Metro Madness: APTA wins first AEG DMV 23Q4 Ride for the Region Competition

Author: Mariana Chissell, AEG Junior Fellow, Advanced Energy Group

On April 1, 2024, the Advanced Energy Group (AEG) DMV 23Q4 Mobility & Clean Transportation Task Force launched The DMV Ride for the Region Challenge. The challenge, inspired by the competitive spirit of March Madness, encouraged employers to promote public transit use and reduce greenhouse gas emissions in the Washington, D.C., Maryland, and Virginia (DMV) area.  

Challenge participants include Rocky Mountain Institute (RMI), The George Washington University, American Public Transportation Association (APTA), Gannett-Fleming, Sierra Club, American University, George Mason University, and Kimley Horn DC; the overall tournament resulted in an impressive 846.6 kg CO2 emissions reduction. Regarding the collective effort, Mobolade Olawale from The George Washington University, commented, “the team led with energy, optimism, and a can-do spirit that shows the project’s potential to spark long-term positive change in various other regions.” 

Congratulations to APTA for winning the tournament! 

Above: Ride for the Region final results

The challenge was established as an outcome of the November 8 2023 AEG DMV Stakeholder Challenge on Mobility & Clean Transportation. This event convened over 40 public and private leaders who identified critical obstacles to achieving regional climate goals. The consensus was to prioritize a mode shift to public transit as a primary strategy for reducing emissions. 

Above: Caitlin Rogger, Deputy Executive Director, Greater Greater Washington, provides the selected critical obstacle that inspired the Ride for the Region Initiative. 

Short-term goals included developing the framework for the challenge and conducting outreach to various organizations, while long-term goals focused on securing sustainability pledges and hosting ridership challenges.

Key members of the task force include Daniel Sheehan from the Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments, Kate Roetzer and Diane Sanchez from WMATA, and insights from Dennis Morgan’s Harlem CoLab at Columbia University. Their collective efforts have shaped the challenge to not only increase transit ridership but also promote a sustainable transportation shift in the long term.

Above: Task Force volunteers committed to overseeing Ride for the Region initiative

The challenge leveraged the incenTrip app to track and log participant transit trips. By fostering friendly competition, the challenge produced significant engagement from regional employers from universities, non-profits, and public and private sectors throughout the DMV. 

This initiative is crucial as the transportation sector accounts for nearly 40% of greenhouse gas emissions in the DMV area. Increasing public transit use directly contributes to emission reductions and supports cleaner air and healthier communities

The challenge is set to continue with more organizations expected to join and pledge their commitment to sustainable transit. Future ridership competitions will be aligned with significant events like Earth Month to maximize participation and awareness. The ongoing collaboration with regional stakeholders aims to develop marketing and communication strategies to further boost participation and enthusiasm for public transit. 

For more information, visit the Ride for the Region webpage.

Equity in Action: Eversource and Verizon connect with Riley House for Seniors

Author: Mariana Chissell, AEG Junior Fellow, Advanced Energy Group

On June 14, 2023, members representing the AEG Boston 22Q3 Grid Modernization Task Force convened at Riley House in Hyde Park to showcase Equity in Action along with other energy efficiency partners. The event made significant progress towards fostering partnerships to enhance energy efficiency in Hyde Park, a largely disadvantaged, minority community. 

Above: Action for Boston Community Development (ABCD) headlines Riley House event. Read the full article here. 

During the event, representatives from Eversource and Verizon committed to improving the lives of seniors at Riley House. Eversource educated community members on energy efficiency offers and available programs that aid in managing energy bills, while Verizon shared information regarding discounted internet access to eligible communities. 

The Riley House initiative by Eversource, Verizon, and others advances the 22Q3 Task Force’s efforts to overcome the selected obstacle of: “Enabling flexible load management among harder-to-reach populations” by prioritizing communities in need with respect to equitable grid modernization. This obstacle was delivered by Brandy Chambers, Manager, Energy Efficiency Regulatory & Planning, Eversource.

Above: ABCD captures Eversource engagement at Riley House. Watch the full video here. 

Ultimately, the event's impact extends beyond technological advancements; it underscores a commitment to energy equity and support for vulnerable populations, aligning with broader federal initiatives. 

The 22Q3 Boston Task Force's collaboration with energy partners has not only improved the living conditions for senior residents at Riley House but also set a precedent for future initiatives aimed at achieving energy equity in underserved communities.

Changing the Narrative: Addressing “Worst-Performing Circuits” in North Lawndale, Chicago

Author: Mariana Chissell, AEG Junior Fellow, Advanced Energy Group

On August 10 2023, 70 utility leaders, government officials, solution providers, owner/operators, and community representatives convened at Holland & Knight offices to determine critical challenges to grid modernization in Chicagoland. Participants ultimately agreed that “addressing reliability challenges for Worst Performing Circuits at the grid edge with a priority on equity and community engagement” was the most critical obstacle to be addressed within 12 months. 

Above: Grant McEachran, Regulatory Affairs Director, S&C Electric Company presents the selected critical obstacle. 

A volunteer Task Force was established as an outcome of the challenge and committed to a 90-day goal of defining the “worst-performing” circuits with focus on North Lawndale. In 12 months, the Task Force aims to identify tools to measure load growth and impact on worst-performing circuits, and plan for the advocacy process to propose this metric. The North Lawndale community has been a focal point for energy justice initiatives and was identified as a “worst-performing” circuit, which is defined by high numbers of outages. 

Regarding these circuits, Jonathan McGee, Senior Consultant of Economic Development for Baker Tilly stated, “It is imperative that we address the worst performing-circuits in the city because many of those circuits dovetail with impoverished transportation and economic deserts in the city, only exacerbating inequity and the racial wealth gap.”

Since the workshop, Task Force members aligned on submitting an application for the Climate and Equitable Jobs Act (CEJA) Grant which supports industry leaders who are equitably growing the clean energy workforce through energy efficiency projects in low-income communities. 

The Task Force also partnered with North Lawndale community members such as The Will Group, North Lawndale Employment Network , and University of Illinois Chicago to ensure that their actions are grounded in community support. Community involvement is critical; Mark Petri, Grid Security and Resilience Lead from Argonne National Labs, emphasized, “If we didn’t have these interactions with AEG and these local communities, we might be working on problems that don’t really need fixing.”

Above: AEG highlights a site visit of The Will Group in North Lawndale. Watch the full video here. 

The Task Force collected data and metrics from the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Environmental Justice (EJ) Screen, and Argonne National Laboratory 's  Geospatial Energy Mapper (GEM) to display the interaction between health, economic, and social factors surrounding energy justice in North Lawndale in an interactive story map. The visuals simplify complex data and provide transparency in ongoing energy projects. This approach can be replicated in similar areas, enhancing community engagement but also supporting data-driven decision-making, ensuring that solutions are tailored to the specific needs of the residents. Visit the Task Force 90 sprint report and interactive map here.  

By integrating story map data with technical details on grid resiliency and worst-performing circuits, the task force aims to address North Lawndale's infrastructure needs, streamline grant applications, and identify similar communities in Chicagoland for future energy justice and grid modernization efforts.