Claire Scott (she/her)
University of Strathclyde
Civil and Environmental Engineering
Programme Manager
Personal webpage
@ignitenetplus
Tell us a little bit about you
I left school at 16 and was fortunate to start working in Higher Education and was given the opportunity to return to studying while I worked full-time. I was a first-generation graduate in my family. I live with my boyfriend and my dog Prim in Glasgow and we enjoy exploring the UK in our campervan called Dora. I grew up in Glasgow and have lived here all of my life. I do dream of moving to a warmer climate and am trying to learn Spanish for my retirement planning, it's seriously going to take me this long to be able to have a fluent conversation.
What is your area of research and what project(s) are you working on now?
Most of you will know that I'm the IGNITE Network+ Project Manager. I have been working in the Higher Education Research sector for 25+ years and in the STEM area for the past 6 years, and prior to IGNITE I was project managing Marie Curie Innovative Training Networks for International PhD students, where EDI is an important component and this piqued my initial interest.
What do you think are the challenges for equity/equality, diversity and inclusion in the energy research community in reaching netzero targets by 2050?
A lack of senior management support to drive change, partly due to competing demands from other business areas and lack of resources.
What should a supportive, inclusive energy research community look like?
One in which everyone feels that they can be their true, authentic self and feel that they are able to speak freely and not be judged.
What advice would you give to a young person considering a career in Energy Research?
Climte change and dwindling resources are a major issue in the world today, we need young people to consider a career in Energy Research, and there are so many different occupations not just in Science, Engineering, Technology and Maths, but also in Social Sciences and Business related to work in Policy.
Fun question: If you had a magic wand, what is one thing you would change right now?
That we could reverse the damage that we have done to the world, especially the oceans and the amount of plastic.
EDI Issues in Energy/ STEM