Student of Energy and Environmental Studies wins Rachel Carson Thesis Prize

Aagje van Meerwijk, Master’s student of Energy and Environmental Studies , has won the Rachel Carson Thesis Prize. It is a national prize for the best thesis on an environmental related subject, with a category for university students and one for students of higher professional education. The prize is organised by the Society for Environmental Expertise (Vereniging Voor Milieukundigen VVM).

Van Meerwijke’s thesis is about the Swiss claim to become the battery for Europe with several new pump hydro power stations. She also took hydrology and climate change into account. The eight headed jury called the thesis surprising and explorative. In addition, the thesis is topical since the storage of electricity ius a key issue in the energy transition from fossil based to renewable based supply.

“In this thesis research is addressed which has never been addressed before”, according the jury. The final statement the jury made was the most complimentary: “Aagje performed and wrote down her thesis as a classic example of how a thesis should be composed.”