social distancing, as well as a convenient break from writing up my thesis. All in all: amazing experience, 10/10 would do again.”

François Seys, PhD student, Synthetic Biology Research Centre – Nottingham