Hi everyone! After a month off, SCI ENVY is back. Since our last article, some of the ARIES students met at the Plymouth Marine Station for the Summer School (see photo below) to learn about key skills including employability, networking, AI use in research, and graphic design. Also, as part of this week, we were lucky enough to go on a day trip to the Eden Project.
ARIES Cohorts 3 (3rd years) and 5 (1st years) and staff members at the Summer School 2024
What did we do at the Eden Project?
The purpose of the day out at the Eden project was to get the opportunity to network across cohorts and host institutions (UEA, Royal Holloway, University of Plymouth, University of Essex, University of Kent). The day also had an educational purpose through allowing us to visit a world leading environmental experiment as well as being shown around a geothermal energy project.
Geothermal Energy Project
At the geothermal energy project, we learnt how geothermal energy is used at the Eden Project to heat the Rainforest and Mediterranean Biomes. We found out that the advantages of geothermal energy are wide ranging which include the 24 hour a day functioning time of geothermal energy, and the fact that the process of drilling a geothermal well uses the same equipment and expertise as oil drilling. Another cool fact that we learnt was that Cornwall has a high geothermal potential compared to the UK average, making the Eden Project a perfect place to do a case study on geothermal energy .
The geothermal potential of the UK.
Overall, this part of the day was really informative and taught be about something well outside of my PhD research.
To read more about the Eden Project’s geothermal project visit https://www.edengeothermal.com/ or find out more on X @edengeothermal.
Eden Project
After the geothermal vent tour, we went to visit the main Eden Project. Our visit here started with a short presentation about the history of the Eden Project. It was particularly interesting to find out that the Eden Project was originally built to boost the local economy in Cornwall rather than purely for environmental purposes. We also found out that the Eden Project is one of the most popular tourist attractions in the area, having attracted over 1 million visitors in 2018 , thus having succeeded in boosting tourism and the local economy in Cornwall.
Next, we were given free time around the project. As a first-time visitor I focussed on the biomes (whilst enjoying a Cornish pasty of course) and was amazed by the scenery and the scale of the biomes. In the rainforest biome you could also feel changes in temperature and weather systems forming – who knew you could visit a tropical rainforest in the UK?
ARIES students in the rainforest biome
Overall, the day at the Eden Project was a great opportunity to network with peers and to learn about new things such as the creation of biomes and geothermal energy. If you are visiting Cornwall, the Eden Project is a must visit attraction!
The Eden Project
To find out more about the Eden Project: https://www.edenproject.com/
To find out more about training opportunities with ARIES: https://aries-dtp.ac.uk/study-with-us/our-training-provision/
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