ISES-UK 50th Celebration
Over 50 people gathered at the Royal Institution, London, on Thursday, 18th September, to celebrate the formation of ISES-UK back in 1974. ISES board member Geoff Stapleton (SEIAPI Executive Officer) was invited to present on behalf of the ISES Board and ISES headquarters to congratulate ISES-UK on achieving 50 years of promoting solar research and the industry. He presented on the development of, and future plans for, the ISES Online Solar Energy Museum, which was launched in March this year.
There were twelve presentations throughout the day and a panel session. Presentations that directly related to solar in the UK over the last 50 years included:
- Bernard McNelis, one of the founders of ISES-UK, providing a summary of the achievements and events over 50 years of ISES-UK.
- Professor Nicola Pearsall and Dr. Nigel Mason summarised the development of PV over those years.
- Chris Hewett, Chief Executive of Solar Energy UK (Industry Association), provided an overview of the UK solar industry.
- Dr. William Gillett presented on the activities of the Solar Energy Unit (SEU) at University College Cardiff, which was established in the early 1980s.
- Professor Brian Norton summarised changes over the years of UK-ISES' existence, focusing on energy policy and its relationship with the diverse fortunes of three very different solar energy technologies: passive solar, photovoltaics, and solar thermal.
Closing remarks were provided by Dame Mary Archer, President and Founding Hon. Secretary of UK-ISES.
