Internship Journeys - Thomas McGoey

DEC Catches Up With Thomas McGoey

Source: Patricia Faucher | · DEC · | August, 2024

DEC caught up with Thomas McGoey, who interned at DEC in 2019. We enjoyed working with McGoey and remain grateful for the calibre of work he delivered during his time with us. When McGoey was first hired, he provided valuable support to a diploma program review for an Alberta college. His contributions included reporting on the widening skills-gap in the workforce and creating strategies for a transitioning workforce. He later developed content for DEC’s Community Energy Guidebook and Toolkit.

In this Q&A, we delve into McGoey’s journey leading to and since his internship, his reflections on his experience at DEC, and his current endeavours. We are happy to share his story and insights with our community.

What is the path you took which led you to a DEC internship?

I had just finished working for four years in the Alberta provincial government, in a variety of energy policy and government relations roles. I was completing my MSc in Sustainable Energy Development at the University of Calgary and was keen to get some wider energy experience. The opportunity came up to intern at DEC through my capstone project, which was looking into how a solar standard could be developed in Alberta.

What degrees did you attain in college/university?

Prior to interning at DEC I completed a Bachelor of Arts at Dalhousie University in International Development Studies, with a minor in Management. I then completed my MSc at the University of Calgary in Sustainable Energy Development and an MSc in Environmental Policy and Regulation at the London School of Economics afterwards.

What did you work on while you were interning at DEC?

I worked on two projects primarily in my six months at DEC. A diploma programme review for an Alberta college, and the developed technology tutorials for solar PV, wind and geothermal energy systems for DEC’s Community Energy Programme.

What did you learn from your time at DEC?

My time at DEC was very valuable and I look back on it fondly. My main takeaway about what I learned were:

• Industry exposure: I didn’t have much industry exposure before joining, so it was great in seeing what’s out there and what are potential avenues to progress with after my studies. This also included getting to network and meet prominent people in the renewables and DE sector.

• Consulting work: As my primary project was the college program review, this was great exposure for me to do consulting work and working to an agreed upon brief with milestones and deliverables.

• Broadened energy understanding: tied to my first point of industry exposure, it also helped me develop my practical knowledge of the energy industry in Alberta and Canada, which was useful in going beyond the purely academic or government exposure I had at that time.

What challenges did you face during your internship, and how did you overcome them?

My primary challenge was juggling my studies at the same time but with good time management and clear deadlines/goals, it was fine. I really enjoyed the opportunity and the challenge!

In what ways did your internship at DEC influence your perspective on renewable energy and sustainability?

The main influence it had was on reinforcing my understanding of the critical role renewables and DE would play in the future, and it made me want to get more involved in the jurisdictions leading in this area (part of the reason for my move to England).

Are you still working in the field of DE or a related field? Where are you working now?

I work close to the field of DE. I currently work in London for a leading European power exchange which operates electricity markets across Europe and GB. I am involved in government and regulatory affairs capacity in the UK, Ireland and Central Europe.

Where do you hope to be in the future?

I don’t think I can definitively answer this! But I would say that I aim to continue working in the electricity sector and progressing with the implementation and utilisation of renewables and DE. Likely to be in Europe and the UK but don’t want to discount other opportunities! This will likely be in a policy context but again, I also don’t want to discount other possible opportunities.

What role do you think decentralised energy will play in our energy future (globally)?

As I am primarily involved in the UK and Europe, I can say that we are seeing a huge increase in the number of decentralised energy projects as well as in the technology and systems underpinning them. For example, we’re seeing a huge increase in the focus on flexibility and how DE can support flexibility locally. We think it will continue to grow alongside renewable generation in importance but its overall utility will be determined by how well equipped the systems are for utilising it. In our experience, these have required the development of new systems and programmes, rather than the tweaking of existing systems (something which has been done for renewables more broadly).