A model for rural decarbonisation
The Brae Rural Energy Hub was established as part of a demonstrator project funded by Innovate UK. It is a living example of how to accelerate decarbonisation in rural and remote communities drawing on the unique challenges and opportunities of each community to deliver real local benefits. Our team in Brae are putting this into practice, applying and refining the model with real world experience, and showing how community-led solutions, designed to meet local needs, can reduce carbon emissions and fuel poverty, even in the most remote parts of the UK.
The replication framework
The Rural Energy Hub model is about genuine community-led local solutions. No two Hubs will be the same. It is not about creating the exact same set up that we have created in Brae in lots of other places; it is about working with each community to first identify the needs, challenges, resources and opportunities in their area and then together designing a Hub that meets these needs and opportunities.
To support this, as part of the Innovate UK project, we created the Rural Energy Hubs Replication Framework, which is a process for planning, developing and establishing a Rural Energy Hub. This place-based approach created the Hub in Brae and we believe this model can be work well in communities around the UK and internationally.
