Dr. Silvia Ulli-Beer

Projects

• Feasibility Study on Dynamic Coordination Mechanisms for Recycled Construction Material Supply Chains / Deputy project leader / ongoing
• Systemic Multi-scale Approaches for Rapid Transition to Positive Energy Districts / Project leader / ongoing
• Climate- and energy-positive living in Eastern Switzerland 2.0: Monitoring and optimization measures in operation based on the pilot project in Güttingen / Project leader / ongoing
• Urban Positive Clean neigHborhood energy trAnsition: driving innovative solutions for Renovation, diGitalisation and energy Efficiency / Team member / ongoing
• Co-Evolution and Coordinated Simulation of the Swiss Energy System and Swiss Society / Project leader / ongoing
• Decarbonisation of Cooling and Heating in Switzerland / Project leader / ongoing
• SNF Ambizione Evaluation / Team member / ongoing
• Augmented Reality Outdoor Mission "Escape the fossils" / Project leader / completed
• Positive Energy Districts as a Suitable Instrument to govern the Swiss Energy Transition / Co-project leader / completed
• Massive Decarbonisation of the Swiss Building Stock / Team member / completed
• Hydrogen In Distributed Energy Systems / Team member / completed
• A standardized Sustainable Energy Finance solution for SMEs’ implementation of low-carbon energy solutions / Deputy project leader / completed
• Study on the barriers and Drivers of the decarbonisation of industrial processes / Team member / completed
• SCCER Joint Acitivity Romande Energie Demonstrator / Project leader / completed
• Power Alliance / Project leader / completed
• Smart bioclimatic low-carbon urban areas as innovative energy isles in the sustainable city / Team member / completed
• Participative Foresight for Smarter Cities / Team member / completed
• Diffusion of self-consumption concepts under variants of grid tariff designs for the supply area of BKW / Team member / completed
• SCCER CREST / Co-project leader / completed
• Smart Cities / Team member / completed

Publications

Articles in scientific journal, peer-reviewed

• Bahadori, R., Speich, M. and Ulli-Beer, S. (2025) 'Modernizing district heating networks : a strategic decision-support framework for sustainable retrofitting', Energies, 18(14), p. 3759. doi: 10.3390/en18143759.
• Zapata Riveros, J., Scacco, P. M. and Ulli-Beer, S. (2024) 'Network dynamics of positive energy districts : a coevolutionary business ecosystem analysis', Frontiers in Sustainability, 4(1266126). doi: 10.3389/frsus.2023.1266126.
• Zapata Riveros, J., Gallati, J. and Ulli-Beer, S. (2024) 'Mitigating risks and breaking barriers, energy supply contracting in multifamily houses : an ecosystem perspective', Frontiers in Sustainable Cities, 6(1460960). doi: 10.3389/frsc.2024.1460960.
• Hafner, S. et al. (2024) 'Building the bridge : how system dynamics models operationalise energy transitions and contribute towards creating an energy policy toolbox', Sustainability, 16(19), p. 8326. doi: 10.3390/su16198326.
• Speich, M., Chambers, J. and Ulli-Beer, S. (2024) 'Current and future development of thermal grids in Switzerland : an organizational perspective', Frontiers in Sustainable Cities, 6(1379554). doi: 10.3389/frsc.2024.1379554.
• Speich, M. and Ulli-Beer, S. (2023) 'Applying an ecosystem lens to low-carbon energy transitions : a conceptual framework', Journal of Cleaner Production, 398(136429). doi: 10.1016/j.jclepro.2023.136429.
• Hafner, S. et al. (2022) 'Governing industry decarbonisation : policy implications from a firm perspective', Journal of Cleaner Production, 375(133884). doi: 10.1016/j.jclepro.2022.133884.
• Zapata Riveros, J. V. et al. (2021) 'Combining business model innovation and model-based analysis to tackle the deep uncertainty of societal transitions : a case study on industrial electrification and power grid management', Sustainability, 13(13). doi: 10.3390/su13137264.
• Zapata Riveros, J. V., Kubli, M. and Ulli-Beer, S. (2019) 'Prosumer communities as strategic allies for electric utilities : exploring future decentralization trends in Switzerland', Energy Research & Social Science, 57. doi: 10.1016/j.erss.2019.101219.
• Ulli-Beer, S. (2019) 'Challenges of participatory modelling and paradigm change : comment on the paper by Bakken', Systems Research and Behavioral Science, 36(2), pp. 197–198. doi: 10.1002/sres.2579.
• Bagemihl, J. et al. (2018) 'A market-based smart grid approach to increasing power grid capacity without physical grid expansion', Computer Science - Research and Development, 33(1), pp. 177–183. doi: 10.1007/s00450-017-0356-5.
• Ulli-Beer, S. et al. (2017) 'Participative modelling of socio-technical transitions : why and how should we look beyond the case-specific energy transition challenge?', Systems Research and Behavioral Science, 34(4), pp. 469–488. doi: 10.1002/sres.2470.
• Kubli, M. and Ulli-Beer, S. (2016) 'Decentralisation dynamics in energy systems : a generic simulation of network effects', Energy Research & Social Science, 13, pp. 71–83. doi: 10.1016/j.erss.2015.12.015.

Written conference contributions, peer-reviewed

• Morais, D. et al. (2025) 'Positive energy districts in Switzerland : analysis from a technical, social and business point of view', in Berardi, U., António, J., and Simões, N. (eds). Singapore: Springer, pp. 39–47. doi: 10.1007/978-981-95-1826-5_5.
• Zapata Riveros, J. and Ulli-Beer, S. (2025) 'A system dynamics approach towards nearly zero energy districts', in Conference Proceedings The 2025 International System Dynamics Conference. System Dynamics Society. Available at: https://proceedings.systemdynamics.org/2025/papers/P1118.pdf.
• Speich, M. and Ulli-Beer, S. (2024) 'Business implications of net-zero targets for district heating and cooling', in Howick, S., Jalali, M., and Rahmandad, H. (eds) Proceedings of the 2024 International System Dynamics Conference. Las Vegas, NV: System Dynamics Society. Available at: https://proceedings.systemdynamics.org/2024/papers/O1263.pdf.
• Freunek Müller, M., Kubli, M. and Ulli-Beer, S. (2015) 'Interdisciplinary modelling of energy transition in rural and urban systems', in CISBAT 2015 : future buildings & districts sustainability from nano to urban scale. Lausanne: Solar Energy and Building Physics Laboratory (LESO-PB), Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), pp. 913–918. Available at: https://infoscience.epfl.ch/record/213428/files/9_FREUNEK.pdf.

Other publications

• Speich, M. et al. (2025) 'Wärmepumpen für die Industrie : der Weg aus der Nische', Swiss Engineering STZ, (6), pp. 12–13.
• Zapata, J. et al. (2025) One stop shop for renovation guidelines. Winterthur: ZHAW Zurich University of Applied Sciences. doi: 10.21256/zhaw-36108.
• Speich, M. and Ulli-Beer, S. (2025) Herausforderungen des Ausbaus thermischer Netze im Rahmen kommunaler Klimastrategien. Winterthur: ZHAW Zürcher Hochschule für Angewandte Wissenschaften. doi: 10.21256/zhaw-36134.
• Speich, M. et al. (2025) Marktentwicklung für industrielle Wärmepumpen : Verbreitungsmodell und Handlungsoptionen. Sweet DeCarbCH. doi: 10.21256/zhaw-36120.
• Zapata, J., Scacco, M. and Ulli-Beer, S. (2025) Guidelines positive energy districts (PEDs) : PED pathways: from vision to reality. Winterthur: ZHAW Zurich University of Applied Sciences. doi: 10.21256/zhaw-36107.
• Sierro, F., Speich, M. and Ulli-Beer, S. (2024) 'Die Schweizer Tiefe Geothermie mitten im Wandel', Geothermische Energie, 33(107), pp. 8–11.
• Kubli, M. and Ulli-Beer, S. (2015) 'Transition patterns of distributed energy generation concepts considering network effects', in CISBAT 2015 : future buildings & districts sustainability from nano to urban scale. Lausanne: Solar Energy and Building Physics Laboratory (LESO-PB), Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), pp. 919–924. Available at: https://infoscience.epfl.ch/record/213429/files/9_KUBLI.pdf.

Oral conference contributions and abstracts

Speich, M. and Ulli-Beer, S. (2024) 'Gewinnbringende Integration saisonaler Wärmespeicher in Schweizer Fernwärmenetzen', in SWEET DeCarbCH WP2 / 6 Workshop, Zürich, Schweiz, 3. März 2023. Zenodo. doi: 10.5281/zenodo.14887628.

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