SPEERI Academic Consultation Workshop
What a great week we have had at SPEERI HQ this week!
We hosted our first SPEERI Academic Consultation Workshop, bringing together a diverse group of academics from across the Energy and Engineering disciplines to explore collaborative research opportunities and shape future priorities. The event was designed to foster interdisciplinary dialogue, identify shared challenges, and build new alliances that could drive impactful research in Scotland and beyond.
The day began with a welcome and scene-setting session led by Claire Ordoyno, Executive Director of SPEERI, who outlined details of the integration, our mission, governance, and plans for the future. This was followed by insights from guest speakers Avijita Kharel of Innovate UK Business Connect and Alastair McInroy, CEO of Technology Scotland. They shared perspectives from the wider innovation ecosystem, highlighting emerging trends and opportunities for academic-industry collaboration.
Jennifer Smart, Deputy Director (Energy) at SPEERI, introduced the workshop format and led the remainder of the session. Participants were guided through two structured interactive sessions designed to move from individual discovery to collective insight.
In Session 1, participants mapped their research capabilities, the systemic challenges they address, and the shared enablers that underpin their work. The activity encouraged participants to articulate their unique contributions and begin identifying areas of commonality with others. This process helped surface early signs of synergy and potential collaborative hotspots.
Session 2 focused on building consensus within the groups and prioritising collaborative areas of focus. Each group identified patterns in the data, repeated themes, and complementary capabilities. They discussed where their research intersected most meaningfully and where combined efforts could lead to greater societal and interdisciplinary impact.
Throughout the day, the emphasis was on fostering open dialogue, mutual understanding, and creative thinking. The workshop format encouraged participants to move beyond disciplinary silos and consider how their expertise could contribute to broader systems and real-world challenges. The workshop was followed by a networking lunch that allowed participants to continue conversations and explore emerging ideas in a more informal setting.
Overall, the workshop laying the groundwork for collaborative research that addresses pressing Energy and Engineering challenges. Over the coming months the SPEERI team are planning a series of follow-on workshops that will taker a deeper dive into some of the emerging collaborative themes that will not only support wider activity planning and prioritisation but focus on delivering opportunity for our academic partners.
