CURRENT STATUS AND FUTURE PROSPECTS OF RENEWABLE ENERGY IN EUROPE

CURRENT STATUS AND FUTURE PROSPECTS OF RENEWABLE ENERGY IN EUROPE" 1. Context / background of the project. The lack of energy resources based on fossil fuels make it highly recommended to find out different ways of obtaining electricity through the implementation of renewable energies. Now that the coronavirus crisis has hit us, it is even more necessary to rethink an economic model that takes care of the environment, and an energy model that goes through the care of nature and ecosystems. We must develop an energy sustainability system which could stop the climate change. Citizens as well as all the productive and economic sectors should approve a very serious reorientation towards production and consumption patterns. It is necessary to take into account the economic factors over the use of renewable energies, not only their cost but also the different laws that govern in each country concerning the use of these energies and the possible influence of government through legislation on its use and their promotion campaigns. Moreover, the use of renewable energy would create employment and economic development without damaging the environment. All these circumstances reveal the importance of the objectives that, in 2018, and within the framework of this Erasmus project, our association set out. In this context, we have developed our project, from 2018 to 2021 (after the extension we requested, after confinement). 2. Project objectives. We consider that all the objectives that we set ourselves at the beginning of the project have been achieved. These were the following: - Carry out a research about current overall picture, ways of obtaining electricity at the regional and national level. - Compare among European countries the way each one faces the shortage of non-renewable resources. - Study our future prospects, gathering all the possibilities that new technologies can offer to support sustainable development. - Detect problems arising from the indiscriminate use of energy and its production, as well as possible solutions at national and European level. - Study the energy efficiency measures and the implementation in a regulatory and legal framework in each country. - Contribute to the economic development of our living space through the use of renewable energies, as well as the improvement of our living standard. - Raise awareness among students and the rest of the educational community about the use of clean energy as well as energy savings, which contribute to sustainable development. 3. Number and profile of the participants. - Coordinating institution: IES El Brocense. Cáceres, Spain. The project involved around 45 students (aged 15 and 16) in a direct way (reasearching, doing multimedia presentations with the results, participating in lectures, visits, exhibitions, films making, etc) and more than 100 students in an indirect way (as audience in the different dissemination activities). - Partners Schools: Szkola Podstawowa nr 157 im. Adama Mickiewicza Warszawa, Poland. Gymnazium, Praha 8, Ustavni 400. Praha 8, Czech Republic. Istituto Statale di Istruzione Tecnica Professionale e Scientifica. Porto Sant'Elpidio. Italy EK Kavalas. Kavalas, Greece. 4. Description of activities. All the activities carried out during the 30 monts of the project ((19 activities altogether) were encompassed into five action lines: 1. Study of renewable energies. 2. Economic impact of renewable energies. Promotion of the use of renewable energies in our living space. 3. Impact of non-renewable energies on climate. 4. Energy efficiency. Energy saving measures. 5. Legislation of each country. Influence of the different governments. All the activities carried out are listed on the project website: https://energyerasmus.org/ The following issues were debated during the meetings with school partners: -SCHOOL AND HOUSEHOLD CONSUMPTION OF ENERGY -THE ENERGETIC TRANSITION: WHAT'S THE FUTURE LIKE IN THE USE OF ENERGY? -ENVIRONMENTAL EDUCATION: THE IMPORTANCE OF WIND AND SUN IN OUR COUNTRIES -ECONOMIC IMPLICATIONS OF SAVING ENERGY -HOW TO PRODUCE POWER All the information related to these five debates is also collected on the website. 5. Methodology used in the implementation of the project. It was mainly active since all the information on the different action lines was searched and presented in a clear and concise way, using mainly foremost multimedia presentations. Students from the five countries involved in the projectl researched topics as: - renewable energy - electric cars - energy saving facilities and smart buildings - economic implications of a new energetic model - laws about saving energy. In Spain, most of the research work was made during tecnology lessons and economy lessons, by students involved in the project under the supervision of their teacher. In addition to the research work, students carried out awareness-raising work regarding energy saving, and disseminate the results of the project. This was done, most of all, through the following activities: - photography contest and subsequent exhibition. - making short films - design and publication of posters and brochures - reading sessions for books and newspaper articles. - contests. In these activities, the involvement of the teaching staff of the Image and Sound professional training and the coordination of the institute's counselor were very important. 6. Brief description of the results and impact of the project. Possible long-term benefits. All activities have been collected in a wesite created for this purpose: https://energyerasmus.org/ Twinspace was used to share documents, and to discuss several issues using the chat. The results achieved have been the following - Knowledge of clean energies versus fossil-based energies as the best alternative for the future. - Knowledge of the impact of non-renewable energies on climate. Actions to slow down and stop climate change. - Better understanding of the best energy saving measures that can be done in our environment, from home to our study or work place. - Research on each country legislation about this subject and the possible influence from the different governments. Importance of the financial cost involved in these energies development. The most important long-term benefit has been, in the case of the coordinating partner, the development of an energy saving plan for the entire school, which involves the management team, the departments of natural sciences, plastic education and professional training, and students in compulsory education.