Turning Policy into Performance: Measuring Equity to Achieve Restorative Justice

Hello All! This week I joined NEEP as the new Public Policy Manager. I don’t think many people can say they are passionate about energy efficiency, but I am. It started as a passion for regulatory law and environmental justice in law school and has evolved into a career in energy efficiency and finding the path to an equitable, decarbonized grid.  I come to NEEP from the Mid-…

My name is Sammi Lor. I am 22 years old and I graduated from Worcester Polytechnic Institute in May of 2020 with a degree in Environmental Engineering and a minor in Sustainability. When I became an intern at NEEP in May of 2019, I had no idea I would continue working there for a year and a half, through classes, travelling abroad, university commitments, and all else. But looking back I’m not…

I recently heard “move electrons instead of molecules” to describe policies to electrify buildings and transportation to displace the use of carbon-intensive fossil fuels. This clever phrase describes a key trend in ACEEE’s recently released 2020 State Energy Efficiency Scorecard – that states working to implement the most aggressive greenhouse gas (GHG) emission reduction goals in the nation…

Outside my window in Boston, Massachusetts is a bright winter wonderland. It feels like forever since we’ve seen snow quite like this. Watching the mesmerizing dance of snowflakes and hearing the muffled sounds of wind and diligent snow shovelers offers the perfect time for some introspection about all that has happened this year. What a year it has been! 2020 turned out to be what felt like a…

Happy holidays and cheers to the New Year! 2020 has been a year of unprecedented challenges. The global pandemic forced people to learn new technological skills to work from home effectively, but also gave families more time to be present with one another and pursue hobbies they’ve never had time to try before. In addition, quarantine reduced pollution levels significantly. During the early…

COVID-19 has impacted nearly every industry around the world, so it's no surprise that the energy efficiency industry has been significantly impacted as well. For energy efficiency programs in particular, COVID-19 has created many challenges (and some opportunities), which can be seen in recent changes to the implementation of SEM programs. In recent years, strategic energy management (SEM) has…

This post was written by Andrew Mondell, PE, CEM, LEED GA, Business Development Manager – New York/Long Island Area, Northeast Region, Trane Commercial HVAC North America, as part of its membership in NEEP®’s Allies Program. In response to climate change, robust efforts to decarbonize — reduce GHG emissions released into the atmosphere to address global warming and meet world climate…

The year 2020 has been defined by many things; an unprecedented pandemic, a presidential election, and a national reckoning with social and racial justice. In Massachusetts, while all of that has been going on, a growing coalition of building professionals, municipal staff, and energy advocates has been working tirelessly to push the envelope on zero energy building codes in the state. In May…

For newcomers in the HVAC industry, the terms used to describe heating and cooling technologies can feel like a jumble of acronyms, all describing the same principle with slight variations. It wasn’t until I attended NEEP’s ASHP and Market Transformation Workshop during my internship that I gained a deeper understanding of two important acronyms in the industry: air source heat pumps (ASHP) and…

Strategic electrification – or the conversion of appliances and heating systems traditionally powered by fossil fuels to efficient electric alternatives – is a key piece in the decarbonization puzzle and is growing in interest among states and municipalities looking to reduce their carbon footprint. What differentiates strategic or beneficial electrification from “electrification” is that it must…