13. Climate Stripes and Wind Turbine
Ben Watt, Undergraduate Student Prize Winner 2023
Ed Hawkins’ climate stripes visualisation of global temperature change is a simple yet effective representation of climate change, with its minimalistic colours conveying the trend of global warming. This version of the climate stripes incorporates the projected impact of various future greenhouse gas emission scenarios and illustrates how a reduction in emissions via a transition from fossil fuels to renewable energy can help mitigate climate change.
Island communities are particularly vulnerable to the threats posed by climate change, with energy security concerns also exacerbating issues. Renewable energy has significant potential to mitigate these threats, however, in the Isle of Man, renewable developments are lacking. My dissertation assessed the wind and solar energy potential of the Isle of Man by combining geographic information systems (GIS) and multi-criteria decision analysis, considering technical, social, environmental, economic and political factors in site selection. The study highlighted the Island’s significant renewable potential, and the climate stripes visualisation emphasises the need for this potential to be realised.
