Engaging with Congress on Climate Change Solutions

On September 29, 1983, EESI’s first board of directors convened in Washington, D.C., to set the organization’s agenda. In a press release at the time, EESI’s chair, Rep. Richard L. “Dick” Ottinger, said, “We all want to return to the kind of informed, non-partisan debate that has produced a remarkable degree of consensus on protecting the environment.”

Here we are 40 years later, and that sentiment still drives everything we do here at EESI. And you make it all possible!

Turning 40 is a pretty big deal; unfortunately, I would know—but just barely ;) . But EESI is definitely not “over the hill.” The opposite is true. Thanks to you, we are fully charged up and ready to meet the climate challenge.

We will take time over the next year to reflect on our first 40 years. But the climate crisis is already here, and the worst outcomes are yet to come if we fail to act. So the occasion will be very much about preparing for the future.

As we look ahead, I hope you will continue to partner with EESI to advance climate change solutions. Together we can raise awareness about the resilience challenges facing communities. Together we can find new ways to accelerate clean energy deployment at scale, especially in rural areas. And that includes beneficial electrification. And together, through paid internships and scholarships, we can inspire young leaders to find their voice advancing equitable solutions.

Thanks for your partnership.

Links:

• Check out climate solutions in YOUR state!
• EESI's Briefings
• Subscribe to EESI's Podcast, The Climate Conversation!

The latest news out of Washington is all about the debt ceiling. While I would prefer the historic climate investments of the Inflation Reduction Act to be entirely “off the table” and not part of negotiations, we have a long way to go before anything is final.  

What do you think? Have you been following this news? 

Meanwhile, agencies are busy putting these climate investments to work. One program, created as part of the big infrastructure package enacted in late 2021, will help nonprofits make their facilities more energy-efficient.  

The nonprofit sector is diverse, including schools, colleges, libraries, worship facilities, community centers, animal shelters, hospitals, and much more. Energy costs are the second-highest operational expense for many nonprofits. And most face significant financial and information barriers to implementing energy efficiency, which are exacerbated for nonprofits that serve rural areas and those led by people of color.  

The Department of Energy is currently rolling out the all-new Renew America’s Nonprofits program with $50 million for grants that will deliver tremendous monetary, social, and environmental benefits to nonprofits and the communities they serve.  

We want Renew America’s Nonprofits to be a big success. And thanks to your involvement, EESI’s decade-plus of building up resources about energy efficiency for rural utilities means that we have a lot to leverage in a new way. So we are pitching in with an extensive outreach effort that is reaching thousands of people working with nonprofits. EESI continues to add case studies about nonprofits that are realizing the benefits of energy efficiency upgrades to our website.  

Your commitment to advancing climate change solutions has made all of this possible.  

As projects are completed, we will document the experience of nonprofits that use the grants to lower their monthly energy costs and reinvest the savings into their core missions and serving their communities.  

Thank you for believing in this work.  I am very grateful for your continued partnership. 

Links:

• Subscribe to EESI's Podcast, The Climate Conversation!
• EESI's Briefings
• EESI's Articles