Leo Murray

Background

About Leo Murray

Doing my best to help with the climate crisis since 2005. I am an energy and transport decarbonisation specialist, co-founder of Riding Sunbeams, where I have led our research and development work, and co-founder and director of innovation at climate action charity Possible, one of Riding Sunbeams’ parent companies. Now taking a break from my role at Possible to focus exclusively on making solar railways happen for a bit from July 2024. I am on LinkedIn more often now but still a bit intermittent so not the best way to reach me. I am @crisortunity.bsky.social on BlueSky or leo.murray(at)ridingsunbeams.org if you want to get in touch to talk about solar railways. I co-authored the original feasibility study which led to the formation of Riding Sunbeams, as well as leading more recent work exploring the potential for solar rail in South Wales and India. I built the relationships with rail and electrical engineering industry and academic partners that have brought Riding Sunbeams this far, and masterminded the communications and public affairs strategy that has seen Riding Sunbeams receive widespread international media coverage and Ministerial support in key UK government policy documents like the Net Zero Strategy and the Transport Decarbonisation Plan. Thanks to Riding Sunbeams’ pioneering work on the synergy between solar PV and electrified rail, direct wire traction supply from lineside generators is now formally written into the energy procurement strategies of two of Britain’s biggest electricity consumers, Network Rail and Transport for London - creating a brand new market in private wire solar traction energy supply. I also recruited the Riding Sunbeams board and led pitches that have brought in over £1m in equity and grant funding to date. I am one of the UK’s leading net zero practitioners and the brains behind a wide range of sustainable transport and energy solutions including the popular frequent flyer levy concept, authoring & commissioning dozens of reports on decarbonisation. I have given evidence to transport and environmental audit select committee enquiries and the UK and Scottish government Climate Assemblies, and served on the UK government’s Net Zero Transport Board as well as advising the shadow Labour treasury team on transport decarbonisation. I am also co-author of Badvertising, published by Pluto Press in November 2023, on the challenge that high-carbon advertising poses to progress towards net zero, and, in my spare time, I created the Trump Baby blimp which rose to global fame during Donald Trump’s first US presidency.