Georgia Barnes

For the summer portion of Chuck Green, I had the honor to partner with the Center for Energy and Environment (CEE), a non-profit dedicated to promoting and implementing energy efficiency and sustainability. CEE collaborates with a range of stakeholders including homeowners, businesses, utilities, and policymakers to provide innovative solutions that improve energy efficiency in buildings and systems across the state. CEE aims to provide practical energy solutions that are not only beneficial to the environment, but also enhance the overall economic well-being of the individual, community, or city in which they are implemented.

While CEE is an all-encompassing organization with a team of researchers, engineers, auditors, community planners, and a lending department, I chose to spend my summer working with the policy team. As an environmental studies and political science double major, I was able to apply what I’ve learned in the classroom to the projects and research I conducted this summer.

During the month of June, I spent most of my time completing research projects on an array of topics, ranging from new Environmental Protection Agency guidelines to Clean Heat Standards at the national and international levels. The research I conducted informed the policy team of recent legislation and how it affects what CEE can and will do and advocate for in Minnesota. Through my research, I was also able to identify areas of energy policy that Minnesota currently lacks and help provide CEE with a foundation for which they can build new bills and policies for the 2024 legislative session.

For the remainder of my summer, I took part in the regulatory review process of Minnesota’s utility triennial plans. These plans were filed to the Minnesota Department of Commerce on June 30th, kicking off the public comment period. I authored a blog post that better explains these filings and the importance of the regulatory process.

In collaboration with the rest of CEE’s policy team, I began reading and summarizing each utility’s proposed programs, rebates, energy savings goals, implementation strategies, and alignment with the Inflation Reduction Act. As a team, we discussed and strategized our policy positions before beginning to write our formal regulatory comments. I helped write comments on behalf of CEE, and I also supported several cities in the metro area as they filed their own comments to the Department of Commerce.

Through the Chuck Green Fellowship, I was able to identify and design a unique summer experience in a field of work that I care deeply about. In partnering with CEE, I was provided with a positive, driven, and inclusive work environment. As my summer came to an end, I found myself filled with overwhelming gratitude for the fellowship, my cohort, and Professor Lavery, our cohort’s faculty supervisor. I am also eternally grateful to everyone at CEE, specifically my supervisor, Audrey Partridge (Director of Policy and Macalester alum). This fellowship taught me new processes and skills that are beyond the classroom’s limits and restored a sense of hope for our evolving fight against climate change.