Abstract

The global transition towards renewable energy must be understood not just as an environmental or technological challenge, but as a multidimensional process with profound implications for human rights and social equity. Energy poverty persists as a critical concern in Europe, particularly in Portugal, where economically disadvantaged populations are disproportionately impacted by constrained access to affordable, sustainable, and clean energy resources. This communication examines the interconnections between renewable energy, community empowerment, and the human rights framework, with particular emphasis on the contributions of social work to fostering inclusive and participatory approaches. The "100 Villages" project exemplifies the efficacy of renewable energy in addressing energy poverty, generating economic savings for social institutions, and fortifying community resilience. The integration of renewable energy within the overarching agendas of social justice and sustainability signifies the recognition of access to clean energy as a fundamental human right and a prerequisite for dignified living. Additionally, it underscores the potential for social work principles, namely, participation, advocacy, and empowerment—to facilitate communities' navigation of the energy transition, thereby ensuring that no individuals or groups are marginalized or left behind.

Biography

Elsa Justino, holds a PhD in Social Work, with a master’s degree and a degree in the same area. She's an assistant professor at the Department of Political Science and Public Policies at the University Institute of Lisbon (Iscte-IUL) and an integrated research member at the Centre for Research and Studies in Sociology (CIES/Iscte - IUL).

Abstract

Renewables can be sufficient in quantity to provide energy services to the world but they are by nature low in energy density and intermittent in energy supply. With power battery technology increasingly competitive for household and small scale power storage, an integration of renewable power production, consumption and storage is proposed as a solution to acceleration of the ending process of fossil fuels. As a bottom-up approach based on distributed renewables, this Zero-carbon Energy Prosumerage System (ZEPS) generates zero carbon energy to satisfy self demand and supply surplus energy for the market, with the installation of a power battery storage and energy management system for reliable and quality absorption and release of intermittent power. Such a system can be installed at individual household level with solar PV panels on roof tops, or at collective community level such as a rural village, or an industrial part making connections of power generation, end use consumption and power storage in a unified system. An experiment case is constructed in rural Beijing and operates well. Such configuration can be further standardised as collective modules with multiple power producers sharing one power storage system, and mutually connected modules that integrate both individual and collective modules into "micropower grids", establishing a bottom-up network that contrasts with traditional top-down power grid infrastructures. This networked structure facilitates the development and deployment of renewable energy systems that operate independently of the conventional power grid's curtailment constraints, promoting zero carbon prosperity.

Biography

Jiahua Pan received his PhD from the Department of Land Economy, University of Cambridge, UK. He worked in the IPCC Working Group III Technical Support Unit for 3rd Assessment Report on mitigation and a lead author for the 6th Assessment Report on Mitigation in 2022. He worked as director-general, Institute of Eco-civilization Studies, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences until 2020 and has been professor of economics at Beijing University of Technology. He has published more than 300 papers/books in both English and Chinese and serving as vice chair of China’s National Expert Panel on Climate Change.

Abstract

Industrialization being advanced from the 18th century has improved a lot of material affluence, and has polluted and/or destructed the original quality of nature in the processes of extracting resources from nature, and producing/ distributing/ consuming goods and services. The current status of nature being polluted/destructed is termed the crisis of nature. The crisis of nature does not end in itself, but is linked to the crisis of human survival on the earth in that nature can exist without humans, but humans can’t survive without nature.

A wide range of human activities from lots of sources such as government, academia, enterprise, and NGO, etc. are promoting to continue the improvement of material affluence while maintaining the original quality of nature. In a word, this is the human activity toward co-existence between humans and nature being promoted in the name of sustainable development. In a broad sense, CCET 2025 is also one of them.

In such a context, this paper aims at explaining human impact on nature and its implications. In order to achieve the objectives, this paper will be composed of four parts as below.

Part 1: Human being is a species living with other species on the earth. The position of humans on the earth will be explained in relation to other species in order to identify what humans is on the earth.

Part 2: The effect of nature on humans will be explained. This is for understanding why humans can’t survive without nature. Two effects of nature on humans will be explained. One is the ecosystem services nature provides to humans, and the other one is how nature determine the mode of human existence on the earth.

Part 3: As the main component of this paper, human impact on nature will be explained. This is the explanation about the emergence of environmental problems leading nature to be polluted and/or destructed. Two issues will be explained. One is the mechanism of nature being polluted and/or destructed by human activities in the process of improving material affluence. The other one is the current status of nature being polluted and/or destructed in terms of individual indicator and synthetic indicator.

Part 4: As concluding remarks, the implications of polluted/destructed nature will be examined in terms of two aspects. One is to review the implication of industrialization. The other one is to review the concept and implications of sustainable development.

Biography

Prof. and Dr. Dai-Yeun Jeong is presently the Director of Asia Climate Change Education Center and an emeritus professor at Jeju National University in South Korea where he served as an environmental professor from 1981 until his retirement in 2012. He received BA and MA degree in sociology from Korea University (South Korea), and PhD in environmental sociology from the University of Queensland (Australia). Throughout his distinguished career, he has held key leadership and advisory roles, including President of the Asia-Pacific Sociological Association, Teaching Professor at the University of Sheffield in the United Kingdom, and the Acting Director of the Jeju Secretariat for the UNESCO World Network of Island and Coastal Biosphere Reserves. He has also contributed to national policy as a member of the Presidential Commission on Sustainable Development of the Republic of Korea, and as Research Associate of the Environmental Policy Commission for Sustainable Development at the National Assembly of the Republic of Korea. He has represented the South Korean government delegate as a delegate to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) and to the OECD Environmental Meetings. An esteemed academic and researcher, he is the author of 13 books including Environmental Sociology, and has published 60 academic papers in both domestic and international journals. He has conducted over 100 environmental research projects supported by domestic and international organizations.

Abstract

Energy poverty remains a persistent global challenge, disproportionately affecting marginalized communities and deepening existing social inequalities. This presentation explores how renewable and sustainable energy solutions can serve not only as technological advancements but also as powerful tools for social transformation. Through the integration of social justice principles and the practice of Social Work, we propose a multidimensional approach to address energy poverty that centers on community empowerment, equity, and participatory development.

Drawing on case studies and interdisciplinary research, this work highlights how decentralized renewable energy systems, such as solar microgrids and community-owned wind projects, can enhance energy access, reduce economic vulnerability, and foster local resilience. Furthermore, it examines the critical role of social workers in facilitating inclusive energy transitions, advocating for policy reforms, and ensuring that the voices of the most affected populations are heard and respected.

This contribution aims to articulate the gap between technical innovation and social intervention, emphasizing that a just energy transition must be both environmentally sustainable and socially equitable.

Biography

Helena Belchior Rocha, PhD in Social Work, is an Assistant professor at ISCTE- University Institute of Lisbon in the Department of Political Science and Public Policies and subdirector of the Soft Skills Lab and Director of the Transversal Competences Nucleos. Integrated researcher at CIES, Centre for Research and Studies in Sociology, linked to national and international research projects, namely 3 from Marie Curie Actions. She was pionner in Ecology and sustainability in Social Work creating the EcoSocial Model for intervention. Coordinator of the 1st year of Social Work Graduation,. Scientific Coordinator of the Cost Action Line - Digital Human Rights, and member of K-Peritia (culture ex pertize) Cost Action Line. Author of papers and communications at national and international con gresses, in the areas of social work theory and methodology, environment, sustainability, community Intervention, ethics, human rights, social policies and Well-being, education and soft skills. Member of the Editorial Board of national/international journals. Member of Inclusive Policy Lab UNESCO. Award of the Development Networks Award - Project "Promotion of Education for Global Citizen ship - UN17" (ISCTE-IUL / COI Foundation).

Abstract

Advanced materials based heterogeneous catalysis involving photochemical and photoelectrochemical water splitting is an ultimate source of hydrogen generation as renewable green energy for tackling the ongoing fuel crisis. Carbon based materials are ideal for overall water splitting as a result of the excellent alignment of its band edges with water redox potentials. However, a single catalyst with a limited number of active sites does not exhibit significant photo/electrocatalytic activity for hydrogen production. Therefore, we have developed the semiconductor heterostructures of carbon materials with oxides, sulphides, selenides, other TMCs/TMDs NPs and QDs as the highly efficient nanocatalysts for enhanced hydrogen evolution reactions. The monophasic heterostructures have been designed in different weight ratios with fairly uniform distribution of nearly spherical particles and high specific surface area which creates an interfacial charge transfer between two semiconductors. As prepared heterostructures showed significant hydrogen evolution which is evident by observing high apparent quantum yield, low onset potential, lower overpotential and high electrochemical active surface area that will be presented in detail.

Biography

Prof. Tokeer Ahmad is graduated from IIT Roorkee and Ph.D. from IIT Delhi. Presently, he is full Professor at Department of Chemistry, Jamia Millia Islamia, New Delhi since 2019. Prof. Ahmad has supervised 16 PhD’s, 88 postgraduates, 10 projects, published 228 research papers, one patent and three books with research citation of 10,010, h-index of 60 and i10-index of 186. Prof. Ahmad is active reviewer of 206 journals, delivered 220 Invited talks, evaluated 70 external doctoral theses and presented 139 conference papers. Prof. Ahmad is the recipient of CRSI Bronze Medal, MRSI Medal, SMC Bronze Medal, ISCAS Medal, Inspired Teacher’s President of India Award, Springer Nature Editor of Distinction Award, DST-DFG award, IIT Delhi Alumni Faculty Award, Distinguished Scientist Award, Dr. S. S. Deshpande National Award, Maulana Abul Kalam Azad Excellence Award of Education, Teacher’s Excellence Award, Elected Member of National Academy of Sciences India and Fellow of Royal Society of Chemistry (FRSC), UK. Prof. Ahmad has been figured in World Top 2% Scientists for consecutive five years since 2020 in both coveted lists including career long by Stanford University, USA.

Abstract

The observation that sea waves are an untapped energy source inspired our SEWAT (Sustainable Energy by Waves Trap) project. Wave energy is constantly wasted producing coastal erosion.

The key words are therefore:

• exploitation of a new energy source;
• fight against energy waste;
• sustainable use of natural resources and territory.

With the SEWAT project a plurality of goals are pursued, including:

• contribute to the energy transition by making sustainable energy available at low cost;
• effectively protect the coast from erosion;
• collect waste transported by the sea, helping to clean the marine environment;
• monitor the fish species trapped in the device before their release into the sea.

The characteristics of the SEWAT project are such that:

• fully reflects numerous Sustainable Development objectives of the UN 2030 Agenda (1.4 - 6.3 - 7.2 - 8.4 - 9.1 - 9.4 - 12.2 - 14.1);
• place it in the field of low carbon emissions technologies, due to the absolute lack of production of waste, waste water and CO2;
• it is absolutely free from risks, even accidental, for the environment and for the community and involves the use of easily available common materials;
• it is scalable and replicable. Modularity allows the creation of systems of any power, combining individual independent and autonomously productive modules;

DESCRIPTION OF THE PROJECT:

the construction of a succession of modular tanks placed in the sea, partially submerged, is planned.

Each tank is equipped with a wall exposed to the waves, suitably equipped, capable of capturing the water of the waves crashing on it. The collecting wall has numerous openings equipped with mobile gates which, under the action of each wave, open allowing the water to enter the tank which is then filled.

During the ebb phase of the wave, the gates close, preventing the water from exiting the tank.

ENERGY PRODUCTION:

energy is produced in three ways with the same device:

• exploiting, through turbines, the flow of water accumulated in the tank towards the sea, as happens in hydroelectric plants;
• exploiting the movement of mobile gates;
• exploiting the water hammer that is generated in the moving mass of water;
• using floats to exploit the variation in the water level inside the tank.

The system is innovative. We estimate that a 50-meter module can produce 5,500 MWh/year of sustainable energy.

Biography

Giulio Teodoro Maellaro was born in Brindisi (Italy) in 1955. He graduated in mechanical engineering from the University of Padua (Italy). He was an officer in the technical services corps of the italian army in the motorization sector. He taught thermotechnics and heating systems in industrial technical institutes. At the “Carnaro” Nautical Institute in Brindisi he taught marine machinery, on-board technical systems and mechanical technology. Expert in sustainable energy and energy transformations. Freelance designer engineer in the construction, plant engineering and energy saving fields. Convinced advocate of the need to immediately implement the energy transition. He created the SEWAT (Sustainable Energy by Waves Trap) device to obtain sustainable energy from sea waves.

Abstract

Le document dresse un état des lieux approfondi du capital humain, du secteur de la formation, et des énergies renouvelables au Sénégal dans la perspective de la Stratégie Nationale de Développement (SND) 2025-2029 et de la vision « Sénégal 2050 ». Il met en lumière les défis structurels liés à l’éducation, à la formation professionnelle et à l’adéquation en l’offre de formation et les besoins du marché du travail, en particulier dans le secteur des énergies renouvelables, considéré comme porteur d’emplois et de transition verte.

Sur le plan démographique, le Sénégal est marqué par une population jeune (+75% ont mois de 35 ans), un taux élevé de jeunes sans emploi, ni formation, ni éducation (NEET -46,8 %), et un indice de capital humain encore faible (0,42 en 2020). Le système éducatif présente des limites notables : faible taux de scolarisation dans l’enseignement supérieur, taux d’abandon élevé et insuffisance de la réorientation vers les filières professionnelles.

Le développement de la formation professionnelle (FPT) progresse mais restes-en deça des besoins : l’offre est encore concentrée sur les métiers tertiaires et peu adaptée aux spécificités des territoires. L’enseignement supérieur s’est élargi avec la création d’université et d’Institut Supérieur d’Enseignement Professionnel (ISEP), mais les formations sont souvent peu orientées vers l’employabilité immédiate.

Le secteur des énergies renouvelables au Sénégal connait une croissance rapide : en 2023, il représente 27,35 % de la capacité installée (525 MW), avec une forte progression dans le solaire (47,37 %) de la production renouvelable), l’éolien (29,83 %) et l’hydroélectricité (22,74 %). Le potentiel est immense, 45 GW en éolien offshre, 2 900 GWh en bioénergie, et une irradiation solaire favorable pour le développement du photovoltaïque (PV – 5,7 kWh/m²/j).

Les politiques publiques, via l’ASER, l’ANER et la SND 2025-2029, visent à renforcer l’électrification rurale, diversifier le mix énergétique, favoriser la transition énergétique juste (JETP) et promouvoir des pratiques durables. Toutefois, l’offre de formation dans le domaine des énergies renouvelables reste insuffisante. Les formations manquent de spécialisation (notamment en éolien, hydroélectricité et bioénergie), de contenus adaptés, d’équipements pédagogiques, de stages pratiques et de formation duale.

Les besoins sont critiques en techniciens, installateurs, maintenanciers, ingénieurs spécialisés, conseillers en maitrise de l’énergie, etc. Le Sénégal prévoit la formation de 700 000 techniciens d’ici 2029 et de 5 millions d’ici 20250, ainsi qu’un million de jeunes qualifiés en formation duale d’ici 2034.

Le développement d’une offre de formation technique et professionnelle adaptée aux énergies renouvelables est essentiel pour réussir la transition énergétique, améliorer l’insertion professionnelle des jeunes et soutenir les objectifs de croissance inclusive et durable du Sénégal.

Biography