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Mags Tingey

Mags Tingey
Name
Mags Tingey
Title
Research officer and PhD researcher
Address
2.27 Chisholm House High School Yards Edinburgh UK EH1 1LZ
Telephone
+44 (0)131 650 8093 Margaret.tingey[at]ed.ac.uk
Research Interests
Local energy governance and organisation (LEGO), District Energy, energy policy and politics, local government, energy and society, cities
URL
http://www.sociology.ed.ac.uk/people/staff/mags_tingey

I'm a part-time PhD researcher and Research Officer in the Heat and the City research group. My research is about local government strategies for investment in low carbon energy. Access research on sustainable heating for low energy buildings and cities at our new research group website: https://heatandthecity.org.uk.

Current Research Projects

Local Engagement in UK Energy Systems project is co-funded by the Energy Technologies Institute and part of the UK Energy Research Centre Phase 3. The research examines the current and future contribution of local authorities to a low carbon, affordable and secure UK energy system.

The research: reviewed local authority engagement with energy across Europe; used secondary data to develop a new database about energy and carbon plans and investments in energy initiatives for all UK local authorities (building on a pilot study); and, collected new primary data with 40 case study local authorities in the UK.

The Report is available here

The blog Local Authorities play key role in providing clean energy for all summarises our findings

Our 2017 Highlights Report is available here

The research builds on a pilot study on Local Engagement with Energy Systems which involved mapping the extent of local authority energy and carbon plans and energy projects (see report here). This was done by creating a new UK-wide database using holding information on local authority activity in energy systems.

Doctoral Research

  • PhD, part-time, Working Title: ‘How does the market instrument of Best Value shape Local Governance of energy initiatives?’

My research concerns the capacity of local government actors to assemble investment in low carbon energy systems. Specifically, I am examining the interactions of market-based governance with local authority energy initiatives using economic sociology concepts of ‘valuation’ to investigate valuation practices in developing local sustainable energy projects. I am using the Best Value framework for local government as one object of investigation.

Supervisors: Professor Jan Webb and Dr Dave Hawkey

Knowledge exchange networks

I currently support the Scottish Heat Network Partnership Practitioner Group (with Dave Hawkey) and have also been the support officer for the UK district energy vanguards network, a UK-wide knowledge exchange network whose core consists of local authorities and housing associations actively developing or operating district energy systems.

In the blog post Running Public Consultation events: Heat and Energy Efficiency Strategies and Regulation of District Heating we reflect on the Consultation on Heat & Energy Efficiency Strategies, and Regulation of District Heating held by Scottish Government in association with the Heat Network Partnership Practitioner Group.

Previous Research Projects

For our Heat and the City project I worked on householder surveys looking at experiences of heating, and of a newly installed district heating system in Glasgow and community heating in Edinburgh. Heat and the City is led by Professor Jan Webb and funded by the RCUK Energy Programme.

Our Project Brochure is available here.

Our short article about the householder survey published in the ESRC Britain in 2015 is available here (download the Environment section for 2015).

In the blog post District heating: can we fix the plumbing of cities for sustainable futures? we discuss the implications of heat networks and how more sustainable heating provisions can be created. It draws on the book Sustainable Urban Energy Policy: Heat and the City published by Routledge in 2016 (see below).

Publications

Books

Hawkey D, Webb J, Lovell H, McCrone D, Tingey M, and Winskel M (2016) Sustainable Urban Energy Policy: Heat and the city. Abingdon: Routledge

Articles

Creamer M, Eadson W, Van-Veelen B, Pinker A, Tingey M, Braunholtz-Speight T, Markantoni M, Foden M, and Lacey-Barnacle M (2018) Community energy: Entanglements of community, state, and private sector. Geography Compass,  12(7) e12378 https://doi.org/10.1111/gec3.12378

Webb J, Hawkey D, McCrone D, and Tingey M (2016) House, home and transforming energy in a cold climate, Families, Relationships and Societies, 5(3) (Special Issue on Families, Relationships and the Environment: Climate Change, Sustainability and Biodiversity), p411-429 https://doi.org/10.1332/204674316X14758447787663

Webb J, Hawkey D, and Tingey M (2016) Governing cities for sustainable energy: The UK case, Cities, 54 (Special Issue on Cities, Energy and Climate Change Mitigation), p28-35 http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.cities.2015.10.014

Reports

Tingey M, and Webb J (2018) Who else will need to deliver? The role of community and local institutions. In: Lloyd H. eds. A distributed energy future for the UK: An essay collection. London: Institute for Public Policy Research

Hawkey D, Tingey M, and Webb J (2018) Workshop report International workshop on public ownership of energy. Edinburgh: University of Edinburgh

Webb J, Tingey M, and Hawkey D (2017) What We Know about Local Authority Engagement in UK Energy Systems: Ambitions, Activities, Business Structures & Ways Forward. London, UK Energy Research Centre and Loughborough, Energy Technologies Institute.

Tingey M, Webb J, and Hawkey D (2017) Local Authority Engagement in UK Energy Systems: Highlights from Early Findings. Loughborough and London: The ETI and UKERC

Tingey M (2017) Local Heat & Energy Efficiency Strategies and Regulation of District Heating: Draft workshop report to Scottish Government. Edinburgh: University of Edinburgh

Contributor to: Hawkey D (2016) District Heating coordination and development: Workshop report. Edinburgh: University of Edinburgh

Hawkey D, Tingey M, and Webb J (2015) Next steps for district heating in Scotland: Workshop report. Edinburgh: University of Edinburgh

Contributor to: Hawkey D (2014) District Heating and Regulation in Scotland: Workshop report. Edinburgh: University of Edinburgh

Hawkey D, Tingey M, and Webb J (2014) Local Engagement in UK Energy Systems. Loughborough: UK Energy Technologies Institute

McCrone D, Hawkey D, Tingey M, and Webb J (2014) Bringing Warmth to Wyndford: Does the new district heating make a difference? Edinburgh: University of Edinburgh

Contributor to: Hawkey D (2013) District Heat Policy Options in the UK: Workshop report. Edinburgh: University of Edinburgh

McCrone D, Hawkey D, Tingey M, and Webb J (2013) Bringing Warmth to Wyndford: The experience of owner-occupiers. Edinburgh: University of Edinburgh

Webb J, Tingey M, and Hawkey D (2013) Next Steps in Financing District Energy: Workshop report. Edinburgh: University of Edinburgh

McCrone D, Hawkey D, Tingey M, and Webb J (2012) Bringing Warmth to Wyndford: Wyndford Survey Preliminary Results. Edinburgh: University of Edinburgh

All reports are available at the Heat and the City website http://www.heatandthecity.org.uk/

Consultation responses

Tingey M, Braunholtz-Speight T,  Hawkey D, McLachlan C, and Webb, J (2018) Welsh Government Locally owned renewable energy: A call for evidence Response from the UK Energy Research Centre. London: UKERC

Hawkey D, Bush R, Tingey M, and Webb, J (2018) Response to Scottish Government’s “Second consultation on local heat & energy efficiency strategies, and regulation of district and communal heating”. Edinburgh: University of Edinburgh

Webb J, Hawkey D, Bush R, and Tingey M (2017) Heat & Energy Efficiency Strategies, and Regulation of District Heating Response to Consultation from the Heat and the City Research Team, University of Edinburgh. Edinburgh: University of Edinburgh

Bush R, Hawkey D, Kerr N, Tingey M, Wade F, and Webb, J (2017) SEEP consultation response: Energy Strategy - Scotland's Energy Efficiency Programme (SEEP) National infrastructure priority for energy efficiency. Edinburgh: University of Edinburgh

Watson J, and Winskel M, ed (2017) 'Scottish Energy Strategy: The Future of Energy in Scotland', UKERC response. London: UKERC

Recent Presentations

The energy leaders and laggards in UK local authorities: An institutional analysis of local energy governance and prospects for energy innovation in UK towns and cities. Paper presented at the Leibniz Research Alliance Energy Transitions International Conference Breaking the Rules! Energy Transitions as Social Innovations, Berlin, June 2018.

Ownership models and business structures in UK Local Authority energy initiatives. Presentation at the Heat and the City International Workshop on Publicly Owned Energy Companies, Edinburgh, May 2018.

UK Local Authority Action on Energy. Speaker at the UK District Energy Vanguards Network Event on Developing Your Heat Network Business Case, Leeds, January 2018.

UK local authorities’ engagement with heat networks. Speaker (with David Hawkey and Janette Webb) at the UK Government Department for Business Energy & Industrial Strategy Heat Network Investor Conference, London, September 2017.

Measurement, stakes, and implications in the valuing of the benefits of decentralised energy systems. Paper presented at the CSPS International Conference The Value of Life: Measurement, Stakes, Implications, Wageningen, The Netherlands, June 2017.

Local governance of energy in the UK: A comparative analysis of across nations and regions. Paper presented at the 1st International Conference on Energy Research and Social Science Energy for Society, Sitges, Spain, April 2017.

A comparative analysis of local governance of energy in the UK. Work-in-progress paper presented at the Decentralisations: Political Devolution and Sustainable Transitions workshop, London, March 2017.

Financing, ownership and performance indicators in UK Local Authority energy supply and energy efficiency projects. European Sociological Association RN12 - Environment and Society Midterm conference Transforming Energy for Society,  Leipzig, Germany, September 2016.

Mapping municipal activity on sustainable energy: UK wide analysis of local energy projects. Invited participant at ‘Community Energy in Cities and Regions workshop’ at the European Sociological Association RN12 - Environment and Society midterm conference Transforming Energy for Society, Leipzig, Germany, September 2016.

Research groups

I am member of the following: