Education and Skills Needs in the Renewable Energy Sector
2 April 2014 to 30 April 2014
The boom in solar photovoltaic (PV) and wind technologies has created a huge demand for skilled technicians to install PV, and to maintain and operate wind installations. There is also a pressing need for trained professionals within educational institutions to teach renewable energy courses, within governments to design and implement effective and efficient policies, and within financial institutions to accurately assess renewable energy project proposals.
The Clean Energy Solutions Center, in partnership with the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA), hosted these webinars on addressing one of the greatest barriers to the adoption of renewable energy technologies: the critical shortage of skilled personnel to develop, design, finance, build, operate and maintain renewable energy projects. The webinars brought together expert panelists from IRENA; Alingho, a human resources firm that supports companies in the fields of renewable energies, clean tech and sustainability to fill job vacancies; and the Clean Energy Solutions Center to address this topic.
Panelists
Nicolas Fichaux
Presentation
Nicolas Fichaux graduated PhD in offshore wind energy in 2003. He then worked as project officer for R&D on wind, marine and small hydropower at the French Agency for Environment and Energy (ADEME). In 2007, he joined the European Wind Energy Association where he worked as Secretary General for the European Wind Energy Technology Platform (TPWind), and later as Head of Policy Analysis. He joined IRENA in 2010, as programme officer for resource assessment, where he coordinated the development of the Global Atlas for Renewable Energy.
Stephanie Pinnington
Presentation
Stephanie Pinnington joined the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) in 2012. She is leading the work of the IRENA Renewable Energy Learning Partnership (IRELP), a project which aims to increase awareness of, and broaden access to renewable energy educational resources and opportunities. Prior to this, Stephanie worked in the City of Toronto Energy Efficiency Office. Stephanie holds a Bachelor of Science in Environmental Science from Queens University and a Masters in Environmental Studies from York University.
Axel von Perfall
Dr. Axel von Perfall worked for the management consultancy Roland Berger Strategy Consultants in Beijing and Shanghai and acted as consultant and project manager for more than six years in the Competence Center Marketing & Sales in Munich. After working for the international building materials group Lafarge, he founded his own company in 2007, ALINGHO, the first recruiting/headhunting company in Germany with a complete focus on renewable energies and adjacent sectors, which became the leading service provider in this industry.