Sara Walker is Director of Business and Engagement in Faculty of Engineering and Environment at Northumbria University. Sara joined Northumbria University in 2007 as Director of Sustainable Buildings and Energy Systems, a group undertaking teaching and research related to Building Services Engineering. In 2011 she took up her current post as Director of Research for the Department of Architecture, Engineering and Construction. Prior to that, Sara had a five year period in energy related consultancies. This consultancy work for Econnect and IT Power included contribution to the influential report “Potential for micro-generation: study and analysis” published by Energy Saving Trust for the DTI. Sara first moved into the energy sector with a post at De Montfort University, where research and teaching focused on renewable energy and energy efficiency technologies. Her PhD investigated the impact of electricity sector deregulation on renewable energy market share.

Sara is currently interested in concepts of resilience as they are used in other disciplines, and whether these concepts are transferable to the electricity sector. The electricity sector in 2050 is likely to be very different to its current state and the existing concept of resilience and supply security may not fit with this future. She is also interested in research and scholarship in the areas of predicted impact of policy measures, 2050 energy scenarios and pathways to those, barriers and enablers for micro-generation, performance of micro-generation systems, and energy technology interfaces (how people interact with either energy demand or energy generation technologies). Sara is currently working with colleagues on research into electric vehicle impacts on the electricity sector.

Sara Walker was on the steering group of the Sustained Engagement project in 2011-2012 and is currently on the steering group of ETUDE.

Walker, S.L. (forthcoming). “The UK electricity system and its resilience”. In: Leal, W and Vasoulous, V. (Ed.) “Global Energy Policy”. Springer VS

Walker, S.L. (2012). “Can the GB feed-in tariff deliver the expected 2% of electricity from renewable sources?” Renewable Energy, 43, pp383-388.

Lowery, D.M., Theobald, K., Waggott, A. and Walker, S.L. (2012). “Barriers to retrofit of housing with low carbon technologies”. Engineering Sustainability, 165(3), pp191-199.

Aliyu, B., Shitanda, D., Walker, S., Agnew, B., Masheiti, S. and Atan, R. (2011). “Performance and Exhaust Emissions of a Diesel Engine Fuelled with Croton Megalocarpus (Musine) Methyl Ester”. Applied Thermal Engineering, 31(1), pp36-41.

Ng, B.M., Underwood, C.P. and Walker, S.L. (2011). “Standing Column Wells – Modelling the Potential for Applications in Geothermal Heating and Cooling”. HVAC & R Research, 17(6), pp1089-1100.

Walker, S.L. (2011). "Building mounted wind turbines and their suitability for the urban scale - a review of methods of estimating urban wind resource". Energy and Buildings, 43, pp. 1852-1862. DOI: 10.1016/j.enbuild.2011.03.032.

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Sara Walker

Engineering and Environment at Northumbria University

Northumbria University

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