Breffni Lennon

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Breffni Lennon

Research Fellow

 https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9957-5765
20152026

Research activity per year

Personal profile

Biography

Dr Breffní Lennon is a Research Fellow of the School of Engineering and Architecture and the Sustainability Institute at University College Cork, Ireland. He is a senior researcher at the Cleaner Production Promotion Unit. An energy geographer, his research engages the theme of society, sustainability, and energy. He is particularly interested in the social, environmental, and economic challenges of energy transitions; contested ideas of citizenship relating to energy; the geographies of energy, climate justice and the polycrisis; and issues of agency & identity.

In 2025, he led the UCC COP30 delegation to the United Nations Climate Change Conference which took place in Belém, Brazil, from 10 to 21 November 2025.  

He has been a principal investigator and co-investigator on numerous high impact national and internationally funded research projects, totalling €1,812,698.00 in research income.

Currently, his work on:

CLIMATUDE (EPA: 2025-28), involves undertaking a programme of engaged research with Irish citizens to co-create a better understanding of Irish people's attitudes, beliefs and values relating to climate change and how these impact the actioning of effective climate change mitigation and adaptation projects in Ireland.

Research Interests

  • Geographies of energy transitions
  • Societal and spatial aspects of sustainability
  • Citizenship and participation in energy spaces 
  • Democracy and the spatialities of power
  • People’s relationship with energy and their acceptability of new energy infrastructure

Research Grants

 

Funding
Body 

Project 

Period

Award 

Environmental Protection Agency 

CLIMATUDE: Understanding Irish people's attitudes, beliefs and values related to climate change

[Co-Principal Investigator] 

2025–2028

€658,181.00 

Horizon 2020 

ACCEPT: ACtive Communities & Energy Prosumers for the energy Transition

[Co-Principal Investigator] 

2020–2024 

€363,000.00 

Horizon 2020 

EUB SuperHub: European Building Sustainability Performance and Energy Certification Hub

[Co-Investigator] 

2021–2024 

€199,000.00 

Horizon 2020 

ENCLUDE: Energy Citizens for Inclusive Decarbonization

[Co-Investigator] 

2021–2024 

€281,937.00 

Horizon 2020 

EnergyMeasures: Tailored measures supporting energy vulnerable households

[Co-Principal Investigator] 

2020–2024 

€310,000.00 

Enterprise Ireland 

H2020 Travel Support-Energy Islands

2019–2020 

€580.00

Teaching Activities

Dr Lennon has lectured on a range of topics, including:

energy geographies, community engagement, sustainability, planning & local government, landscape studies, agency, nature/wildness issues, identity, and climate change.

He has co-designed modules for the teaching programme of the Department of Geography, Mary Immaculate College (MIC) and University of Limerick (UL) Ireland, 2021/2022, lecturing on:

  • GY4758 Geography of the Developing World

He has also contributed to the teaching programme of the Department of Geography, University College Cork, from 2007–2015; both at undergraduate and postgraduate levels, lecturing on the following modules:

  • GG1005 Physical Geography: An Introduction to the Earth and the Atmosphere
  • GG1013 Environmental Geography
  • GG6403 Contemporary Migration and Diaspora Studies MA
  • GG1003 Cultural Geography: An Introduction to Place, Space and Globalisation (2012/2013)
  • GG1015 Applied Geography
  • GG2038 Geographical Research Issues and Methods
  • GG2040 Geographies of Environment and Sustainability

He has provided dissertation supervision support to final year undergraduate students and acted as independent external academic advisor to PhD candidates for MIC’s Research and Graduate School. In addition, he has been a Comité de Suivi member for the Institute of Geography and Sustainability at the University of Lausanne, Switzerland.

UCC Futures (primary)

  • Sustainability Institute

Other research affiliations

  • UCC Futures - Collective Social Futures

PhD Supervision

  • Available for PhD supervision

Expertise related to UN Sustainable Development Goals

In 2015, UN member states agreed to 17 global Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) to end poverty, protect the planet and ensure prosperity for all. This person’s work contributes towards the following SDG(s):

  1. SDG 1 - No Poverty
    SDG 1 No Poverty
  2. SDG 4 - Quality Education
    SDG 4 Quality Education
  3. SDG 5 - Gender Equality
    SDG 5 Gender Equality
  4. SDG 7 - Affordable and Clean Energy
    SDG 7 Affordable and Clean Energy
  5. SDG 8 - Decent Work and Economic Growth
    SDG 8 Decent Work and Economic Growth
  6. SDG 9 - Industry, Innovation, and Infrastructure
    SDG 9 Industry, Innovation, and Infrastructure
  7. SDG 10 - Reduced Inequalities
    SDG 10 Reduced Inequalities
  8. SDG 11 - Sustainable Cities and Communities
    SDG 11 Sustainable Cities and Communities
  9. SDG 12 - Responsible Consumption and Production
    SDG 12 Responsible Consumption and Production
  10. SDG 13 - Climate Action
    SDG 13 Climate Action
  11. SDG 14 - Life Below Water
    SDG 14 Life Below Water
  12. SDG 16 - Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions
    SDG 16 Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions
  13. SDG 17 - Partnerships for the Goals
    SDG 17 Partnerships for the Goals

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  • UNIC Best Paper Award

    Lennon, B. (Recipient) & Dunphy, N. (Recipient), 9 May 2025

    Prize