Hi guys!  Marina Ventura here. 

Map App and I are on a mission to explore how we might generate our own electricity in the future… and distribute it to local people around us. 

Wanna come too? Excellent!

We’ve been discovering that the National Grid is an amazing invention that helps get energy across the country to where it’s needed – and how the future grid will become smarter, cleaner and way more flexible.  The future of power won’t be just from giant power stations miles away… it’s going to come from right around the corner.

The future grid won’t be just about huge cables and massive power plants. Think mini power networks… tiny energy islands… whole neighbourhoods becoming mini power heroes!

Imagine powering your gadgets from an electric car… your school lights from solar panels on the roof… your local leisure centre generating its own wind energy and storing it in giant batteries… and your town keeping the lights on even if the main grid had problems! That’s exactly the idea behind local power and Going Local!

Whilst the National Grid is one of the great engineering achievements, making and moving electricity huge distances isn’t efficient. Some energy is lost along the way. 

Making electricity local – closer to where people live and work, means we actually need to create less electricity

And Going Local is not just about electricity. It is about communities taking more control over their future… and cutting bills too!

Just imagine… if there were solar panels on your school roof, your school would be generating electricity instead of buying it – saving money that could help with a school project.  And it’s not just your school – those panels could go anywhere – the local library, sports centre and even on the roof of the bike sheds!

Going Local can also create jobs. Engineers, electricians, maintenance crews, software designers, battery experts and builders could all work on local energy systems.

So instead of energy jobs being far away… community – large or small – could become part of the clean energy future.

And here’s an exciting fact… communities are already doing this RIGHT NOW! 

• In Wales, the Cambrian Village Trust has created a micro hydro plant, using flowing water to generate electricity.  They even transformed an old derelict building into a thriving community café.  So the project didn’t just create power… it helped bring life back into the community too!
• In Scotland, the Huntly Development Trust owns a wind project. Money it generates helps support local projects like protecting wildlife and improving community buildings.  Just think… the wind spinning those turbines is helping power the local area AND helping the local community grow stronger.
• And in ENGLAND, Staffordshire Community Energy is helping install solar panels on over 300 council bungalows.  That means lower energy bills for tenants and cleaner locally generated electricity.

“IT’S THE MIGHTY MICRO GRIDDERS!”

Hi Marina, we need your help.  How should we start planning a local microgrid?

Understanding the area that you want to build a microgrid is really important.  It’s always good to start with a map of the area.  So think of your neighbourhood – detail down all the houses, schools, amenities like hospitals and train stations, as well as shops and local businesses.

And don’t forget to include any natural and man-made features, like hills, rivers, parks and motorways.  When planning a micro-grid, we need to know what we might have to avoid or go under, over or around.

Marina Ventura… and the Micro-Gridders
Made with support from Grid for Good by the National Grid