Last May, a rural village in the Picos de Europa Mountains was inundated by offshore renewable energy knowledge. As part of the annual INORE Symposium, 60 to 70 early-stage researchers from around the globe and with a variety of backgrounds descended on La Vega, Spain, (regular population of about 160), to share their knowledge, learn from others, network, have fun, and leave inspired. These next-generation professionals will have formed bonds that will lead to future collaborations and lifetime colleagues and friends.
What is INORE?
The International Network on Offshore Renewable Energy (INORE) is an association of postgraduate students, postdoctoral researchers, and other professionals at early stages of their careers, working in the fields of offshore wind, wave, tidal and ocean thermal energy conversion. We call ourselves INOREans. INORE’s organization, administration, fundraising, etc. is done through the voluntary hard-work of dedicated INOREans elected by their peers to the steering committee.
INORE was founded by a small group of researchers in 2006 in order to solve problems through interdisciplinary collaboration. Today, INORE has more than 1000 members from over 70 countries, representing a network that spans a multitude of research fields, including technological, social, economic and environmental aspects. We carry the torch of our founders in our official mission: “the advancement of education and the proliferation of public knowledge in relation to Offshore Renewable Energy.”
The INORE Symposium
The INORE Symposium is truly the heart of INORE. It is where it all started and it is the event that makes INORE what it is today - an organization successfully implementing its mission and beloved by its members. The Symposium is a free, action-packed, week-long, intimate and informal conference of early-stage researchers, organized thanks to the support of our sponsors. In many ways, it’s like a typical conference: presentations, poster sessions, tutorials, site-visits and keynote speakers.
But we also have activities geared towards building the bonds of collaboration.
Collaborative tasks are mini group-projects that participants work on over the course of the week and report on at its end. They are often designed with the help of one of INORE’s partners, such as companies, research institutes or government agencies and address real-world problems, providing a context for research and a broader understanding.
Social and recreational group activities are also one our keys to quickly forming close working relationships. At the 2013 Symposium in Wales, canoeing, kayaking, or raft-building was on offer; in 2014 we had the chance to take surf classes at El Sardinero beach, in Santander. With people that we had known for a day, we shared a lot of laughs, shivers, and a few screams; all of which really accelerated the “getting-to-know-you” process.
This year INORE will host one more (mini) Symposium in Halifax, Canada from 1-3 November, the weekend before the International Conference on Ocean Energy and is already planning the 2015 Symposium.
A Better World (Wide Web)
Of course, it’s not always feasible for members or other supports to make it in person to a Symposium or another event. But there’s the internet for that! The goals of our website: https://inore.org/ is to provide news and information, to encourage new members and supporters to join, to be a platform for disseminating INOREan research and to be hub for establishing connections between INOREans and researcher of all types in offshore renewable energy.
Moreover, we are planning to launch OpenORE, https://openore.org/, a website to facilitate the open source exchange of code, models, projects, data, media, etc. relating to offshore renewable energy.
INORE and You
At its core, INORE pursues its mission by bringing together passionate, intelligent, and like-minded people, whenever possible face-to-face, in fun, friendly, and comfortable environments in order to maximize the exchange of ideas. Our focus is on early-stage researchers, but membership is open to anyone interested in our goals. While the INORE Symposium is our signature annual event, we also hold workshops and discussion sessions, which are generally open to all, in conjunction with major academic and industry conferences.
Keep your eye out for us.