Martha Grover, Sustainability Manager @ City of Melrose

I’m writing in support of the nomination of All In Energy for the Community Impact Champion award at your upcoming Green Future Gala.

All In Energy’s impact in underserved communities across the state for such a young organization is remarkable. Amidst all of the talk in recent years about centering equity in efforts on climate change, training and building a diverse workforce, and leveraging the expertise and on-the-ground experience of community-based organizations, All In Energy has been doing those things from the start because those are the principles they started with. And the results of their efforts can be seen in many places.

When the Mass Save Community First Partnership (CFP) was first conceived of as a key component of the current Three Year Plan in order to reach those who hadn’t yet been served by Mass Save such as low and moderate income households, renters, residents whose primary language isn’t English, and small businesses, I don’t think anyone had any idea how to actually do it. Past iterations of similar Mass Save community outreach programs had barely made a dent in those sectors. The City of Melrose had taken part in past programs and is a participant in the current CFP cohort. In my opinion, the game-changer in 2022 was the selection of All In Energy to manage the newest program. Building on their previous outreach experience in hard-to-reach neighborhoods in a few communities, All In Energy is now supporting 52 communities across the state to create local programs with dozens of well-trained paid Energy Advocates who are doing the hard work of talking to residents, one at a time, about ways to decrease their energy burden, take advantage of the many incentives available to them, and help them navigate the system.

All In Energy’s role is to both create and deliver the structure to support these community teams while also responding in real time to what the Energy Advocates are learning in the field and adeptly addressing barriers. As a result, All In Energy is on the leading edge of creating a residential decarbonization program that should be replicated in every city and town because by focusing first on the hardest to reach residents, Mass Save and its many service providers are learning and adapting their programs to better serve everyone. All In Energy’s work in the CFP program has been key to facilitating Mass Save residential program improvements that continue to evolve and occur across the system and I think they should be recognized for their impact.