Helmcke, Cornelia

I am Senior Policy Fellow at the Centre for Energy Ethics. As political ecologist, I have studied various land use struggles associated with global net zero ambitions and am committed to community and policy engagement in finding just transition pathways.

In my most recent research ‘Beyond a grid constrained world’, I have explored, together with Scottish island communities, the current restrictions to the central electricity grid in delivering governmental net zero targets. The project uncovers contradictions between the different net-zero schemes, carbon offsetting and renewable development, and their clashes with local realities of energy poverty and insecurity. The project was funded by the Scottish Research Alliance for Energy, Homes and Livelihoods.