Equitable Building Electrification
The continued use of fossil fuels and the impact on climate and communities is a defining issue of our time. Collectrify believes that energy efficiency, weatherization, renewables with battery storage, and the removal of fossil fuels from homes and communities through equitable building electrification merit massive investment. In addition, a Collectrify core goal is to ensure that philanthropic, government, and utility program dollars are spent in limited-wealth, fenceline, and communities of color.
Building electrification is the removal of all heating systems and appliances that run on methane gas, propane, or other fossil fuels in homes and buildings and replacing those systems and appliances with ones that use electricity. Combustion of fossil fuels for heating and cooking results in the emission of carbon dioxide, methane, and nitrous oxide greenhouse gasses as well as other toxic indoor air pollutants. Building electrification can be encouraged through the adoption of policies at the local, state, and federal levels as well as through utilities and utility commissions.
Equitable building electrification is the idea that racial equity and energy democracy should be incorporated into all processes and policies facilitating this energy change from the very beginning. This idea was first outlined by the Greenlining Institute and Energy Efficiency for All in California in 2019 and builds on the Just Transition framework and Jemez Principles.
Equitable solutions to electrify homes and appliances must be designed to allow for community ownership, and opportunities to clean the air, create healthier homes, create good jobs, prevent housing displacement, and empower workers.
