Solar energy education from the International Summer School
This week, Raseko, Turku University of Applied Sciences and Solar Finland have held solar power summer schools in Raisio, Turku and Salo. On Tuesday and Wednesday, there was a very enthusiastic and happy atmosphere among the summer school students on the Raseko campus. On both days, twenty students and teachers were busy at the construction site, practising installing and connecting solar panels. “Everyone is really focused and excited – and the weather is good too,” said Kimmo Keinästö, Development Manager at Raseko and Aleksi Heinonen, Specialist at Turku University of Applied Sciences. “This will certainly be useful for students at both vocational colleges and universities. The summer school is part of the international SEED project, which will end in May next year. However, we hope that the summer school will continue next year!”
A great opportunity to get hands-on
Sara, a 27-year-old engineering student at the Hochschule Bochum (Bochum University of Applied Sciences) in Germany, is studying for a Master of Science in Sustainable Development. Alongside her studies, Sara works in the energy sector.
Sara was really happy to apply for the summer school. Even though she had only been at the school for a few days at the time of the interview, she has already learned a lot of concrete things: for example, how to install a solar panel on the roof and connect the electricity to it. Sara was also looking forward to the next day’s visit to Solar Finland’s solar panel factory in Salo.
“I think it’s a great opportunity to get away from planning and calculations and actually do these things, compared to university studies. We climbed on roofs and installed panels with our own hands! At first it felt overwhelming, but then it was really fun!”, Sara said enthusiastically.
The summer school is not just about getting away from it all, participants also do things together in their spare time. Just arriving in Finland was an experience for Sara: “We came via Stockholm on a boat and sat all day looking at the archipelago, it’s so beautiful!” Because the days are so bright and the sun sets late, even the evenings have been spent exploring Turku. There’s also a sauna and a day in Helsinki to look forward to.
Amel Sivac, Raseko’s own student of electrical engineering and automation, was interested in the opportunities the summer school offers to gain new knowledge and skills about solar power and panels. The opportunity to get to know companies in the sector was also a good motivator. “I have liked it: good team, good working atmosphere and I have learned something new. Installing panels is actually quite fun,” said Amel. “And if only I could make some contacts that would help me get a good apprenticeship in the autumn!”
On Monday, the summer school students visited the solar power park in Artukais and attended lectures at Turku University of Applied Sciences. “I am also looking forward to going to the factory. It will be interesting to see how panels are made on a large scale,” Amel said.
Diego is studying renewable energy at the Valencia University of Applied Sciences in Spain. Diego is in the final stages of his studies. He was in Berlin on an internship when his teacher told him about the summer school: “I’m going to write a report on the project and present it to my teachers – and then I’ll have completed my degree!” Diego was delighted.
“It’s been a great opportunity to increase my knowledge and meet new people from all over Europe,” Diego said. In fact, Diego has already become familiar with panel installation at the Berlin traineeship. What he is looking forward to most about the summer school is getting to know the Solar Finland factory and the manufacturing process. Just getting to know Finland has also been an experience. “It feels familiar here, in fact I’ve noticed that Finns are pretty much the same as Spaniards,” he laughs. “Except that it’s crazy that it’s already light out at four in the morning! Just to experience that has been worth the trip!”
Project SEED
The summer school was implemented through the international SEED project. SEED, or Sustainable Energy EDucation, is a collaborative project between five European regions to develop high quality and innovative vocational education and training to make Europe a fossil-free energy continent. The project will result in an international learning community with common standards, approaches, tools, experiences and lessons learned to achieve excellence in sustainable energy vocational education and training. SEED will establish five centres of professional excellence, one for each of the project’s target regions: the Netherlands, Finland, Spain, Germany and Greece.
Project partners, educational institutions and companies:
Raisio Regional Education and Training Consortium Raseko
Solar Finland
Turku University of Applied Sciences
ROC Midden Nederland
Stichting Platform Betatechniek
Universidad Politecnica de Valencia
Generalitat Valneciana
AVAESEN
Bochum University of Applied Sciences
Ebility GmbH
Cluster of Bioeconomy and Environment of Western Macedonia
University of West Macedonia