Meet Ash, our new Electric Vehicle Infrastructure Specialist!

We are buzzing to share the news that we have a new team member, Ash Burton, who will be leading on all things electric vehicles as our Electric Vehicle Infrastructure Specialist. Read on to learn more about Ash’s route to DG Cities and the exciting projects she’ll be working on…

I’m thrilled to have joined the team at DG Cities to start a new chapter as their Electric Vehicle Infrastructure Specialist. My academic background in environmental geography and career in consultancy feel like the perfect match for the challenge.

My interest in how innovative technologies can support sustainable development started at Northumbria University in Newcastle. After graduating, I headed south, to London, to start my career as an Electric Vehicle Consultant, working with local councils to identify and develop databases of locations for charging points. I was also lucky to have a secondment to the Behavioural Change team at the London Borough of Waltham Forest to help facilitate their cycle hangar programme. This insight into the workings of the council will stand me in good stead - the team’s experience collaborating with local government is one of the things that sets DG Cities apart.

I have joined DG Cities at a great time - we’re starting three exciting new EV projects, involving fleet electrification, expanding electric mobility and improving charging solutions. And I have been out and about already! Last week, I was down in the South West with Kim, working on our Rural Electric Mobility Enabler (REME) project, which is funded by Innovate UK and aims to explore some of the barriers to and opportunities for growing electric mobility in rural areas. One of the specific challenges in a county like Devon is managing high demand for charging points during the busy summer months. DG Cities is working with Devon County Council, EDF Energy, Bonnet and Field Dynamics to promote and support electric mobility growth and build more confidence in accessing charging points through innovative solutions. Our mission is to understand what residents and visitors need to feel confident choosing electric vehicles - and how and where these needs could be met.

My first few weeks have been truly amazing and completely reinforced my desire to work in the sector. The team has been really welcoming too - I’m enjoying working with everyone in person, now that we have started to venture back into the office. Over the next few months, I’m looking forward to drawing on my own experience, learning and exploring new opportunities in the world of electric vehicles. I can’t wait to see what my next chapter at DG Cities brings!

If you would like to learn more about how we help clients harness the potential of technologies like EV, please get in touch at [email protected].

Urban Innovation at the Front Line: September at DG Cities

After the excitement of August (read all about it here if you haven’t already), September had a lot to live up to. But it more than rose to the occasion, with an action packed month of events, conferences and awards.  So, today on the blog we’re rounding up the highlights that made this an especially memorable month.

After 18 months of virtual events and conferences we were excited but also a little bit nervous to be heading to Cenex. Those in the mobility industry will know that Cenex  is one of the big events of the year, with a large technology exhibition, an incredible speaker programme and options to see and sometimes even to go for a spin in the latest new low carbon vehicles.

But this year’s event wasn’t just about listening and exploring. Not one but two of our CAV research and development projects were there - Projects Endeavour and D-RISK - and it was amazing to see the projects side by side in the Innovate UK area.

D-RISK has a big goal: to create the world’s largest library of driving “edge cases” - situations that are unusual or unexpected but could be dangerous. These can then be used in simulation to train autonomous vehicles, ensuring they can safely respond and manage these situations on our roads.   It was fascinating to be at Cenex and discuss our objectives from this project with an extremely well informed group of people. We were also happy to collect some new and unique edge cases along the way - one from an ambulance driver about the perils of trying to navigate past drivers wearing headphones and another from a motorcyclist who was unlucky enough to be behind a wobbly grain-spilling combine harvester.   If you’re interested in knowing more about the project and our research into public perceptions around AVs then check out our recently published Insights report here.

Another highlight from September was the Connected Britain conference. Our Head of Telecoms Mark Pearson was there to hear the latest on next generation broadband technologies, including fibre and 5G. We were thrilled to be in the running for a Digital Skills award in recognition of our work reducing digital exclusion in Greenwich as part of the Community Champions project. Sadly the top prize wasn’t ours but went to a very deserving St Mungos project. 

We had more luck elsewhere as this month we learned that DGC was named Innovator of the Year at the SME Energy and Power Awards. Thanks to SME News for the recognition!

We’ve got an extremely busy next few months lined up and to help us on the way the team is growing again. We are looking for a behavioural scientist interested in cities, inclusive tech and sustainability.  If that sounds like you  then check out our jobs page. 

Countdown to COP26

You’ve probably heard a lot about COP26 this year and might wonder what it is and what it might mean for you. We’ve taken a closer look and have outlined below why COP26 is one of the most important events in the global climate change policy agenda:

What is COP26? 

We’re nearly a month away from this year’s United Nations’ Conference of Parties, COP26, a global leadership summit on climate change topics. 

This year’s climate change conference will take place in Glasgow, Scotland, with the UK acting as a president of COP26. World leaders - alongside negotiators, government representatives, businesses and citizens - will visit Glasgow on October 31st for twelve days of important discussions about the global climate change crisis.

Why is it crucial? 

In 2015  the Paris Agreement was signed in which global leaders committed to developing plans called National Determined Contributions (NDCs), outlining how they would reduce their emissions.

COP26 marks five years since the signing of the agreement. 197 countries will be required to update their NDCs with much more stringent and ambitious targets that will ultimately aim to limit global warming to 1.5 degrees by 2050. This process will occur through negotiations between the different countries. 

In detail, at COP26: 

1. Countries will present ambitious 2030 emissions reductions targets that align with reaching net zero by 2050.

2. Countries will present plans demonstrating how they are adapting to climate change. Countries will need to support citizens that are most affected by climate change. 

3. Developed countries must present $100 billion in climate finance to support developing countries meet their net-zero commitments.  

4. The UK, as COP26 President, must negotiate and finalise rules that will enable the Paris Agreement commitments to be met. 

Why do we need to act now more than ever? 

Recently, the United Nations’ Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) published the sixth assessment report on climate science, which summarises the physical science for climate change from thousands of peer-reviewed studies. 

The report is stark and ominous, and provides strong evidence to demonstrate that humans are responsible for causing this widespread climate destruction, much of which is irreversible. The impacts of climate change can no longer be ignored. 

The report also highlights that the current NDCs outlined by countries to achieve net-zero are not sufficient enough to keep warming below 2 degree celsius; further proving why COP26 is so important. 

The IPCC stresses that if net-zero CO2 emissions are not reached by 2050, and there isn’t an overall reduction in global greenhouse gas emissions, then the 1.5 and 2 degree limits set out in the Paris Agreement will be reached before 2040.

Reaching net-zero requires collective effort from countries to shift to renewables, and to reduce emissions from practices with a high global warming impact: agriculture, particularly meat farming, fossil fuel production and waste management. 

Reducing greenhouse gas emissions will help us minimize the catastrophic weather risks of global warming - including sea level rise, glacier melting, rainfall, floods and droughts. 

DG Cities and Net-Zero 

 DG Cities is an innovation company that is focused on supporting cities and communities to capitalise on the benefits of technology and data. As a company we have  worked on a number of major projects relating to the transition to a low-carbon future ranging from net-zero housing, decarbonisation and fleet electrification (Birchmere & ERCV), to support local councils such as the Royal Borough of Greenwich meet their carbon reduction targets. 

In recognition of our work in electrification we’ve also recently been awarded further funding that focuses on fleet electrification in Greenwich, London and Devon, Cornwall. This is exciting as we will be exploring both urban and rural applications of this vital technology.

COP26 is an important global milestone on the journey towards a low-carbon future. As the world looks expectantly on, many will wonder how the discussions and meetings in Glasgow will translate into practical changes in the day-to-day lives of citizens and businesses. We’re here to help, so at DG Cities we’ll be keeping a close eye on the discussions and working hard to make sense of what COP26 will mean for UK towns and cities. Follow our blog to find out more.