As always, please reach out to let us know what else we can be doing to support you or your community on the road to a healthier planet for all!

(Lexplore Sustainability Fair Team, 9/29/2018 L-R: Ricki Pappo, Marcia Gens, Fran Ludwig, Mary Yardley;  Photo Courtesy of Ricki Pappo from Energize Lexington)

Meet Ricki Pappo, a member of the Board of Directors for the Lexington Climate Action Network (LexCAN), a MassEnergize community. LexCAN encourages Lexington residents to advocate for climate solutions and work for a sustainable future. Ricki Pappo remembers her first spark of passion for climate change advocacy at an early meeting during LexCAN’s beginnings and she has an amazing advocate ever since.

 “Climate change is an issue that should be on the top of everyone’s minds. Everything else comes afterwards,” she said. 

LexCAN operates several subcommittees to address various levels of action, from state to local. Pappo recognizes the importance of building these multi level connections, especially when advocating for her town to hire a sustainability director. Now, Pappo is focused on organizing around electrification to achieve Lexington’s goal to go all electric. This past Saturday, LexCAN held an Energy Fair to help teach the community about the many ways to electrify their homes and lives. 

“We brought together many organizations that are focused on the energy transition,” she said. “People can not only learn how to put in a heat pump and what the rebates are, but also understand there are a wide variety of options and ways to electrify.” 

As more people express their interest in involvement, Pappo is encouraging others to take a step beyond interest and into action. She has seen that implementing in-person meetings and encouraging people to spearhead their own projects is helpful. For community organizers she advises that they pick specific topics to get people involved. 

“Talk to people in the farmers market or to a city council member. If you can find an ally in your town government, then you can put on some events,” she said. 

Some of these events for LexCAN have looked like hosting movie nights with time afterwards for discussion. Pappo expressed the importance of making sure people feel both the urgency of the climate crisis and also empowered to take action. 

“I’ve enjoyed the camaraderie,” she said. “This issue brings people together. We are not going to solve this on our own. . . It takes a community.”  

(Eco Initiative Cohort Team: L-R: Shawn Luz, Aimee Powelka, Debby Marion, Nathan Scott, Ellen Tohn, Jillian Wilson-Martin, Andrea Becerra, Jude Aronstein, Jim Snyder-Grant, Karen Herther, Abby Shute)

MassEnergize kicked off its Electrifying Community Outreach (ECO) Initiative on Wednesday October 18th with an in-person meeting of community leaders and municipal sustainability staff from Acton, Framingham, Natick and Wayland.

The ECO cohort discussed strategies the campaign will take to begin promoting heat pumps, rooftop solar, and community solar in each of our four communities. They then explored ways to plan a campaign by starting with behavior centered design, and ways to optimize outreach methods to enhance local engagement with clean energy technologies.

As the cohort meets in the upcoming months, they will lay out decarbonization pathways for local residents living in the four communities. We are excited to see the impact the ECO Cohort will have! 

Community Climate Leaders Conference 2024

CONNECT, ENGAGE, & ENERGIZE: Mobilizing Climate Action in Our Communities

Date: Wednesday, April 3rd 2024; 9:00am - 3:00pm

Location: Brandeis University, Waltham, MA

MassEnergize is excited to host its first annual Community Climate Leaders Conference!

Join us for a day of learning & action!

Are you passionate about addressing climate change and leading your community to take action? Join MassEnergize at our first annual Community Climate Leaders Conference! Climate leaders, local organizers, sustainability officers, and community activists will gather to learn from each other and support best practices for inspiring and engaging our communities in climate action.

Please save the date.  Registration details coming soon!

As the season shifts and the air turns crisp, we’re reminded of the warmth that comes from being part of a community that’s committed to making a difference. At MassEnergize, we’re not just an organization; we’re a family united by a shared vision of a greener, more sustainable world.

We want to reach out and express our heartfelt gratitude to each of you for your unwavering support of our mission to drive positive change through clean energy initiatives. Are there ways you would like to be more involved with us?  Time or skills you have to share? If so, please let us know. Your generous donations of time and money continue to sustain our mission, and we are so grateful for what you are able to give. 

Thank you for being a vital part of the MassEnergize community. Your commitment inspires us, and we look forward to what we can achieve together.

At this month’s Community of Practice meeting we heard from Rewiring America with an overview of Inflation Reduction Act incentives, sharing with us tools and valuable information on how to explain these incentives to your communities. If you missed the meeting or would like to refer back to these materials, then you can find them here on our MassEnergize Resource Center.  

Sunwealth also joined us and gave a brief introduction into their Community Solar projects and will give us more in depth information next month. MassCEC will also be joining us next month to present on their Clean Energy Lives Here program. Register here, for our next Community of Practice meeting taking place on November 13th. 

In case you missed it! You can watch the recording of our October Community of Practice meeting here.

Get guidance on replacing old HVAC and water heating systems. Meet Neeeco, Sherborn’s town-selected provider of the cost-free MassSave Home Energy Audit and learn how to save on energy bills and increase the comfort of your home with steep incentives. For more information click here.

Discover how to identify and improve your home’s thermal envelope, addressing issues such as ice dams, uneven heating, icicles and high energy bills. This course covers everything from basic tasks like caulking and weatherstriping to advanced projects like air barrier installation, ventilation, and insulation.  Don’t miss this opportunity to enhance your home’s energy efficiency.

There is a $29 fee to register for the course, which supports the instructor and CCACE. For more information and to register, please click here.

At the Fair, residents can sign up for a variety of programs, including fuel assistance, discounted rates, flexible payment plans, no-cost Home Energy Assessments, and more. You can also find out about Mass Save incentives and rebates. All are welcome! For more information click here!