Award category

Education

Year released

2025

The Nicor Gas Energy Efficiency Program designed the Market Development Initiative (MDI) to ensure that utility energy efficiency offerings are made available to underserved communities through a network of diverse trade allies with a highly trained local workforce through two paths:

Through the Trade Ally Development (TAD) program, diverse contractors are provided with growth opportunities through virtual trainings, resources and one-on-one coaching support that will elevate their business. Participants learn about diverse and industry certifications, expansion into EE and creating a business growth plan.

Through the Workforce Training and Employment (WTE) program, unemployed and underemployed individuals in underrepresented and marginalized communities are introduced to the energy efficiency industry, provided hands-on training and guided toward gainful employment opportunities with trade allies, utilities and other enterprises. 

Award category

Education

Year released

2024

The purpose of CEE’s workforce development program is to recruit, train and retain Black, Indigenous, Asian, Latin, people of color, and women in the energy efficiency sector. With support from Xcel Energy, CEE launched a career training program in early 2022 specifically for unemployed and underemployed Minnesotans of color and women from Green Zone areas of Minneapolis and areas of concentrated poverty in St. Paul. Not long after their program launch, CEE was awarded funding by CenterPoint Energy to expand its training to areas of concentrated poverty in suburban Hennepin County.  
 
Since the program launch, CEE has trained 90 participants through its holistic, paid 4-week home energy career training. Skilled energy auditors serve as the instructors and 98% of participants have earned the Building Science Principles BPI credential. In partnership with community-based organizations, CEE is able to offer wrap-around support services including transportation support, financial coaching, and employment navigation during and after the paid training and internship. CEE looks forward to expanding its work to HVAC career training in the Twin Cities’ east metro through Ramsey County’s Learn and Earn ARPA funding and to areas of Greater Minnesota later this year (2024). 

Award category

Education

Year released

2023

The purpose of ComEd’s EESP Incubator Program is to increase the number of local and diverse-owned business participants, generate meaningful revenues and serve low-participation communities. The incubator provides training on the details of each program within the EE portfolio. It helps drive success by providing back-office support to assist cohort members with certification, provide information on how to finance projects and offer support for basic business development. Many of the low-participation communities in the ComEd service area are also diverse communities. To help increase the number of EESP contractors serving diverse communities, ComEd focused recruitment on local business owners who identify as ethnic minorities, women, LGBTQ+, persons living with a disability, veterans and others. 

Award category

Education

Year released

2022

Focus on Energy developed the Real Estate Ambassador Initiative to leverage a valuable network of third-party influencers and ultimately drive program awareness and growth among a high-potential customer segment. The Ambassador Initiative partnered with real estate professionals across Wisconsin, providing them with energy efficiency education and exclusive offerings to use with their clients. In turn, Ambassadors passed along Focus on Energy information and incentives to their clients. This mutually beneficial approach helped real estate professionals differentiate themselves with new client perks and knowledge on topics that are increasingly important to homebuyers. Focus on Energy benefited from that trusted third-party endorsement as well as gaining access to an untapped customer segment that is actively spending more money on home improvement projects than the average homeowner.

Award category

Education

Year released

2022

In the 2020 program year, the DTE and Consumers Energy New Home Construction programs collaborated to launch a co-branded monthly Technical Bulletin education campaign. This campaign was designed to provide program-participating home builders and Home Energy Rating System (HERS) raters with continuous insight into industry research, best practices, and programmatic areas of focus. These bulletins also drew upon real-world examples found during site visits to share improvements for technical approaches that will yield higher HERS scores and more efficiently built homes. Topics included whole home air sealing, insulation grading, ENERGY STAR® requirements, construction safety, and more. Participating builders and HERS raters could easily access the full inventory of technical bulletins and additional training opportunities on the DTE and Consumers Energy Efficiency Learning Centers (EELCs).

Award category

Education

Year released

2021

Since 2008, the Ameren Illinois Energy Efficiency Program has been helping our state transition into a more affordable and cleaner future. We don’t just work in your community, we’re a part of it. We work with residents, businesses, and partners across Illinois to save our customers money, strengthen our state’s economy, and lower carbon emissions. We are committed to helping all customers improve comfort, manage usage, and reduce costs.

Award category

Education

Year released

2020

The School Energy Manager Project (SEMP), a service by the Kentucky School Boards Association, began in 2010 after receiving $5 million dollars in funding from the Obama Administration to develop an Energy Management Program for Kentucky K-12 public schools. This funding helped local school districts hire energy managers and to get an Energy Management Program started in most of the Kentucky’s 173 public school districts.

When the initial investment had been spent, many school districts continued to fund this program, finding great value and seeing results in energy reduction and education for their students. For 5 years, a partnership with Kentucky utilities contributed to the energy manager’s salary. While the SEMP officially ended in 2018, its legacy continues with many schools maintaining the Energy Management Program.

Due to this program and SEMP leadership, many remarkable results have been seen. The statewide energy utilization index for Kentucky’s Public Schools lowered over an eight-year period from 65 to below 50 KBTU/SF/yr. The corresponding dollar savings (returned to the classroom) were over $225 Million. Despite rising energy costs, Kentucky schools are spending less in non-transportation energy in today than in FY2010. The number of ENERGY STAR labeled school buildings in Kentucky went from 12 in 2008 to 450 through fiscal year 2018, making Kentucky the third ranked state in the nation for the highest percentage of ENERGY STAR labeled school buildings at the time. Over 600,000 metric tons of CO2 gases into the environment were eliminated.

The School Energy Management Project was recognized nationally by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the U.S. Department of Energy as an ENERGY STAR Partner of the Year in Program Delivery for 5 years of Sustained Excellence.

Award category

Education

Year released

2019

The success of the Ameren Illinois Energy Efficiency Program depends largely on our statewide network of Program Allies. These specially trained contractors help customers access Ameren Illinois incentives to implement energy-saving measures. To strengthen and add diversity to this network, in 2017 Ameren Illinois created an Ameren Illinois Opportunities Scholarship Program to help train the next generation of workers in energy-efficient Construction Management and HVAC. Our scholarship program is unique in its focus on hands-on vocational skills versus academic performance. We look beyond a student’s GPA, working closely with school instructors to identify promising minority candidates based on attitude, performance, and capability. Our Ameren Illinois Opportunities Scholarship Program reflects Ameren Illinois’ strong commitment to supplier diversity, while filling a business need and boosting local economies.

Award category

Education

Year released

2018

The National Energy Foundation (NEF) is a unique 501(c)(3) nonprofit educational organization founded in 1976 and dedicated to the development, dissemination and implementation of supplementary educational materials and programs such as Think! Energy. NEF recognizes the importance and contribution of energy and natural resources to our economy, to our national security, the environment 
and our quality of life. 

NEF programs reach over 500,000 students annually, including students in Ohio, Indiana, Missouri, Minnesota and Michigan. NEF’s flagship program, Think! Energy, began in 2007 in Indiana, with Michigan programs starting in 2010 for Consumers Energy, DTE Energy and Efficiency United.