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New Energy Efficiency Rules Will Cut Carbon & Lower Costs

Expert BlogCaliforniaLara Ettenson, Mohit Chhabra

With the sixth annual Energy Efficiency Day planned for Wednesday, it’s a good time to remember that efficiency is one of the most effective ways to fight dangerous climate pollution and catalyze action to address historic underinvestment in vulnerable communities.

Many States Lead on Energy Efficiency; More Needed

Expert BlogUnited StatesLara Ettenson
Clean energy, including energy efficiency, has struggled to maintain momentum in a year marked by a global pandemic, racial and social unrest, economic hardship, and subsequent recession.

High-Quality Jobs Help Protect the Planet

Expert BlogUnited StatesLara Ettenson, Marc Boom

The coronavirus pandemic has illustrated the drastic inequities in our society, and it’s decimated the workforce across the board. More than 20 million people are unemployed, most of them Black and Latino. Losses through June exceeded 400,000 jobs across the…

How to Plan for Equitable Energy Efficiency in a Pandemic

Expert BlogUnited StatesLara Ettenson
As the ongoing pandemic further exacerbates racial and economic disparities across America, it is important to examine whether programs aimed at helping utility customers cut energy waste are reaching everyone.

Federal Energy Efficiency: Promoting Equity and the Planet

Expert BlogUnited StatesKhalil Shahyd, Lara Ettenson
The COVID-19 pandemic continues to disproportionately affect low-income communities of color and threatens to plunge our economy deeper into a recession at a time when many families and communities are already struggling to meet basic needs. The federal government should…

Energy Efficiency Reform Is Needed to Reach All Communities

Expert BlogUnited StatesLara Ettenson
As energy efficiency advocacy intersects housing, energy, and employment systems built on policies that disproportionately burden low-income people and communities of color, it’s important to ask: how are energy efficiency policies, programs, and processes perpetuating inequities from systemic racism and…

The Time Is Now to Stand with Clean Energy Workers

Expert BlogUnited StatesLara Ettenson
All sectors of the U.S. economy have been pummeled by the COVID-19 pandemic, making it critical to support all those whose jobs have been affected, such as by including worker protections in federal stimulus packages.

Cheers to 2019 Energy Efficiency Progress with More in 2020!

Expert BlogLara Ettenson
Reflecting on 2019, it is hard to grapple with the extent of this year’s climate tragedies like massive wildfires and flooding. Yet even when things seem as dire as ever, there is continual news of progress, perseverance, and hope. And…

Energy Efficiency: The Planet’s Superhero

Expert BlogInternationalLara Ettenson
The fourth annual Energy Efficiency Day planned Wednesday reminds us energy efficiency is the cheapest, fastest answer to fighting climate problems.

We Know How to Cut Climate Pollution But Need Political Will

Expert BlogUnited StatesLara Ettenson

According to a new analysis by the American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy (ACEEE)—Halfway There: Energy Efficiency Can Cut Energy Use and Greenhouse Gas Emissions in Half by 2050—the great news is that we already have the tools to affordably…

California Sets Off on Another Bold Path to Save Energy

Expert BlogCaliforniaLara Ettenson

The California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) unanimously approved the first ever set of business plans developed by administrators that manage the majority of the state’s energy efficiency programs. These plans lay out short-, mid-, and long-term strategies through 2025 to…

Good News for Good Jobs: Clean Energy Soars

Expert BlogUnited StatesLara Ettenson

The just-released third annual U.S. Energy and Employment Report, a comprehensive look at energy jobs in America, showed once again that clean energy—especially efficiency—is the driving force behind job growth in this sector.

U.S. Clean Energy Jobs Surpass Fossil Fuel Employment

Expert BlogUnited StatesLara Ettenson

The recently published Department of Energy 2017 U.S. Energy and Employment Report shows that clean electricity jobs are no doubt the engine that drives America’s electric energy economy, outstripping the number of paychecks provided by the fossil fuel industry by…