Karen to change the way villages use their energy
A Kilanerin woman travelled to Athlone Institute of Technology last week to attend the third annual National Sustainable Energy Community event.
Karen Finigan, who went on behalf of Kilanerin/Ballyfad community, is a sustainable energy advocate who is committed to changing how the community thinks about and uses energy.
‘I moved to Kilanerin in March of this year and approached Tidy Towns and the Community Development Association about becoming a sustainable energy community,’ said Karen, who is originally from USA.
At the conference, Karen said they learned about different approaches on how to conserve energy, from big projects such as solar farms to small change of using different light bulbs in a house.
‘It gave me a sense of what needs to be done,’ said Karen. ‘There is many strands of energy efficiency and if we help each other out we can achieve it.’
Hosted by Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland (SEAI), over 200 communities are members of SEAI’s network. They are working towards a common goal to become more energy efficient, use renewable where possible and explore smart energy technologies.
The network has almost doubled in size in a year, as citizens and communities take the lead in reducing energy use in their towns and villages.
In 2018, thanks to €22 million Government funding from the Department of Communications, Climate Action and Environment, SEAI is supporting communities in the upgrade of over 1100 homes and 420 community buildings and business premises across Ireland.
Jim Gannon, CEO of SEAI, said ‘communities are at the forefront of Ireland’s clean energy transition’.
‘Communities see the benefits of their efforts through lower energy bills, more comfortable buildings, a boost in local employment, as well as helping the environment,’ said Mr Gannon. ‘The huge growth in the network is down to communities deciding that they want to control their own transition to a lower carbon future.’