STEP-IN is pleased to announce that the Living Lab operations in Manchester (UK), Nyírbátor (Hungary), and Metsovo (Greece) have resumed after the suspension since mid-March 2020 caused by Covid-19 (more information here)
In the light of the current situation, work is mainly carried out remotely in order to guarantee for the highest safety and wellbeing of the public and the project members.
Indeed, the Metsovo Living Lab (Greece) STEP-IN has started to provide again advice on those households participating in STEP-IN activities (via phone or email mainly), to prepare a new booklet regarding energy-saving tips, energy literacy issues, etc., and to develop two apps (the first will be embedded in LIST’s ICT platform and the second will be a stand-alone app for estimating energy consumption and potential savings). The partners are still monitoring 30 households through sensors for studying the Covid-19 impact and seeking for 50 new households that will participate in the further course of the project.
As for the Nyírbátor Living Lab (Hungary), it resumed its work mainly by conducting telephone interviews and 50 interviews have been carried out so far. In parallel, the partners in Hungary are building up a multi-channel advice framework, trying to approach households through phone calls, emails, or postal way. Currently, an assessment on the Covid-19 impacts is being carried out using aggregated energy consumption data provided by E.ON. As for the further project, special focus will be laid on a small area within the district where E.ON deployed pole meters earlier allowing for providing extra information to the households by using smart meter data.
Finally, the Manchester Living Lab (UK) has begun administering telephone advice and collect data via a short telephone survey. During the entire lockdown, Energyworks at Groundwork Greater Manchester have been offering telephone support to households who are self-isolating, vulnerable and/or high risk of covid-19. They have offered free support to people in all tenures across Greater Manchester with issues relating to their energy and keeping a warm home.
For their further work, the Living Labs will adapt their approaches to the relevant local circumstances. Updates on this will be published here and on our social media channels.
Please be ensured that we will keep you updated on the future actions of our three Living Labs, following the Covid-19 situation. Follow us on our social media accounts for regular updates (Twitter and LinkedIn).
