- 15 October 2025
RWE Sofia Offshore Wind Farm partners with Newcastle University to support its Leadership in Climate Change and Sustainability Masters programme.
Over the academic year 2024/25, RWE was proud to support a module within the Leadership in Climate Change and Sustainability MSc programme at Newcastle University, offering valuable industry insight into the offshore wind sector.
We are delighted to announce that we will be resuming that partnership for the academic year 2025/26.
The Leadership in Climate Change and Sustainability MSc programme looks at tackling climate change and building sustainable approaches through interdisciplinary collaboration and leadership.
Students on the course were exposed to real-life projects, giving them the freedom to explore a broad challenge area and focus on specific issues they want to address. RWE’s Sofia Offshore Wind Farm consents manager Elsa Lamb has provided supervisory oversight across the course of the year, helping the students to focus on key challenges that the industry is facing, and to explore potential strategies for addressing these issues.
The module concluded with presentations from the groups to a panel of RWE representatives.
In addition to this module, students at Newcastle University participated in a sprint competition, also led by Elsa. Teams of students took on industry challenges and presented solutions in just a few hours.
Dr Steven Blenkinsop, senior lecturer in Climate and Climate Change in the School of Engineering at Newcastle University said: “RWE have been instrumental in providing support, expertise and guidance, particularly on the energy sector, which we didn't have here and in really supporting our students as well. It's been really helpful to work together with them to choose some high-quality outputs.”
Reflecting on the programme, one student said: “It’s been amazing to be honest; it’s been a very unique thing to experience and to get that industry knowledge first-hand. It’s been a privilege to be the pilot for this because we can impact how it moves going forward, and our teaching staff can see how it has impacted us. I definitely would like to pursue a career in renewable energy.”
Commenting on the importance of industry engagement within education, Elsa added: “It’s so important we get young people involved in the sector and this is one of the best ways to do it; by outreach to universities and education.”
This partnership is an ongoing commitment for RWE under the terms of an MoU signed in 2023, which aims to encourage students into careers in offshore wind.
You can see the full video on the project below, and you can browse our other project videos in our Video Gallery.
