SE Academic Review 2023

ACADEMIC REVIEW ISSUE 1 | FEBRUARY 2023

ST EDWARD’S, OXFORD

An introduction from the Warden

Welcome to the first edition of the St Edward’s Academic Review, a publication which celebrates the very best of the School’s academic culture. In its combination of work by pupils and their teachers, the Academic Review is an expression of the School as a community of learners, united in their pursuit of scholarship.

Teddies is a vibrant and inspiring place in which to live and work, not least for the breadth of interests amongst the pupils and teachers. The Academic Review reflects that diversity - read on to learn about Richard III’s foreign policy, symbolism in artists’ depiction of nature, the effect of stretching on hockey performance, and much more. These fascinating essays are interspersed with stunning work created over the last year by pupils in the Art Department, a very different but equally inspiring form of expression and communication. I hope that you enjoy it. We are already looking forward to sharing next year’s edition with you.

All of us at Teddies are working to foster in our pupils a life-long interest in the life of the mind. Our pupils’ ability to question, to reflect and to communicate is one measure of our success as a school. I hope that you will share my view that the evidence of the Review is compelling. For me, it is the definition of scholarship: building on the work of others to find new ways of thinking, making connections between subjects and across centuries of learning, expressing ideas with clarity, conveying passion, inspiring enthusiasm, and leaving us curious to read more widely, to think more deeply and to develop new ideas of our own.

Introduction from Hugh Stevens, Director of Teaching and Learning

It was a source of real enjoyment reading through the many submissions and I was inspired by the thirst for learning within our school and the passion which pupils and staff have for their chosen subject areas. It was a considerable challenge to select the small handful of highlights presented in this journal, which I hope you agree, are remarkable.

The inaugural St Edward’s Academic Review is a representation of the depth of academic interest and ambition that are integral elements of our community at St Edward’s. When the idea of an academic journal was first proposed, Heads of Departments enthusiastically submitted vast amounts of work for consideration in this publication.

Cover image: Eloise Firth

All of the essays and artworks published in this edition of the Academic Review have been written by current pupils or 2022 leavers, with the exception of the essay entitled ‘How useful is the global history approach to historians of Medieval Europe?’ which was written by HM of Apsley and Teacher of History, Huw Thomas.

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Contents

Introduction

Contents

1

2 The Legacy of Slavery in Beloved and Jazz by Toni Morrison

8 The UK’s ability to reach carbon neutrality by 2050

Phoebe Eggs

18

Clemmie German

19

20 What more could be done to limit the impact of congenital and cardiovascular diseases in the UK?

30 The Blair flair? To what extent was Labour’s modernisation the most significant factor in bringing about New Labour’s 1997 landslide?

42 How useful is the global history approach to historians of medieval Europe?

50 An Investigation into the Effect of Stretching on Hockey Performance

Haruno Watanabe

59

60 There is always a symbolic or secondary meaning embedded in artists’ depictions of nature. How far do you agree?

Eva Chadwick

63

64 ‘Biology alone cannot provide an answer to the question that concerns us: why is woman the Other?’. A critical assessment of this claim.

68 Richard III and foreign policy: an attempted resurrection of the Hundred Years War?

Eloise Firth

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1 .

The legacy of slavery in Beloved and Jazz by Toni Morrison Research Question: How does the legacy of slavery impact personal relationships in Toni Morrison’s Beloved and Jazz ? By Niamh Brown

Introduction

The novels Beloved and Jazz by Toni Morrison challenge the conventional narrative of slavery. Told from the perspective of black women, Morrison gives a voice to those who were the most marginalised and silenced in society, providing an alternative perspective of the horrors and impacts of slavery. By illustrating how the legacy of slavery impacts on personal relationships, Morrison also presents an alternative perspective to larger scale historical accounts, forming part of the author’s wider project of incorporating African-American history into mainstream American history and literature.

immediate aftermath of slavery and the impacts two generations on, giving the reader a broader understanding of the legacy of slavery. This question is worthy of investigation because, whilst dealing with issues surrounding slavery, which was abolished more than 150 years ago, Morrison’s work still draws parallels with issues in today’s society such as human trafficking. With 40.3 million victims globally (National Human Trafficking Hotline, 2016), the concern of slavery in the 21st century is still pressing. As slavery is still ongoing it makes the investigation into how Morrison portrays its impact on relationships even more compelling as the

Beloved , set in 1873, centres on Sethe – a woman who murders her own child to save her from the horrors of slavery. The novel’s non-chronological structure and changing narrative voice assists the reader in understanding the direct trauma that slavery has caused and provides the reader with an insight into the individual lives of those in slavery, enabling the reader to understand why and how slavery impacted relationships. By contrast, Jazz takes place in 1920s Harlem; not only does the setting of Jazz contrast greatly with Beloved , but the time period in which it takes place also provides a different perspective on how slavery impacts relationships. In these novels, Morrison presents the

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rememory is ‘the tangible presence of the past in everyday experience’ (Gillespie, 2008, p. 20), whilst this is true, Gillespie does not analyse the significance of rememory and how it is representative of the Black experience in post-abolition America. The recollection of this memory and the reflective manner in which it is portrayed, exhibits how the pains of slavery are still alive to Sethe. Morrison’s narrative structure and the idea of ‘rememory’ allows the reader to understand this pain and hurt through looking at the past. This distinctive narrative voice is carried through in Beloved ’s sequel, Jazz . Morrison switches between first and third person in Jazz and creates an elusive figure to communicate the events of the novel (Khaleghi, 2011, p. 1). The narrative voice of Jazz is presented as gossipy and all-knowing and is perceived as a feminine voice; this constant female narrator in the novel contrasts with Joe’s absent mother and the lack of a female figure in his life. Furthermore, the fact that the ellusive narrator is never confirmed, mirrors the fact that Wild is only hinted to be Joe’s mother. The novel begins with the unobjective perspective of the narrator, ‘Sth [sic], I know that woman’ (Morrison, Jazz , 1992, p. 1), Morrison immediately builds on the tale-bearing tone of the narrator with the use of ‘I’ and by referring to Violet as ‘that woman’. Morrison establishes an omniscient speaker, however, the narrator then critiques herself, ‘I was sure one would kill the other… I was so sure it would happen.’, consequently reminding the reader that the narrator is not all knowing but is Whilst some critics focus on the feminist aspects of Morrison’s work, such as Jacqueline Trace (1991, p. 15), it is important not to concentrate on this area of her work, with Morrison herself saying that she does not identify her works as feminist ( Jaffrey, 1998). Morrison’s portrayal of relationships and slavery’s impact on them is not as often investigated, allowing the exploration of more original ideas and perspectives. The methodology used to answer this question was to begin with the analysis of the two novels in question; alongside this, it was essential to consider other critics’ opinions on both Beloved and Jazz through reading journal articles analysing Morrison’s work in order to gain an insight into alternative perspectives and opinions.

Narrative Voice Morrison uses a distinctive voice in both Beloved and Jazz ; the scattered narrative voice in in the novels helps convey the message of the impact of slavery and racism on relationships. The choice of an ambiguous and scattered narrative voice in Beloved mimics the scattered lives of the people and communities attempting to restore their lives due to the break-up of families as a direct result of the slave trade (Cutter, 2000, p. 61). This dispersed narrative has been described by Morrison as, ‘rememory’, the concept of repeatedly looking back on certain memories which in turn affect a person’s way of processing the present (Clough, 1998). By looking at the past as well as the present through her use of ‘rememory’, Morrison manages to structure current and previous events in the novel which allows us to visualise the violence and fear Sethe lived under as a slave which now affects her relationships. This is described in the novel by Sethe speaking to her daughter, Denver, ‘Some things go. Pass on. Some things just stay. I used to think it was my rememory. You know. Some things you forget. Other things you never do. But it’s not.’ (Morrison, Beloved , 1987, p. 43) The narrative style and the use of ‘rememory’ is particularly evident in Sethe’s memory of Sweet Home: her reflection on her traumatic past affects her present relationships, echoing the lives and experiences of many other former slaves like her. Sethe’s description of the scars on her back show they are an emblem of the pain and suffering she has had to undergo, ‘Schoolteacher made me open up my back and when it closed it made a tree. It grows there still’ (p. 20). Carmen Gillespie states that Morrison’s intentions and aims when writing are important to consider when approaching the analysis of the novels: ‘the affective and participatory relationship between the artist or the speaker and the audience is of primary importance’ (Pici, 2000, p. 375). Understanding the intentions behind the novels allows the reader to fully comprehend every aspect and decision. direct effects along with the legacy of slavery are still felt today. Morrison manages to address crucial issues, including mother-child relationships, race and gender, whilst also engaging with the distressing historical past and its impact on Black human beings in the present (Bernatonyé, 2011, p. 37).

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“ As the narrator of the novel is not revealed, it raises the question of who it is. ”

instead just a person. As the narrator of the novel is not revealed, it raises the question of who it is. The mysterious and undisclosed nature of the narrator, mirrors that of Joe’s absent mother, Wild. Furthermore, this underlines the intertextuality of Jazz and Beloved as – like Joe – Sethe does not know her mother or if she herself has any siblings. The slave trade caused many of the enslaved to consider whether they dared to love their child, with the fear and knowledge that they might get taken away.

Characterisation In the novels Jazz and Beloved , Morrison deepens the notion of how the lasting impacts of slavery affect relationships by presenting the complex relationships of Beloved and Sethe and also the relationship Joe has with his own self as a result of his absent mother. Morrison particularly focuses on the destruction that parents cause and as this theme is expressed in both texts – Sethe’s destructive love for her child causes her to go against motherly instinct and kill her own baby, while Joe’s mother’s absence catalyses his lack of identity and consequently his lack of relationship with his own self. The dysfunctional and chaotic relationship between Sethe and Beloved highlights the destructive love slavery has caused, and this is exemplified in the way in which Sethe kills her children: ‘She simply swung the baby towards the wall planks, missed and tried to connect a second time' (p.175). Morrison’s use of ‘simply’ when describing how Sethe swings her baby conveys how she can kill her child with ease as she thinks death is better for both her and her children than slavery. Morrison uses the word ‘simply’ in contrast to the harsh reality of what Sethe is doing: defying human and motherly nature by murdering her own child. Furthermore, the word ‘connect’ implies the child is destined to be killed and a sense of disassociation comes as a result of the casual and light-hearted language and the brutal events that are occurring. As the casual language is at odds with the dark subject matter, the reader dwells on what is being described, subsequently causing the description to resonate with the reader and highlighting the harsh reality of how slavery impacted family relationships.

As well as the language Morrison uses, the actual appearance of Beloved and the way in which she appears explores how slavery directly affected familial relationships and also illustrates the experiences slaves had to endure. Beloved’s emergence forces Sethe to confront the memories of her actions and the hardships she went through whilst in slavery. The arrival of Beloved causes Sethe to initiate her ‘individual healing process’ (Krumholz, 1992, p. 395) and to try to recover from the impacts of slavery. Sethe arguably has the most to recover from as she went against human instinct to kill her child and, as a result, Beloved’s appearance affects her the most. The emotional and physical toll Beloved’s presence takes on Sethe is evident towards the end of the book: ‘It’s sitting there. Sleeps, eats and raises hell. Whipping Sethe every day’ (p. 130). Marilyn Sanders Mobley astutely states that Sethe ‘lives in a kind of psychic bondage to the task of keeping the past at bay’ (Mobley, 2005, p. 72), particularly in regards to the shame and guilt she feels as a result of murdering her child; however, Mobley does not examine the act of redemption Sethe is undergoing. Sethe undergoes this mental and physical distress as a way to repent for killing her own daughter and as a means of undoing the damage and death that she has caused as a result of the fear of slavery. Additionally, Beloved’s whipping of Sethe recalls to mind historical floggings and the millions of slaves who had to endure them. The flogging of Sethe is used by Morrison to convey the idea that the emotional impacts of slavery are inescapable. Through exploring the relationship between Sethe and Beloved, Morrison conveys how the legacy of slavery impacted relationships both directly and indirectly.

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Morrison also explores the impact of slavery on the relationship between Joe and his own identity in Jazz . This brings forth the notion that the impact of slavery on relationships can still be felt despite the abolition of the slave trade. As well as portraying Joe’s changing relationship with his wife and his lover, the novel also explores his relationship with his own self and the search for his own identity despite the madness, loss and dissolution he endures. The character’s search for his identity is reflected in his own last name: Trace. Joe describes how he ‘told the teacher [he] was Joe Trace’ (p. 124), signifying his lack of cultural and ancestral identity. The absence of a name is an emblem of those who did not have one as a result of slavery and hence magnifies how the impacts of enslavement have left a legacy which is still felt in the lives of African-Americans. Moreover, the influence of the aftermath of slavery on Joe’s own relationship with himself is affirmed in the novel due to Morrison’s use of a motif when searching for Symbolism The symbolism in Beloved and Jazz is representative of the impact of slavery and how it still affects relationships. The home in Beloved and also Sethe’s milk convey the hardships of slavery and its impact on familial relationships. The house in Beloved contrasts with traditional connotations of a home as somewhere warm and welcoming. The novel’s first lines describe the house, ‘124 was spiteful. Full of a baby’s venom’. (p. 1). The personification of the house, by describing it as possessing emotion, assists Morrison in communicating the horror and trauma that occurred in 124. Morrison uses the house to symbolise the pain and suffering that had been endured as a result of slavery; this notion is further instilled in the description of the house’s history when she tells us ‘124 was used as a way station’ (p. 77) for people trying to escape slavery – much like Sethe herself. However, 124 was not always the cold, unearthly house it is described as: ‘Before 124 and everybody in it had closed down…124 had been a cheerful, buzzing house’ (p. 101). Through depicting the cheerful atmosphere the house used to possess, Morrison provides a stark contrast and signals that the actions of Sethe – which were caused by the fear of enslavement – have destroyed the warm atmosphere of 124. As a consequence of Sethe’s actions, Morrison uses the change in the atmosphere of the house to

his mother, Wild. Morrison uses recurring images of traces and tracks to emphasise Joe’s loneliness and absence of his own identity. ‘He had seen traces of her in those woods…but he saw tracks enough to know she was there’ (pp. 176-177). Joe uses the search for Wild as a means to connect with himself and to learn about his heritage in order to form a stronger relationship with his own self (Bernatonyé, 2011). The motif of tracks and traces amplifies Joe’s desire to search for his identity; the repetition of this imagery mirrors Joe’s thoughts – he is constantly searching for who he really is in order to fully understand himself. Joe’s search for Wild and his search for who he truly is are resonant of the lack of identity of those who endured the slave trade, with people being taken from their homes and forced to change their names. Morrison uses Jazz as a means to communicate this important part of African-American history and how the legacy of slavery still impacted millions of black, modern individuals as represented by Joe in Jazz . represent the grief and affliction that has occurred; the change of 124 from a cheerful, buzzing house to possessing a spiteful nature signifies how the pain of slavery never disappears and instead leaves a legacy forever. Sethe’s milk is also used as a symbol to depict to the reader the destruction that slavery has caused on relationships. A mother’s milk carries connotations of love, new life and the responsibility that a mother has for her child; throughout the novel we understand the importance of milk for Sethe. As a young child, we understand that Sethe had ‘no nursing milk to call [her] own’ (p. 236). This memory stays with Sethe for the rest of her life and as a result she vows that ‘no one will ever get [her] milk no more except [her] own children’ (p. 236). This foregrounds how her experience in slavery has affected her relationship with her children: the traumatising experience of having no milk to drink and consequently having no motherly connection is something that she never wants her children to undergo. Not only does Sethe’s time as a child in slavery affect the future relationship between her and her children, but the sexual violence that she experiences and subsequent taking of her milk traumatises her further, not only because of the rape but also because she feels as though she has

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place of refuge in which the Black community can thrive after the impacts of slavery, ‘They stared out of their windows for the first sight of the City that dance with them, proving already how much it loved them’, (p. 32). Morrison portrays the characters as being in awe of the hope and opportunity that the City provides by using the word ‘stared’, signifying that they were enthralled by the beauty of the City and their chance of a new life. The rough childhood of Joe and Violet and their absent family leads them to perceive the City as a ‘motherland’, reflecting the lives of others in the Black community who are searching for a way to make America their home, despite the horrors of the dislocation of slavery. Carmen Gillespie describes how the ‘narrator waxes on about the City’ (Gillespie, 2008, p. 72), which represents hope for the African-American community. The perception of the City as a ‘motherland’ is crucial for both Joe and Violet and also the wider Black community: after hundreds of years of pain, the City represents a place of refuge and hope. As the popularity of the City has arisen as a result of slavery, Morrison communicates how slavery has an impact on relationships by providing the City with agency and suggesting that it influences the actions of those that live there. The agency of the City is portrayed early in the novel, ‘A City like this one makes me dream tall and feel in on things’ (p. 7). The way in which Morrison describes how the City ‘makes’ you dream tall, instils the idea that the inhabitants of the City are not in control of what they are doing and it is instead the City that is forcing them (Wilson, 2016). This notion reinforces the idea of the lasting impacts of slavery on relationships as Morrison implies the power of the City over people: a City which the Black community have fled to after the destruction of slavery.

failed her children. The failure that Sethe feels causes her relationship with her children to change and she later uses the rape as an explanation for killing her daughter as a means to protect her from the violence that comes with slavery and the deep and ingrained trauma that it results in (Barnett, 1997, p. 419). Sethe’s milk also connects Denver and Beloved, stressing how the violence and destruction that come with slavery impact relationships. When ‘Denver [takes] her mother’s milk right along with the blood of her sister’ (p. 179), Morrison illustrates how Denver and her dead sister are linked as a result of slavery. Sethe’s need to nurse Denver, despite having just murdered her other child shows her still exhibiting the motherly instinct and hence suggests how Sethe’s act of murder was done out of love to protect her child. The juxtaposition of the purity of motherhood and also the brutality and violence that slavery has caused allows Morrison to communicate the impact that slavery has on relationships, particularly between mother and child. Moreover, the fact that Denver takes Sethe’s milk as well as her sister’s blood highlights the connection between Denver and her sister but also how the legacy of slavery is inherited and passed down; despite not being enslaved herself, Denver has been exposed to the brutality that slavery has caused. The symbolism in Jazz also aids Morrison in conveying the lasting impacts of slavery on relationships. The City in Jazz is described in a loving way and is representative of a place of refuge after the damage of slavery. The distance between the City, Harlem, and the deep south – where slavery was extremely prevalent – further reinforces the significance of the City as a place of sanctuary for the African-American community. As Joe and Violet travel to the City for the first time, the affectionate language used by Morrison helps instil the notion that the City is a Conclusion Analysing Beloved and Jazz we have seen Morrison’s powerful use of narrative voice, characterisation and symbolism in order to illustrate the impact of slavery on relationships. The direct impact of slavery on relationships and the continuing impact in the aftermath of slavery causes the reader to reflect on the destruction slavery has caused – particularly on familial relationships. As

Toni Morrison is a highly regarded author, there was difficulty in finding an original idea relating to her work; in spite of the vast body of criticism available on Morrison’s books, which at times seems intimidating, this particular focus helped me to arrive at a deeper understanding of both Beloved and Jazz . Morrison’s distinctive use of the narrative voice is particularly resonant; with the dispersed narrative structure of Beloved bringing forth the

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Bibliography Barnett, P. E. (1997). Figurations of Rape and the Supernatural in Beloved . PMLA, 418-427 . Bernatonyé, V. (2011). History Revisited in T. Morrison’s Novels Jazz and A Mercy: Black Individual’s search for identity . Vilnius Pedagogical University Faculty of Philology, Department of English Philology , pp. 37-39. Clough, P. T. (1998). Toni Morrison: Rememory and Writing . Counterpoints , 113-130. Cutter, M. J. (2000). The Story Must Go On and On: The Fantastic, Narration, and Intertextuality in Toni Morrison’s Beloved and Jazz . African American Review , 61-75. Gillespie, C. (2008). Critical Companion to Toni Morrison: A Literary Reference to Her https://www.salon.com/1998/02/02/cov_si_02int/ Khaleghi, M. (2011). Narration and Intertextuality in Toni Morrison’s Jazz . The Criterion: An International Journal in English . Krumholz, L. (1992). The Ghosts of Slavery: Historical Recovery in Toni Morrison’s Beloved . African American Review , 395-408. Mobley, M. S. (2005). Memory, History and Meaning in Toni Morrison’s Beloved . Toni Morrison (Bloom’s Modern Critical Views) , 67-77. Morrison, T. (1987). Beloved . London: Vintage . Morrison, T. (1992). Jazz . London: Vintage . National Human Trafficking Hotline. (2016). The Victims . Retrieved from National Human Trafficking Hotline: https://humantraffickinghotline. org/what-human-trafficking/human-trafficking/ victims Pici, N. (2000). Trading Meanings: The Breath of Music in Toni Morrison’s “Jazz” . CEA Critic , 18-38. Trace, J. (1991). Dark Goddesses: Black Feminist Theology in Morrison’s “Beloved” . Obsidian II , 14-30. Wilson, O. (2016). The City and the Voice of Jazz . Retrieved from Boston University: http://www-test.bu.edu/afam/files/2016/03/ Olivia-Wilson-The-City-and-the-Voice-of-Jazz.pdf Life and Work . New York: Facts on File . Jaffrey, Z. (1998). The Salon Interview - Toni Morrison . Retrieved from Salon:

notion of ‘rememory’ and the constant, tale-bearing tone of Jazz , Morrison effectively uses the narrative voice to convey the pains of slavery and its impact on relationships. As well as this, the characterisation within the novels helps provide a representation of the relationships of people that were impacted as a result of slavery. Morrison uses Beloved as a means of depicting how fear of slavery drives people to go against human instincts; this is manifested in Sethe’s murder of her own child – the brutality of the murder resonates with the reader and presents the idea of how the impact of slavery affects familial relationships in particular. Morrison presents an alternative view of the impacts of slavery on relationships through illustrating the relationship between Joe and his own self. Within Jazz , Morrison focuses on the impact of slavery on the individual and depicts how the slave trade had an effect on the relationship people had with themselves. Joe’s lack of a maternal figure reflects the reality of many African-Americans during this time hence portraying how the slave trade resulted in a lack of identity and self-knowledge. Despite Morrison’s effective use of narrative voice and characterisation in illustrating the impact of slavery on relationships, the symbolism within the novel is most effective in portraying the lasting impact of slavery on relationships. The symbolism within both Beloved and Jazz represents and communicates the experiences of millions who endured both the slave trade and its aftermath. The symbolism of 124 and Sethe’s milk in Beloved and the City of Harlem in Jazz elevates Morrison’s writing causing her message to resonate further with the reader. Through use of symbolism, Morrison can portray the impact of slavery not just on the characters within the novel, but also the wider African-American community.

“ Morrison uses Beloved as a means of depicting how fear of slavery drives people to go against human instincts... ”

8 ST EDWARD’S, OXFORD 2 . The UK’s ability to

reach carbon neutrality by 2050 Research Question: To what extent does a 100% domestic renewable energy policy represent a credible strategy to achieve carbon neutrality in the UK by 2050? By Mia Crawford

Our world currently faces one of the greatest threats to humanity in our short existence. We continue to pollute our atmosphere with CO 2 , greatly affecting our ability to maintain temperatures at a manageable and environmentally friendly level. Inter-governmental treaties such as the Paris Agreement and IPCC report have been crucial in recognising what needs to be done (Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, 2021). The main aim of the Paris treaty is to keep global warming within 1.5 degrees. To do this, leading countries like the UK have pledged to transition to a carbon neutral society by 2050. It is the critical importance to both the UK and the world of addressing carbon neutrality by the 2050 deadline that led me to the question “To what extent does a 100% domestic renewable energy policy represent a credible strategy to achieve carbon neutrality in the UK by 2050?”

Introduction

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there needs to be changes in consumption patterns and investment in renewable energy. This in turn will require governmental direction and policy changes to lead the UK to this goal. I will conclude that it is the political obstacles, rather than the technological challenges, that present the largest barrier to a credible strategy for carbon neutrality by 2050. In answering the question, I have chosen secondary sources that examine the issue from both a physics and political standpoint. The physics angle is covered in Sustainability Energy: Without the Hot Air by David MacKay (2009) but I have had to update many of his 2009 assumptions which are now out of date. Using Chris Goodall’s What We Need to Do Now: For a Zero Carbon Future , along with many newspaper articles has helped me with the question of political feasibility (Goodall, 2020).

This essay will be part of the World Studies option, looking at the research question through two different lenses to build a better understanding of the topic. My methodology will be: • Firstly, to examine the technological viability of carbon neutrality in the UK using principles from the IB Diploma subject ‘Physics’. • Then later, to examine the political barriers to implementation using analytical frameworks taken from the IB ‘Global Politics’ syllabus. I will argue that significant changes to renewable technologies mean that the UK currently has the resources to transition to a 100% renewable energy based society by 2050. However, I will also show that to be able to transition to carbon neutrality, Chapter 1: The Technological Feasibility of Carbon Neutrality MacKay (2009) concluded that a 100% renewable energy grid was impossible in the UK. Based on the technology available he believed that either the cost was too high, or the space was too limited to achieve this goal. Against a total energy requirement of 125 kWh per person per day, MacKay wrote, ‘I fear the maximum Britain would ever get from renewables is in the ballpark of 18 kWh/d per person.’ (MacKay, 2009, p. 109). Since 2009 there have been significant changes both to the UK’s energy consumption and to renewable energy technology. This now makes a 100% domestic, renewable strategy viable. Firstly, we have been helped by a reduction in total UK energy requirements driven by policy changes and the movement of industry outside of the UK. According to the UK’s energy statistics, this has dropped the target energy required from 125kWh/ p/d in 2009 to 79kWh/p/d today (UK Government Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, 2021). More importantly, achievement of carbon neutrality has been helped by significant changes in solar and wind technology.

SOLAR There are two main ways in which solar energy can be harnessed. The first uses south-facing rooftop panels, the second, solar farms. The table below shows the major changes between the output potential of solar when Mackay was writing his book in 2009, and the situation today.

Figure 1. Rooftop Solar

MACKAY (2009)

ROOFTOP SOLAR

CURRENT

Maximum solar output over 24 hours, including cloud cover and sun intensity

110W/m 2

110W/m 2

PV efficiency

10-20% 20-30%

W/m 2 calculated

5-20W/m 2

20-30W/m 2

South-facing roof area

650m 2

2500m 2

Roof space/person based on population of 65 million Rooftop Solar potential

40m 2

10m

2

5kWh/p/d 25kWh/p/d

(MacKay, 2009, pp. 38-39; Goodall, 2017)

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Wind energy potential has increased dramatically since 2009 with the development of offshore wind technology. This allows the UK to access the higher wind speeds available out at sea. In addition, wind turbines have increased substantially in height, further raising the average accessible windspeed. As shown in the data above, wind turbines are now nearly 60m taller, supporting an increase of wind speeds from 6.7m/s to 9m/s. In converting wind speed to raw power (kinetic energy), the wind speed is cubed. Therefore, even small changes in wind speeds add a sizeable increase in raw power. Raw power can then be converted into watts per m 2 by factoring in the diameter of the turbine blades. This has also changed significantly since MacKay, although it has little impact on the power as the larger wind turbines need to be spaced further apart, cancelling the diameter (Mackay, 2009, p. 265). The turbines cannot be placed closer than five times their diameter without significant power loss. Raw power x E ciency x x Diameter of blad 2 (5 x diameter of blade) 2 π = power / area 8363200 = 7.44 W/m 2 (current) (5 x 212) 2 ½ x density of air x wind speed 3 = raw power ½ x 1.3 x 9 3 = 474 W/m 2 (current) Figure 4. Power Per Area Calculation ½ x density of air x wind speed 3 = raw power ½ x 1.3 x 9 3 = 474 W/m 2 (current) Figure 3. Raw Power Calculation

In the last decade, photovoltaic solar panels commonly used in rooftops have increased in efficiency from 10-20% to 20-30% through technological developments such as using multiple layers of materials with higher efficiencies. With this increase, the watts per metre squared has risen from 5-20W/m 2 to 20-30W/m 2 . Additionally, MacKay had significantly underestimated the available area of south-facing roofs. Commercial buildings alone provide 2,500m 2 of space or 40m 2 / person. An even bigger area is available when we add in residential homes. This increases the roof yield potential from MacKay’s 5kWh/p/d to around 25kWh/p/d. Along with rooftop panels, solar farms could produce an additional 50kWh/p/d based on 5% of the UK’s total land area, providing a total of 75kWh/ p/d from solar alone. This would represent a huge step forward in reaching carbon neutrality. WIND Along with the use of solar energy, the UK has the potential to harness wind energy on a scale which could provide an abundance of energy. The table below highlights the largest changes that have taken place in the production of wind energy since 2009.

Global Energy Use

Figure 2. Offshore Wind

7%

16%

OFFSHORE WIND MACKAY (2009)

CURRENT

19% Raw power x E ciency x x Diameter of blade 2 (5 x diameter of blade) 2 π Getting Around Growing Things Plugging In Making Things Keeping Warm and Cool 27%

31%

Wind Speed (m/s)

6.7

9

= power / area

Height of Turbine (m) Raw Power (W/m 2 ) Blade Diameter (m)

70

128 474 212 50% 7.44

195

8363200

90

= 7.44 W/m 2 (current)

(5 x 212) 2

Efficiency

50% 3.07

Power per area (W/m 2 ) Total Surface area (km 2 ) Offshore wind potential

Global Energy Use

40,000

40,000

The upshot is that, although efficiency has not changed, the total energy potential has more than doubled from MacKay’s estimate due to the higher wind speed. A report by Wind Europe (2017), provides a more detailed analysis of the UK’s wind potential. Their calculations include transmission loss from the wind farms to shore, but still conclude that around 1,500 TWh/year is possible, or 62kWh/p/d with a possible upside of over 2,500 TWh/year if floating wind turbines can also be used economically. If we add in the power of onshore wind estimated by MacKay (2009, p. 33) at 20kWh/ p/d, there is plenty enough for the UK’s energy requirements. 400 Solar and Wind Capacity (GW) 300 100 200 0 2015 10 14 12 16 13 UK Total 79 UK Statistics Lighting 4 Gadgets 5 Defence 4 400 Solar and Wind Capacity (GW) 16% 7% 19% 27% Getting Around Growing Things Plugging In Making Things Keeping Warm and Cool

UK Energy Consumption

49kWh/p/d 107kWh/p/d 200

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MacKay, 2009, pp.60-64, 264: Wind Europe and BVG Associates, 2017)

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11 ACADEMIC REVIEW 2023 ½ x density of air x wind ½ x 1.3 x 9 3 = 474 W/m Raw power x E ciency x x Diameter of blade 2 (5 x diameter of blade) 2 π = 8363200 = 7.44 W/m 2 (c (5 x 21 ) 2

7%

16%

31%

Getting Around Growing Things Plugging In

19%

COST However, MacKay’s scepticism about renewable energy was not only because of the technology but also cost. Here too there have been seismic changes since 2009. According to the International Renewable Agency (2020), the cost of solar energy has dropped by 82% since 2010 with the module prices for PVs dropping by 90%. This has driven the cost of solar energy down to £0.03/kWh which is around a fifth of the cost of the cheapest fossil fuel electricity (Goodall, 2020, p. 23). Offshore wind energy has dropped by 29% over the same period and is likely to decrease even further as more wind farms are constructed. SUMMARY The table below summarises all the potential energy output from solar and wind energy which comes to a total of 197kWh/p/d; more than enough to cover domestic energy needs of 79kWh/p/d. Lighting 4 Gadgets 5 Defence 4 27% Making Things Keeping Warm and Cool

However, if I compare this to the actual amount of renewable energy we currently produce, there is still a long way to go. The graph below shows the amount of PV solar and wind we currently operate, compared to the ‘target’ capacity which the UK needs to reach to generate 79kWh/p/d. A significant amount of new solar and wind capacity needs to be built in a very short space of time. Figure 6. Solar and Wind Capacity (GW) (UK Government Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, 2021) Solar and Wind Capacity (GW)

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Getting Around Growing Things Plugging In Making Things Keeping Warm and Cool

Figure 5. Total Energy ENERGY TYPE

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GENERATION

UK Total 79

Rooftop Solar

20kWh/p/d 50kWh/p/d 20kWh/p/d 107kWh/p/d 197kWh/p/d

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Chapter 2: Converting Consumption to a Carbon Neutral Electrical Grid Chapter 1 showed that solar and wind energy have the capability to fulfil the UK’s energy needs, however both solutions rely on the electrification of appliances in consumption. This chapter examines how the UK currently consumes energy and whether it can be transferred to a carbon neutral electric grid. I will argue that the key components of UK domestic energy consumption, heating, and transport, can be converted. However, I will also show that there are many areas of consumption that cannot currently be converted to a carbon neutral grid and I discuss some options to address this.

Figure 7. UK Energy Consumption (UK Government Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, 2021) UK Energy Consumption

200

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(5 x diameter of blade) 2 8363200

12 ST EDWARD’S, OXFORD

= 7.44 W/m 2 (cu

(5 x 212) 2

Figure 8. Global Energy Use (Gates, 2021, p. 55) Global Energy Use

MacKay (2009, p. 103) broke UK energy consumption into nine different segments, shown in the bar chart (Figure 7), with 86% dominated by transport, heating/cooling and “stuff”. His number is far higher than the UK statistics total of 79kWh/p/d. Some of this gap comes from the development of UK energy efficiency, but the bulk of it is from energy use such as imports and international air travel that are not included in UK statistics. To reach carbon neutrality by 2050, we must address all the emissions from the UK, both domestically and outside UK borders. HEATING AND DOMESTIC TRANSPORT As shown from MacKay’s energy consumption breakdown, the key contributors to the UK’s energy use are transport and heating. Fortunately, converting this portion of consumption to a carbon neutral grid is a simple problem to solve. For domestic transport the most obvious solution is to switch over to EVs. These not only will have a lower carbon footprint when powered by renewable energy but are also more efficient. Domestic heating needs to switch over to heat pumps rather than using gas boilers. Heat pumps are 200-600% more efficient than gas boilers, can run off the electricity grid and are already used commercially in many countries around the world. This would significantly reduce the amount of carbon emissions and energy required. Unfortunately not all sources of carbon emissions currently have renewable energy solutions. The pie chart (Figure 8) comes from Bill Gates’ (2021) book How to Avoid a Climate Disaster and shows global energy use divided into five sections. He estimates that around 40% of carbon emissions do not have a renewable solution, primarily coming from ‘making things’ and ‘growing things’. ‘Making things’ covers infrastructure building such as the use of cement and steel, whilst ‘growing things’ is all about animal agriculture and fertilisers. MARKET SECTORS WITHOUT GREEN TECHNOLOGY

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These sectors of the economy are more difficult to convert to carbon neutrality. Both cement and steel for example produce huge amounts of CO 2 by using coal in the manufacturing process. Emissions in agriculture are produced by livestock and burning natural gas to manufacture fertilisers. Research institutions are working on solutions across all these sectors. For cement there are methods such as reinjecting the carbon, which currently reduces emissions by around 10% (Gates, 2021, p. 106). Carbon emissions from steel can be decreased through increasing the electrification of the manufacture process. A Swedish company has recently made steel using hydrogen instead of coal ( The Guardian , 2021). In agriculture, fertilisers could be manufactured by using electricity rather than natural gas and meat could be grown in laboratories, reducing farming area (Gates, 2021, p. 111). However, new technologies to turn building and agriculture carbon neutral will take time to develop. Interim solutions such as carbon capture and carbon offset technology can be used, but both are expensive and logistically complicated. Therefore, the UK needs to look at lowering consumption, at least until the new technology is developed. This means building less, eating less meat, wasting less food as well as flying less. What we currently take for granted as part of our daily lives will need to change dramatically. UK Total 79 UK Statistics MacKay Lighting 4 Gadgets 5 Car 40 Jet Flights 30 Heating/Cooling 37 Food, Farming 15 Stu 48 Transport Stu 12 Defence 4

UK Energy Consumption

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13 ACADEMIC REVIEW 2023

This idea of an economy with limits is in contrast to the use of GDP growth targets which many governments still base their yearly success on. However, a continuously growing yearly target is impossible to achieve when the resources that fuel our consumption are finite. Raworth describes current consumption behaviour as being part of a ‘caterpillar economy’, where energy and resources are taken in for use but ‘lost’ at the end through pollution and climate damage (Raworth, 2018, p. 180). Instead, we need to recycle and regenerate the resources we use so that we do not put any additional strain on the environment. Raworth does not deny that growth is still possible in a green economy. However, she points out that over the history of industrialisation, GDP and carbon emissions have always been linked and to reach carbon neutrality, they must be decoupled. This does not mean relative decoupling where

PERMANENT REDUCTIONS TO CONSUMPTION IN A GREEN ECONOMY However, is a temporary reduction in consumption enough if we are serious about long-term, sustainable carbon neutrality? Kate Raworth’s (2018) Doughnut Economics suggests that we need to change the entire way we think about consumption in a green economy. Her book is centralised around the image of a ‘doughnut’, Figure 9. The inner ring defines the baseline ‘social foundation’ of society such as access to health, water and food. The outer ring describes the ‘ecological ceiling’ which sets the limit to the amount of climate damage we can do. Going above any of these limits would lead to climate disaster.

Figure 9. Doughnut Economy Model (Raworth, 2018)

emission growth merely slows down compared to economic growth. Growth must be achieved for the first time ever with no further release of carbon. Gates believes that this decrease in consumption only needs to be temporary whilst technology catches up, however Raworth believes otherwise. She believes that, moving forward, the UK may need to rethink what economic growth is defined by. Consumption is not infinite as defined by GDP’s exponential curve and the UK may need to get used to a society which is no longer able to grow.

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14 ST EDWARD’S, OXFORD

Chapter 3: Implementing Carbon Neutrality

more closely the political challenges to achieving a carbon neutral society. I believe that there are four main strategies which the UK can use. These strategies vary in the balance between government intervention and authority and the role of the private market and I have summarised them in the table below.

I have shown in Chapter 1 that we have sufficient energy available from renewable sources to reach our total energy needs. In Chapter 2 I looked at the challenges of converting consumption to carbon neutrality and suggested that we may have to reorganise our society’s consumption patterns to achieve this. This chapter examines

Figure 10: Political Strategies

PLAN

DESCRIPTION

ADVANTAGES AND DISADVANTAGES

The Free Market

Advantages • Harnesses the power of private markets and private capital • Allows more choice Disadvantages • Takes too much time • Resistance from powerful fossil fuel companies • Private market prices do not account for climate change Advantages • Faster transition to carbon neutrality • Indicates clear government support for the switch to renewable energy Disadvantages • Financial strain on government: higher taxes Advantages • A market which takes costs of pollution into account • Generates revenue to fund transition to carbon neutrality Disadvantages Advantages • Efficient as the government can enforce laws quickly Disadvantages • Public backlash from restrictions on freedoms • Leaves all major decisions to the government • Restricts consumer choice • Creates a polarised society

• The free market controls the move to renewable energy • Technology development and pressure from private institutions drives lower renewable energy prices

Government Pays

• Government directly invests in carbon neutral technology • Government subsidises gap between fossil fuels and carbon neutral technology

Taxation

• Controlling consumption through taxation (e.g. carbon tax)

Regulation

• Government regulates private investment and consumption through bans etc