Energy: ENEA researcher first Italian to lead main international conference on photovoltaics

Alessandra Scognamiglio, ENEA researcher at the Portici Research Center, has been appointed to lead the largest international conference on Photovoltaics (World Conference on Photovoltaic Energy Conversion - WCPEC) to be held next year from 26 to 30 September in Milan. Appointed General Chair following a selection procedure[1], she is the first Italian to lead the main international event in photovoltaics, which unites the three main conferences of this field, the European Photovoltaic Solar Energy Conference (EUPVSEC), the Photovoltaic Specialist Conference (IEEE PVSC) and the International PV Science and Engineering Conference (PVSEC). The conference is organized by WIP Munich, and the scientific programme is coordinated by the Joint Research Center of the European Commission.

A degree in Architecture and a doctorate in Environmental and Architectural Technologies, Alessandra Scognamiglio specializes in photovoltaic integration in buildings and landscape and is coordinator of the ENEA task force Sustainable Agrivoltaics, the first national network of companies, institutions, universities and trade associations working to define a methodological and regulatory framework, the guidelines to design and assess plants, the tools to support decision makers and to promote Italian excellence in the sectors of new technologies for renewable energy, agriculture and landscape.

Mainly committed to an innovative use of photovoltaics in buildings and landscape, since 2008 she has collaborated with the European Photovoltaic Solar Energy Conference (EUPVSEC) as a topic organizer for program coordination on the use of photovoltaics in buildings and in nature. She is the creator and chair of the “Photovoltaics | Forms | Landscapes. Beauty and power of designed photovoltaics ", organized starting from 2011 in the framework of EUPVSEC, with the collaboration of the European Commission - Joint Research Center (JRC) - and ETA Florence Renewable Energies, now in its tenth edition, presented at the 17^th Venice Architecture Biennal.

She has authored over 100 publications including journals, conference proceedings and contributions in volumes, edited some monographs and holds  some patents for innovative photovoltaic components, in which design is enhanced. Teacher of post-graduate masters organized by national architectural and professional associations and by ENEA, she continues to conduct dissemination and promotion activities by participating in scientific events and seminars.

“I am honored to serve as the Conference Chair and proud that the scientific community has chosen an architect for this role,” pointed out Alessandra Scognamiglio. “Scientific and technological research has now reached unimaginable goals that make photovoltaic the cheapest and most widespread power source in many areas of the world (IEA World Energy Outlook 2021). However, there is still a considerable gap to bridge to meet the objectives linked to the decarbonisation of the energy system expected by 2050. "

For Scognamiglio, "the conference is a unique opportunity to demonstrate how photovoltaic technology and a sustainable transformation of the landscape can be united in a single vision for new cultural landscapes:  to do so, solutions capable of capturing the beauty and great modularity of technology need to be found and put into practice, through appropriate design strategies to embed the energy structure into the landscape. I am confident that the long cultural history of our country can inject enthusiasm into the entire photovoltaic community to ensure that photovoltaics is culturally accepted ”, she concluded.

Alessandra Scognamiglio, ENEA - Innovative Devices Laboratory, Portici Research Center, 

For more information on the sustainable agrivoltaic network:
Energy: ENEA launches national network for sustainable agrivoltaic systems

Platform website:
https://www.agrivoltaicosostenibile.com/
https://www.pv-landscapes.com

[1] The candidacy was proposed by the International Scientific Advisory Committee of the European Photovoltaic Solar Energy Conference, the committee directed by the European Commission,  subsequently agreed upon by the International Advisory Committee of the World Conference on Photovoltaic Solar Energy Conversion (WCPEC-IAC) , made up of 39 representatives of the photovoltaic community from Europe, the Americas and Asia.