Acadia Center held a forum on Envisioning Our Energy Future in Boston on February 24th. The event was intended to help foster thought-leadership in the energy space, bringing together stakeholders and experts for a discussion of timely topics, with three panels and a lunch speaker.

A highlight of the day was the keynote presentation by Klaus Vesløv, developer of a smart grid pilot program on the Danish island of Bornholm, the first pilot in the EU to focus on how customer behavior impacts grid modernization efforts. The ECOGRID pilot is one of the foundations for fulfilling the Bornholm strategy of being 100% fossil free by 2025, and becoming a Bright Green Island. With Denmark as a whole setting the goal to be fossil free by 2050, reforms are underway to use wind turbines as the foundation of the grid and electrify heating and transportation.  Mr. Vesløv shared inspiring ideas and lessons from his work on this project.

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Klaus Vesløv, Keynote Speaker, Envisioning Our Energy Future Forum

The three panels of the day featured presentations from stakeholders with a wide range of expertise in the energy fields, and discussions of:

  • visions of the future and identify key steps to achieving it
  • recent examples of competition and reduce transmission and distribution costs
  • current efforts to utilize targeted efficiency investments and consider challenges to efficiency program design and implementation

 

Full agenda and presentations available here.

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Acadia Center’s Abigail Anthony and “Utility of the Future” panelists

The event was also a public debut for Acadia Center’s UtilityVision, which provides comprehensive recommendations for decision-makers to advance a modern, consumer-friendly and environmentally-friendly electric grid. These recommendations contributed to the conversation at the event.

Acadia Center is grateful to the panelists and attendees who made this day a success and looks forward to more events in the future.

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Attendees engaged in Q&A with panelists at the forum