海角视频

How can we make use of our natural resources to create the energy we need to heat our cities?

This was the question at the heart of the first Design West Shape My City workshop of 2026, a long running collaboration between 海角视频 and Vattenfall exploring District Heat Networks, a low carbon solution that draws renewable energy from our waterways to heat buildings efficiently. 

Shape My City is an award-winning talent accelerator programme for students aged 15 to 18 across Bristol and the South West. Run by built environment charity Design West, it inspires the next generation of designers, engineers, and architects by connecting them with real-world opportunities. The programme seeks to shape a more inclusive future workforce by encouraging participation from a diverse range of young people, particularly those from underrepresented backgrounds, and by opening pathways into careers across the built environment. 

Inspired by 海角视频 and Vattenfall鈥檚 work on the Bristol District Heat Network, the January session challenged participants to design the layout of pipes that would distribute heat from a central network to multiple buildings. District Heating, a concept successfully adopted in Sweden and Denmark for over a century, uses a mix of centralised low鈥慶arbon and renewable heat sources to circulate hot water through insulated underground pipes, delivering warmth to entire neighbourhoods with minimal carbon emissions.”

During the workshop, Pranay Khanchandani, Neve Forbes, Kayleigh Milkins, Jack Johnson, and Annie Miekus from 海角视频 led an interactive, project鈥慴ased game introducing the principles of heat鈥憂etwork design, building鈥憆etrofit strategies, and the rules of the game. Students worked in groups to construct miniature energy networks connecting the Bristol Floating Harbour to surrounding buildings using maps, straws, and ping pong balls. They were joined by Rufus Ford, Ben Floyd, and Sarah Sawyers from Vattenfall, who guided participants through practical challenges in heat鈥憂etwork energy distribution and helped in exploring optimal strategies.

Adding unexpected twists, such as discovering a medieval graveyard beneath their proposed routes, challenged students to think creatively and adapt in real time, just as engineers must do on real projects. 

Neve Forbes, a Building 海角视频 Apprentice Engineer, and Jack Johnson, a Graduate Sustainability and Physics Engineer, also shared their personal journeys into engineering, discussing routes through degrees, apprenticeships, and on-the-job experience. They highlighted the broad scope of engineering careers and the collaborative nature of the work. 

鈥淓ngaging young people in solving sustainability challenges is crucial,鈥� said Jack. 鈥淚t鈥檚 not just about buzzwords, it鈥檚 about understanding the science, the collaboration, and lateral thinking needed to solve these challenges together.鈥澛�

Reflecting on the day, Pranay concluded: 

鈥淗opefully, we inspired the students to do great things. Engineering is about solving problems, but what drives me is knowing there鈥檚 a meaningful purpose behind the work we do and the challenges we choose to tackle.鈥�