Conditioning Demand - Older People, Diversity and Thermal Experience

The goal of this project is to understand the diversity and dynamics of thermal experiences in an ageing society and their implications for current and future energy consumption. The project team will investigate the issue of energy consumption as a socio-technical phenomenon by unpacking the social and material dimensions of energy and carbon challenges related to 'thermal experience' in domestic settings in the UK and France. The empirical research follows two key forms of future change: the demographic trend of an ageing society and the development of energy-efficient technologies. Our aim is not only to understand the implications of these two key dimensions of social and technological change, but also to detect potential synergies, gaps, and mismatches between them as they relate to residential thermal experience.The methodological approach combines qualitative, quantitative, visual, and spatial methods in two work packages. In the first work package, the project team will interview older residents across a range of domestic living situations and socio-economic categories to understand the diversity of thermal experiences within this population group. Interviews will take place in the interviewees' domestic settings to allow the researchers to collect data on the spatial and material aspects related to thermal experience. In the second work package, the project team will study how older individuals are adopting energy-efficient technologies that alter thermal experience, including heat pumps, solar hot water, and mechanical ventilation with heat recovery. The researchers will again interview older residents in their domestic settings but will expand the interview pool to include those actors who are engaged in the promulgation of the energy-efficient technologies, including energy modellers, technology designers, installers, and building maintenance and operations personnel.The empirical data from the work packages will be systematically analysed by the project team using qualitative data analysis software and the findings will be disseminated on the project website, through academic and trade journals, and at various conferences. The outcomes of the project will be relevant to a diverse array of disciplinary communities, including scholars of sociology, architecture, urban planning, engineering, science and technology studies, geography, and environmental psychology. The researchers will also reach out to non-academic stakeholders including NGOs, community organisations, and the general public by elucidating the multiple factors that shape thermal experience. Finally, the project will build research capacity in the study of people, energy, and buildings by training four post-doctoral researchers as well as an interlinked cohort of doctoral students and EDF's research and development group.

Communication and engagement are principal ends and means of the project, both during the research phases as well as after the project is completed. The project team will use the research activities as an opportunity to dialogue with various stakeholders in policy, third sector, and professional/trade organisations on the tensions and synergies between people, technologies, and the built environment. Examples of relevant organisations include the Department of Energy and Climate Change, the Department of Communities and Local Government, Local Government Association, the Care Quality Commission, National Energy Action, Age Concern, Centre for Sustainable Energy, Heat Pump Association, and the Solar Trade Association. Stakeholder dialogues will be fostered through three workshops and a conference facilitated and led by the project team throughout the research project. The events will include presentations by the project team members and facilitated discussions to interpret and critique the findings as well as identify gaps in the research and opportunities for future study. Furthermore, the events will allow for face-to-face interaction amongst the stakeholders and serve as networking opportunities to develop new relationships with stakeholders, strengthen existing ties, and catalyse collaborative endeavours. Beyond the research activities and project events, the project team will engage with stakeholders through the project website. The website will initially serve as the key communication hub for the project team members and as the project progresses, it will evolve into a dissemination device for the research findings and serve as a site for debate and discussion about delivering and experiencing comfort in residential settings. Information on the website will be jargon-free and include general information pages as well as summaries of the findings and suggestions for future research. A third engagement approach will involve the dissemination of the research findings through written media. The findings of the project will be compiled in an EDF/EPSRC report and will also be submitted as articles to high-profile, peer-reviewed international journals aimed at academics and practitioners. These publications will integrate the qualitative and quantitative findings while also elucidating the importance of visual and spatial methods of research. Some of these written documents will also be available on the project website, such as a literature review, EDF/EPSRC report, and visual outputs of the empirical research such as network maps and photos from the field. Impact activities will be coordinated by the Principal Investigator and Research Officer with input and assistance from the project team. The Research Officer will be responsible for coordinating and managing the workshops, developing and maintaining the website, and maintaining communication channels both within the project team itself as well as with outside stakeholders. This individual will work in close contact with the institutional public relations, outreach staff, and press office to ensure delivery of the impact activities.