Jacki Bell

Chartered Civil Engineer at Durham University

What do you do?

I am a Chartered Civil Engineer and have worked at Durham University since 2012. I spent 8 years working for Durham Energy Institute (DEI) as the Research Impact Officer, and then moved to Tony Roskilly's Thermal Energy research team in Engineering to act as project manager for some of his portfolio of projects. Whilst with the DEI I also agreed to support the GEMS project researching the use of minewater heat as a future energy source. I have spent the last twelve years supporting impact, outreach and networking across academia, industry and policy makers towards the transition to net zero. I'm also the University cycle Champion and offer one to one coaching in bicycle confidence :)

How are you involved in this area of science? 

 As a Chartered Civil Engineer I have spent my career (34 years) designing and delivering solutions to infrastructure challenges. I have been passionate about sustainability since childhood, growing up around the declining coal fields and the dirty rivers of Sheffield and South Yorkshire. I chose to study Civil Engineering to play a part in cleaning up the rivers and the landscapes of my local area, and my career took me to work all over the UK.

What do you love about this topic?

As an Engineer my focus has always been on providing the best solution to problems, and Climate Change is our dominant challenge. I love the opportunity to utilise my skills and experience to support the development of good projects and networks within the the University and across the wider north east community.

How does this work deliver real-world impact?

The GEMS project is leading the way to understand the opportunities available for minewater heat as a solution to decarbonisation of our energy systems. One of my first jobs as an Engineer working for Durham County Council was to clean up the beaches and coal mining sites along the east coast of Durham, and it is fascinating to see how successful that has been and how the view of coal mines has changed over the past 30 years.