We are delighted to share the first of a series of guest episodes on the theme of ‘Energy & Poetry’. With many thanks to the ⁠MaREI, Research Centre for Energy, Climate and Marine⁠, ⁠University College Cork.⁠ Ireland.

This episode is about renewable energy. It features a reading and discussion of a poem – Wind and Wave, by Derek Mahon – which explores renewable energy technologies of wind turbines and wave energy.

The podcast opens with a historical preamble on the long history of wind technologies, particularly windmills, which sets the scene for the entrance of its modern cousin: the wind turbine. The poem and the discussion of the poem switch between the human scale of wind blowing a musical instrument and the planetary scale of wind powering the electrification of our modern lives. The podcast features an interview with Brendan Tuohy, the chairperson of EirGrid (the electricity system operator in Ireland), who previously had the poem published in EirGrid’s annual report and who presents a perspective on the role of poetry in the energy transition.

Music by: ⁠Francis Heery⁠ and hosted by ⁠Fionn Rogan⁠ & ⁠Paul Deane⁠ (MaREI), with Brendan Tuohy (MaREI & EirGrid) and coordination by ⁠Evan Boyle⁠ (MaREI). A ⁠transcription of this episode⁠ is available. Listeners might also be interested in ⁠Life On Earth, by Derek Mahon⁠ and the ⁠EirGrid Annual Report 2022⁠.

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Episode Index

00:00 – Exchanges introduction

00:46 – Episode introduction with Francis Heery

03:48 – Wind & Wave by Derek Mahon

05:00 – Wind power in Ireland today

08:35 – Life on earth, poetry & Lovelock

10:50 – Irish power, poetry & Brendan Tuohy interview

23:34 – Transitioning, data demands & Mahon

27:34 – Acknowledgements and close

28:32 – Exchanges outro

Energy Poetry One: Harnessing the Wind