cyane dandridge

Helping Communities Embrace a Sustainable

Future

Cyane Dandridge

Cyane Dandridge - Executive Director of Strategic Energy Innovations

• Master’s degree in Building Technology from MIT • Help communities embrace clean energy and energy efficiency,

green buildings, economic development, and sustainable communities.

• Establishes new business concepts, combines a technical and a policy-oriented approach

• Primary focus is on underserved market sectors.


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Presentation Abstract• Challenges / Needs:

• Small municipalities are understaffed and lack the economies of scale to plan for climate protection

• College graduates have limited opportunity to gain professional experience in the energy field

• Solution: • Small Cities Climate Action Partnership

• Goals:• Assist seven understaffed small governments

o Set up and maintain energy management activities• Provide career development pathway

o Climate Corps Bay Area AmeriCorps volunteers o Encore Fellow


Future Small Cities Climate Action Partnership: A Case Study of Clean Energy Workforce Internship

for the Public Sector

Cyane DandridgeExecutive Director

Strategic Energy Innovations


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Session Overview

1. What is the Small Cities Climate Action Partnership (SCCAP), and why was it formed?

2. Roles of ClimateCorps and Encore members in SCCAP

3. Outcomes of partnership and career development model

4. Replication potential


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The Challenge: Energy Management in Small Cities

• Small cities represent 25% of population of California, but 83% of state’s jurisdictions

• Regulations (e.g. AB 32 in California) and other factors demand that local governments address energy and climate issues

• Common limitations to climate protection planning:– Staffing– Resources/Funding– Time– Economies of scale


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“Staff capacity and knowledge. Staff have divided job responsibilities and are unable to dedicate the amount of time necessary to compile, collate, and analyze energy data, much less pursue energy efficiency and/or clean energy projects.”

- Maria Sanders, City of El Cerrito

A Word From Our Partners

What are the biggest barriers to energy management that your City faces?

“Funding and staffing.”- Kevin Jackson,

City of Piedmont


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What is Small Cities Climate Action Partnership (SCCAP)?• Climate and energy management partnership between

7 small municipalities and SEI

– Albany, Benicia, El Cerrito, Moraga, Orinda, Piedmont and San Pablo

– SEI is the “climate manager-at-large” providing direct support to partner cities

• SEI created a model technical support team: – 2 ClimateCorps members (recent college graduates)– 1 retired energy professional serving as an Encore

Fellow


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Goals of SCCAP Innovator Pilot

• Establish municipal energy management tools, procedures, and policies

• Identify opportunities for saving energy and $

• Provide training to municipal staff

• Build capacity


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SCCAP Support Team: ClimateCorps Members’ Role

• Role in SCCAP:– Become energy experts through Encore Fellow mentoring– Serve as energy consultants for cities

• Activities:– Establish energy management tools– Audit facilities, recommend future projects to save energy– Municipal Energy Action plans– Implement projects – Train City staff

Climate Corps Bay Area brings together AmeriCorps Volunteers with Community Partners to Fight Climate Change in the Bay Area.


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SCCAP Support Team: Encore Fellow’s Role

Role in SCCAP:• Mentor ClimateCorps members• Provide energy expertise to cities• Proof technical reports, check

calculations• Make it fun!

Encore Fellowships match skilled, experienced professionals at the end of their midlife careers with social-purpose organizations.


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Outcomes for Partner Cities• 7 local governments in

partnership• Cities continue to meet

and share resources• Forum to exchange

ideas, brainstorm solutions

Engagement Among Cities

• Reinvestment Mechanism to fund resource efficiency projects

• Model policies to monitor energy use

Policies and Procedures

• Utility rate optimizations to save $50,000 / year• Implemented projects will reduce 170,000 lbs CO2 / year• Energy Action Plans with 15-40 energy saving projects could

save the cities 940,000 kWh; 23,000 therms; and $450,000 / year.

Energy and Cost Savings


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Sustaining Outcomes

Continuing to utilize online energy management program“Organizing our utility data so that we could easily understand and monitor it

seemed like an impossible task…The SCCAP support team helped me so that now analyzing our utility bills is only a click away.”

– Maria Sanders, City of El CerritoSaving money with regular rate optimizations

“Conducting a rate analysis is one of the easiest and most beneficial energy management techniques. The City now plans to conduct an analysis on a quarterly basis.” - Alex Porteshawver, City of Benicia

Utilizing energy monitoring to identify energy intensive facilities“Encore Fellow and Climate Corps members helped us plan for future

upgrades at the City’s Swim Center. As a result of the assistance provided by the SCCAP support team, Piedmont was able to make significant measurable gains in meeting the City’s climate action goals.” – Kevin Jackson, City of Piedmont


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Outcomes for AmeriCorps Team

Career Development:• Energy auditing• Preparing reports• Training facilitation• Project management• Nick hired as consulting group project manager • Liz hired as research assistant at the NRDC• Liz now working with a high end resort to establish sustainability

practices


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SCCAP Outcomes for Encore Fellow

“The Encore program is giving me another chance to help set the future straight… It’s been great to work with the interns. Working as a mentor is more fluid and refreshing than working simply as a consultant. It allows more creativity...I like that.”

• SEI continues to work with Fellow on ongoing basis• SCCAP city partner interested in working with Encore Fellow on

other energy management projects

• SEI currently expanding Encore program in other regions


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Support Team Model Replication

• Pre-requisites for a successful model– Provide solid training for interns upfront– Encore fellow expertise instrumental– Working for 7 cities can be overwhelming – Keep goals in mind

and define clear scope of work in the beginning• Takeaways

– Try to make it fun!– Nurture success


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Model Replication

SEI’s Non-Profit Leadership Fellow Program• Targeting enthusiastic, talented young adults• Providing mentorship to kick-start professional

careers• Encouraging development by providing

opportunities to take ownership and lead projects


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Thank you!

“Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed, citizens can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has.”

― Margaret Mead

Cyane DandridgeExecutive DirectorStrategic Energy Innovations

[email protected]://www.seiinc.org

http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/61107.Margaret_Mead

mailto:[email protected]

http://www.seiinc.org/

cyane dandridge

Documents

small communities

energy consumption

energy data

sustainable communities

energy efficiency efforts

energy field solution

international energy

small citiessmall cities