April 24, 2017
In 2016, the province committed to 50% renewable power generation by 2030. To inform their long-term plans, SaskPower recently held a solar power stakeholder engagement workshop at the University. The aim was to gather input and then design the next generation of solar power programs in Saskatchewan. IEESC member Jiapei Chen, a Ph.D. candidate in the Faculty of Applied Science and Engineering, participated in the workshop.
The workshop provided an introduction to the province’s current energy mix, a comparison of renewable energy alternatives and opportunities, and a review of the results from recent interviews and surveys. Then participants were grouped into teams based on their area of study. Jiapei was in a group of graduate students from the social sciences and industrial and environmental engineering. Their goal was to develop a small-scale community solar program for 400 households in a central Regina neighbourhood. The teams presented their ideas to a panel of judges and Jiapei’s team won 1st place.