Local Energy Rules

Can devastating wildfires and a bankrupt utility disrupt the transition to renewable energy? Not in Northern California, where one county is using community choice to help those affected by public safety power shut offs — and pursue its ambitious energy goals. For this episode of the Local Energy Rules podcast, host John Farrell speaks with Matthew Marshall, Executive Director of Redwood Coast Ene...

Despite facing many hurdles, one county in California is pioneering the way to a truly community-determined energy supply. For this episode of the Local Energy Rules podcast, host John Farrell speaks with Jessica Tovar, Coordinator of the East Bay Clean Power Alliance. Tovar and this alliance led the charge to establish a community choice agency in Alameda County. Tovar and Farrell talked in Decem...

Oftentimes, transitioning to renewable energy is one of many competing concerns in a local government body. In one town on Long Island, leaders are finding that their most pressing concerns can be addressed collectively. For this episode of our Voices of 100% series of the Local Energy Rules Podcast, host John Farrell speaks with John Bouvier, a town council member of Southampton, New York. Southa...

After a novel cooperative law passed in Oregon, residents can invest in solar on their house of worship, their children’s school, or the neighborhood public library. For this episode of the Local Energy Rules podcast, host John Farrell speaks with Dan Orzech, General Manager of the Oregon Clean Power Cooperative. This co-op, through its novel structure and rules, allows Oregon residents to earn a...

New York is one of nine states where communities can choose their own energy supplier through community choice aggregation (CCA). In Westchester County, the non-profit Sustainable Westchester has adopted community choice, along with several other programs, to democratize the local energy system. For this episode of the Local Energy Rules podcast, host John Farrell speaks with Sustainable Westchest...

The community solar model extends the option of clean energy ownership to those without the means or ability to put solar on their own roof. Now, an Oakland, Calif., cooperative plans to use the co-op ownership model to increase access to solar even further, by putting community solar on the roof of one of its members. For this episode of the Local Energy Rules podcast, host John Farrell speaks wi...

To reach its climate and energy goals, one Rhode Island city has opted for a climate justice plan in lieu of the typical climate action plan. For this episode of our Voices of 100% series of the Local Energy Rules Podcast, host John Farrell speaks with Providence Director of Sustainability Leah Bamberger. Although Providence is not committed to 100 percent clean, renewable energy, it has made a co...

A cooperative utility in Hawaii has reduced its electricity prices, multiplied its renewable energy capacity, and increased its grid resiliency — all without relying on neighboring utilities, because there are none. For this episode of the Local Energy Rules Podcast, host John Farrell speaks with David Bissell, CEO of Kauai Island Utility Cooperative. CEO of the co-op since 2011, Bissell has seen...

What do a failed biomass plant in Minnesota and a ban on gas hookups for new properties  in California have in common? Thanksgiving dinner! On this bonus Thanksgiving Day episode of the Local Energy Rules podcast, host John Farrell speaks with David Morris, ILSR Co-founder and Distinguished Fellow, and Maria McCoy, ILSR Energy Democracy Research Associate. The two interviews cover stories about lo...

More than 100 cities have committed to 100% renewable electricity transitions, with most hoping to get there by 2030 or 2050. Burlington, Vt., already achieved this goal — five years ago. For this episode of our Voices of 100% series of the Local Energy Rules Podcast, host John Farrell speaks with two leaders in Burlington’s completed electricity transition: Mayor Miro Weinberger and Darren Spring...

While most Americans get their electricity from a private company, about 1 in 8 Americans actually own their utility as a member-owner of a rural electric cooperative. For this episode of the Local Energy Rules Podcast, host John Farrell speaks with Liz Veazey, Network Director of We Own It, and Chris Woolery, Residential Energy Coordinator at the Mountain Association for Community Economic Develo...

Colorado, a long-time hub of hiking and skiing, has become the unexpected hub of clean energy commitments. In a swing state often divided over political issues, what makes renewable energy so popular? For this episode of our Voices of 100% series of the Local Energy Rules Podcast, host John Farrell speaks with Lissa Ray and Monique DiGiorgio about Durango, Colo.’s recent commitment to 100% renewab...

The city of Minneapolis, and utilities Xcel Energy and CenterPoint Energy, established the first-of-its-kind clean energy partnership on October 17th, 2014. Five years have passed, so it’s time to evaluate: does this anniversary deserve a celebration? In this bonus episode of the Local Energy Rules podcast, host John Farrell speaks with Minneapolis City Council member Cam Gordon. Farrell and Gordo...

In a revolutionary city ordinance, Berkeley, Calif. set a higher standard for health and safety in thousands of homes. By banning natural gas hook-ups to new buildings effective January 1, Berkeley will lower the cost of new buildings, improve the lives of residents, and clean up the climate for all. In this episode of the Local Energy Rules podcast, host John Farrell speaks with Kate Harrison, Ci...

Residents of South Carolina are already facing the effects of climate change, but at least one of their leaders is determined to take action to mitigate future catastrophic disasters. For this episode of our Voices of 100% series of the Local Energy Rules Podcast, host John Farrell speaks with Mayor Stephen Benjamin of Columbia, SC. A third term mayor and co-chair of the Sierra Club’s Mayors for 1...

In Southern Florida, utilities relax after escaping the brunt of Hurricane Dorian’s destruction. Other areas, like Abaco and Grand Bahama Islands, weren’t so lucky. The growing threat of large storms poses a question for coastal communities: what kind of energy system will be most resilient? Although it wasn’t tested by this most recent storm, our podcast guest has been pushing for distributed ene...

Can new leadership send a southern city on its way to 100% renewable energy? For this episode of our Voices of 100% series of the Local Energy Rules Podcast, host John Farrell speaks with Breea Clark, mayor of Norman, Oklahoma. Clark has only just become the mayor of Norman, but she is all in on 100% renewable energy. The two discuss why acting at the local level is so important, along with the to...

What exactly is energy democracy, and how will we achieve it? The Institute for Local Self-Reliance is seeking an answer to this complex question, but we are far from the only folks doing so. ILSR shares this space with the Energy Democracy Project, which came together in 2016. With editors Denise Fairchild and Al Weinrub, they published a book on the subject in 2017, Energy Democracy: Advancing E...

Cleveland was once the center of the oil refining industry – and the environmental pollution that accompanied it. Can an economy born of fossil fuels rise from the ashes, promote renewables, and proceed to an equitable and clean-powered future? For this episode of our Voices of 100% series of the Local Energy Rules Podcast, host John Farrell spoke with Jocelyn Travis, Campaign Manager for the Sier...

In 2011, the neighborhoods of Highland Park, Mich. went dark. The utility company had repossessed streetlights to collect on the city’s debt. Unwilling to stand idly by, the people of Highland Park organized to light the streets themselves using off-grid, renewable energy. In this episode of Local Energy Rules, host John Farrell speaks with Maria Thomas, Outreach and Organizing Coordinator for Sou...

What gives the suburbs of Philadelphia an edge over the central city in making commitments to 100% renewable energy? For this episode of our Voices of 100% series of the Local Energy Rules Podcast, host John Farrell speaks with Meenal Raval, a leader in the Sierra Club’s Ready for 100 campaign in Southeastern Pennsylvania. Thanks to organizing from this campaign, 16 suburbs surrounding Philadelphi...

How does a small city in southeastern Iowa plan to achieve energy independence and join the more than 100 cities across the country that are working toward ambitious goals to generate their electricity from renewable resources? For this episode of our Voices of 100% series of the Local Energy Rules Podcast, host John Farrell spoke with Chris Ball, Community Development Director for the town of Blo...

Can an island economy overcome hurricane devastation to seize the opportunity for energy democracy? Ingrid Vila is an engineer and director of Cambio, a Puerto Rico based nonprofit. In a coalition called Queremos Sol – we want sun – Ingrid works with many other organizations on the island and off to prioritize community-owned, local renewable energy. Nearly two years after Hurricane Maria destroye...

How can an island rebuild its electric grid in a way that boosts the local economy? In September 2017, Hurricane Maria caused a devastating and historic blackout in Puerto Rico. The months of efforts to reconnect customers were hampered by the public utility’s bankruptcy, and control of the island’s financials by a federal oversight board. Marcel Castro Sitiriche, Professor of electrical engineeri...

How can a small town in Minnesota on the North Shore of Lake Superior match the ambition of large cities like Minneapolis or San Diego in the quest for 100% renewable energy? For this episode of our Voices of 100% series of the Local Energy Rules Podcast, host John Farrell spoke with Jay Arrowsmith DeCoux, mayor of Grand Marais, Minnesota. Grand Marais is a small community of roughly 1300 people,...