Posts Categorized: Energy Efficiency

  • Weatherization Without Walkaways: Change is Coming, But Needs a Push

    by Steve Cowell

    Weatherization is in the news more than ever, with infrastructure funds coming and with state and federal legislation proposed to improve buildings.

    Funding is necessary, but not sufficient, to solve our nation’s crisis in substandard housing. We absolutely need smart strategy. If we do not apply funds quickly and effectively, this opportunity could turn into its own crisis. This is what keeps me up at night.

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  • With Building Efficiency Retrofits, You Really Can Have It All

    by Carina Wallack and Pat Stanton

    Care about economic and environmental well-being? If so, you realize that our most valuable assets are sectors that create jobs quickly while cost-effectively reducing emissions for the long haul. Building energy efficiency investments accomplish this and more.
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  • Illustration with electric plugs and thought bubble "How can electricity overcome its dirty roots"?

    Efficiency: Minimizing Total Costs of a Precious Resource

    by Pat Stanton

    Fighting climate change hinges on transitioning consumption to what will become our most precious energy resource: zero-carbon electricity.
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  • which stays cool longer - insulated or uninsulated

    Insulation: Maximizing Value of a Precious Resource

    by Pat Stanton

    How do you keep drinks cool when you’re out far from home? Bags – or blocks – of ice (duh)!

    Consider ice, a precious energy resource in the great outdoors. Your choice of a container dramatically impacts your results: To keep cool all day will require much more ice (your precious resource) if you choose an open metal bucket, compared to a well-insulated cooler.

    Getting to Zero
    When you want to decarbonize the building sector, your precious energy resource is zero-carbon electricity (including its generation, transmission and distribution). Poorly insulated buildings waste energy resources, like an open metal bucket wastes precious ice on a hot day.
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  • #EEDay2020: More Vital Than Ever

    by Carol Harley
    Looking for an opportunity to raise your voice for positive change? It’s coming soon! Everyone can get on board with “Save Money. Cut Pollution. Create Jobs.” Please help us spread the word!

    October 7 marks a 5-year milestone of the big annual campaign E4TheFuture helped to establish, proclaiming energy efficiency’s powerful benefits. Everybody knows saving energy saves money. This year’s campaign can inspire a very broad audience: Everyone who lives in a home, goes to school, and/or works in a building.

    Act Now. It’s free to Join!
    Visit Energy Efficiency Day and join your voice to hundreds helping to promote the massive benefits of EE. Please shout out loud about EE’s power to effect positive change. Read More

  • New York State Energy Policy Advances

    Building Consensus to Achieve New York’s Ambitious Energy and Carbon Goals

    by Steve Cowell

    New York is stepping up as a national leader on energy and carbon reduction. And details matter. How will New York achieve its goals? How are stakeholders and advocates helping to provide direction? Read More

  • Hurricane-Michael_Resilience_Mexico-Beach_Florida

    Energy Efficiency: A Critical Component to Preparedness for Extreme Weather

    by Pat Stanton

    Record-breaking Hurricane Michael devastated coastal communities last fall. Because severe weather events on Florida’s Panhandle occur less frequently than on its Atlantic coast, that region was unprepared for such a potent storm. Panhandle building codes were less stringent than elsewhere,* and residents paid a steep price.

    A famous picture from The New York Times shows one house unscathed in Mexico Beach, amidst flattened home sites. Why did this building withstand the storm? The owner worked with experts to design it for extreme weather events, using insulated concrete forms rather than taking a typical “design-to-code” approach. Learning this fact led me to consider the range of benefits that resilient buildings provide to their owners and occupants. Read More

  • Southern California project map and red flag warning

    Key Questions Researched as Electricity Distribution Models and Practices Evolve

    by Steve Cowell

    Repeatedly, we hear about how fast the electric grid is transforming, and about how many difficult issues utilities, regulators, project developers, and other industry players must grapple with daily. Whether you engage with these issues every hour of the day or only tangentially, you know it’s necessary to keep up with what’s happening. I am pleased to announce new essential resources on non-wires alternatives (NWAs) and multi-user microgrids (MUMs). These two papers bring insight to current grid edge topics, and show how location is critically important to planning. Read More

  • New York State Energy Efficiency

    How to Return NY to “Top Three” for Energy Efficiency

    by Steve Cowell

    New York was once among the top three states–and can be again. Gov. Cuomo has called for ambitious new energy efficiency targets, and New Yorkers are urging the governor to present a statewide EE goal later this month that will help restore New York’s once-held status as a national leader.
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  • rural solar clean energy

    Barn Roof Community Solar – An Untapped Massachusetts Resource

    by Rachel Ehrman

    A palpable sense of pride emanates from people who live in rural towns. Untouched nature and thriving family farms are cherished rarities in Massachusetts. Protecting the integrity of such communities, while ensuring their constituents have access to local, renewable energy, is a delicate – yet important – challenge that E4TheFuture is ready to tackle.

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