By Laura Tierney, Vice President, BCSE
As BCSE works to advance the clean energy transition, building strong relationships between energy companies and local stakeholders is key to efficiently, and equitably deploying clean energy solutions. Recent federal legislation has placed community engagement at the center of clean energy funding opportunities. What should clean energy businesses know about this federal focus on community engagement, and what are the best practices for communicating with local stakeholders?
In May 2024, the Business Council for Sustainable Energy (BCSE) and Edison Electric Institute (EEI) headed to Cleveland, OH for The Climate Registry’s 2024 Climate Leadership Conference to join this discussion. There, BCSE was excited to assemble partners across the climate and clean energy spheres for a workshop on Engaging Communities in the Energy Transition.
To kickstart the roundtable discussion, BCSE and EEI gathered experts from the U.S. Department of Energy, America Is All In, the City of Cleveland, and national think tanks to share insights into the opportunities and challenges to building community engagement in the energy transition. Participants also provided updates on the latest efforts to place community engagement at the center of new clean energy projects.
Click here to dive into the workshop materials. Read on for the top four takeaways from the event:
1. The U.S. Department of Energy is making community engagement a core aspect of energy projects by requiring community benefit agreements.
In 2022, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) began requiring all funding opportunity announcements (FOAs) and loan applications for Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) and Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) programs to include Community Benefits Plans (CBPs). CBPs are drafted by energy companies looking to secure DOE funding and must outline how developers will collaborate with affected communities throughout a project’s lifecycle. They require research, data, strategic plans, and/or commitments that address four key areas:
- Community and Labor Engagement
- Job Quality and Workforce Continuity
- Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Accessibility
- The Justice 40 Initiative
BCSE’s workshop featured a presentation from Cai Steger, Director of Policy Research for BW Research Partnership on BW Research’s recent Community Benefits report. Interviews with early CBP participants, conducted by BW Research and the Clean Air Task Force, revealed that despite some early challenges, community benefit plans offer potentially transformative impacts. According to the report, CBPs are encouraging developers to pay more attention to community and worker needs.
However, more resources are needed to encourage and increase the participation of diverse stakeholders in the CBP process. Most importantly, greater accountability is critical to maximize community impact and to ensure that developers are held to meaningful commitments.
2. DOE’s Office of Community Engagement has funding and resources to support energy projects in communities across the country.
To help advance an affordable and sustainable energy transition, DOE has dedicated staff to direct community engagement programs and has released prizes and funding for projects nationwide. Through the new Office of Community Engagement (OCE), DOE is working to engage and connect key stakeholders in communities across the country.
Bobby Boyd, Management and Program Analyst for the Midwest Region at DOE’s Office of Community Engagement (OCE) shared resources at BCSE’s workshop for finding grants and prize opportunities for businesses, state and local governments, and community organizations:
- Clean Energy Infrastructure Funding Opportunity Exchange
- EERE Funding Opportunity Exchange
- American Made Challenges
- SBIR Funding Opportunities
- Energy Efficiency and Conservation Block Grant Program Awards
Plus, DOE offers resources to support workforce development and technical training:
Federal funding in support of community engagement is an important step toward delivering equitable access to clean energy and sharing the economic and environmental benefits of the energy transition. Cities, like Cleveland, are working to tap into these federal resources and alleviate the energy burden of households within their jurisdictions, which can be as high as 10% of household incomes.
For more information on local energy project opportunities: America Is All In is touring the country this year and hosting events, roundtable discussions, and workshops that encourage cities, states, businesses, and more to cash in on clean energy opportunities from the IRA.
3. On the private sector side, project developers must consider community engagement an integral part of the planning process.
Workshop participants agreed that energy project developers must consider community engagement efforts as part of project development costs and invest more in capacity building, developing CBPs, and actualizing community engagement on the ground level.
CBPs and other similar tools offer opportunities to change the clean energy sector’s collective way of thinking around project development. This is boosted by the new wave of federal investment into building new infrastructure and advancing the energy transition, provided by the IIJA and IRA.
The workshop participants’ advice to companies? Do research. Get on the ground early and bring community into each stage of the project development process. Be okay with allocating resources to uncertain outcomes. Invest in relationships – and consider them part of project costs, too.
Plus, it’s expected that project developers don’t have all the answers. The development of CBPs and meeting community engagement requirements is new for many companies. Participants recommended reaching out to federal and local resources for support in drafting and implementing CBPs, even after funding is awarded.
4. Communications methods must be specific to each community.
The climate, community, and clean energy leaders participating in BCSE’s workshop discussed how best to build relationships between energy project developers and local communities. Although the issue is nuanced, one point is clear: there is no standard set of community benefits, stakeholders, or historical context.
At the heart of community engagement is communication and the ability and willingness to adapt to what is learned in conversations with the community. It is also a commitment to public-private partnerships. Effective delivery of promises matters. Transparency and honest communication are key.
For each community, a holistic and perhaps different approach is needed – one that brings an awareness of the past. No one project will necessarily address the challenges a particular community faces.
When working with communities, energy companies should monitor, listen, iterate, and adjust. The conversations may be hard, but bringing an open mind and awareness of the community’s historical context to the table will help.
Delivering on promises to build a clean energy future.
Through CBPs and other DOE programs, the U.S. government is offering tools and resources to create an inclusive and sustainable transformation of the U.S. energy economy. BCSE looks forward to engaging with the clean energy industry and local communities to raise awareness of these resources and build connections between stakeholders.
The time to act is now. Let’s begin the hard work and invest in a clean energy future with benefits for all.
Additional Materials
- Survey on Community Benefits and an Overview of Community Benefits Plans and Agreements – Clean Air Task Force
- Community Benefits Resource Inventory – Clean Air Task Force
- About Community Benefits Plans – U.S. Department of Energy
- Expert Insights on Best Practices for Community Benefits Agreements – Sabin Center for Climate Change Law, Colombia Law School
- IAP2 Spectrum of Public Participation – International Association for Public Participation
- Creating an Equitable Clean Energy Future: Engaging Local Communities in Project Planning and Development – World Resources Institute
About the Author: Laura Tierney is the Vice President of International Programs for the Business Council for Sustainable Energy and manages BCSE’s external communications.