On March 3rd, 2011, grantees from across the Southeast Region gathered at the Miami Beach Convention Center to participate in a DOE sponsored EECBG and SEP networking and peer-exchange event. Over 143 people attended, including 119 grantees from 70 unique city, county and state municipalities from FL, GA, SC, NC, KY, TN, AR, MS, AL, USVI, and PR. DOE Project Officer and HQ representatives also attended, along with moderators from the Technical Assistance Program (TAP). The event was a success!
 
Attendees started the morning with an opening session on Transforming the Market for Clean Energy in the Southeast region, with speakers from U.S. DOE, the State of Florida Energy Office, and the Florida Solar Energy Center. After the opening session, the group had time for networking and viewing exhibits that highlighted other grantee projects. These included poster boards with information on grantee energy education and retrofit programs, as well as demonstrations of energy saving equipment being used by municipalities in the region. One grantee—the City of Hialeah, FL—showcased their hybrid electric-powered city recycling vehicle in the exhibit hall. Another grantee provided sample energy saving kits that they use in their neighborhood energy conservation workshops.

Following the networking and exhibit viewing, there were three panel discussions and one office hours TA session conducted throughout the day (download the presentations by clicking on the links below):                                     

• Strategies for Sustainable Energy Programs through Partnerships and Integrated Energy Planning
• Leading by Example in Public Buildings
• Technical Assistance Office Hours and Project Officer Q & A
• Financing and Driving Demand for Energy Efficiency Retrofits.

There was a mix of backgrounds and positions represented on the panels, which included a County Commissioner, a County Sustainability Director, and a municipal utility energy manager. As one grantee noted, “The meeting had a great variety of topics…and the speakers had a great diversity of competencies and backgrounds, which kept things interesting.”  Peer interaction during these panels and breakouts was strong, with valuable resources being shared amongst participants. During the office hours and networking breaks, grantees engaged with peers and technical assistance providers; as one state energy office grantee said about networking at the Peer Exchange Meeting: “it has been an excellent experience to listen to other states and learn from their experiences and how they solve issues.”

Grantees also appreciated the opportunity to meet one-on-one with DOE project officer staff, to discuss unresolved programmatic issues and work out solutions in-person. The office hours session was an opportunity to connect with technical assistance providers and get questions answered. When asked What specific programs, projects, or mechanisms will you explore further as a result of this meeting? One grantee responded, “DOE TAP! - I was not aware of this resource; I got some great contacts and it was great to meet people face to face that I might speak with later for more guidance and technical assistance.” Some meeting highlights include:

Learning how other municipalities generate involvement and buy-in from local officials: The keyword is framing.

  • Most grantees said they have tried, but are having trouble obtaining buy-in from councils, managers, and mayors on implementing EE and RE programs. However, after conversations held with others at the exchange, they were able to look at their program’s current "sales pitch" and see different approaches that might work in their community – namely ways to emphasize economic development and job creation.
  • Networking with State Energy Offices (SEO): It’s important to note that State Energy Offices have been around for a while and often have technical expertise, a network of connections, and sometimes even additional funding available for other ARRA recipients. SEOs may even be able to provide resources to your local businesses, residents, and municipally-owned utilities.
  • Peer-matching: Grantees had a lot of time at the Peer Exchange Meeting to converse about their projects with one another.

During the event, grantees with questions were able to benefit from the experience of their peers through discussions on:

  • When projects come in at a lower cost than anticipated, how should grantees revise and spend.
  • Continued assistance and guidance on leveraging multiple federal funding streams & how to evaluate energy conservation measures from an economic development and cost benefit perspective.
  • Obtaining data more easily from utilities in order to Benchmark energy use across municipal building stock

 

Ideas for New Programs: With all the ideas being shared, most attendees left with a few new resources or project ideas. These included:

  • Potential for net zero energy ready public facilities, particularly in the educational sector as demonstrated by the Kentucky example of Richardsville Elementary
  • Financing programs such as revolving loans, qualified energy conservation bonds, and prospects for PACE in the commercial sector, as well as taking advantage of federal and state tax credits or state-specific incentives through third party financing and ownership of renewable energy systems (e.g. the City of Knoxville Convention Center Solar Project).
  • Community Based Approaches. At the exchange, several grantees shared their outreach and marketing efforts.  As we discussed theses efforts, some realized that a community approach or face-to-face approaches would be beneficial and offer greater results than traditional web and print media channels.
  • Contractor/Workforce Knowledge: Many had not thought of asking what the local contractors wanted or needed. 
  • Other strategies such as building stronger relationships with local businesses, energy savings performance contracting, taking more advantage of Solution Center resources, and utilizing marketing and social media.

The Southeast Peer Exchange event helped to re-energize local and state staff, create connections among government energy practitioners, and highlighted resources that will be useful throughout the rest of the Recovery Act timeframe and beyond.  Our gratitude goes out to the folks with MiaGreen and the Miami Beach Convention Center, who generously hosted our grantees and offered free admission to the Exhibit Hall! 

Content for this Blog post courtesy of Mitch Brown, ICF International