To highlight the role that chemical engineering can have in transitioning to a low-carbon economy, the Institution of Chemical Engineers (IChemE) will be attending two events in line with Climate Week Scotland from September 29 to October 5.
IChemE will be present at AREG SME Technology Showcase on September 30, highlighting renewable energy and the role chemical engineering has in the transition. The second event will be the North Scotland Members Group Annual Dinner on October 2, where keynote speaker Professor Paul de Leeuw, Director of Energy Transition Institute at Robert Gordon University, will reinforce links between academia, industry and policy.
IChemE is committed to providing the skills required for the clean energy and sustainability sector to succeed, with ethical engineering at its heart, and will play its part in highlighting Scotland’s role as a hub for renewable energy, hydrogen, and carbon capture utilisation and storage (CCUS). Scotland has a central role to play in each of these areas if the UK is to meet its potential of storing up to 78 billion tons of CO2 and creating 100,000 jobs in hydrogen to go alongside its offshore wind sector.
Under President Prof. Raffaella Ocone, Professor of chemical engineering at Heriot Watt University, IChemE is urging both Scottish and UK Governments and industry to prioritise recycling and materials resilience. This accompanies Prof. Ocone’s plan to embed ethics into engineering education and practice aligned with the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals, while emphasising the need for diversity to achieve these ambitions.
“Engineering is about systems thinking and creating sustainable solutions that benefit people and the planet,” explains Prof. Ocone. “Whether it’s advancing hydrogen technologies, developing cleaner manufacturing methods or ensuring access to safe water, engineers are problem-solvers working at the intersection of science, society and ethics.
“Chemical engineering is key to tackling global challenges like climate change, clean energy, healthcare and sustainable manufacturing. However, it cannot succeed unless it reflects the diversity of the society it serves,” Ocone added.
IChemE is committed to supporting a vibrant and thriving profession while also serving society through collaboration and knowledge sharing. This includes the development of the 2023-2028 IChemE strategy, which is built around engineering a sustainable world.
To find out more about IChemE’s sustainability commitments, read IChemE’s Engineering a Sustainable World document 2025-2028 strategy here.
