How an Unlikely Coalition of Climate Activists and a Gas Utility Are Weaning a Boston Suburb Off Fossil Fuels

In an effort to reduce fossil fuel use and environmental impact, some locals are opting for solar power to reduce household energy emissions. Home heating and cooling alone is responsible for 441 million tons of carbon dioxide annually, but a single acre of solar panels can save between 121 and 138 metric tons of carbon emissions each year.

Several counties in Wyoming are "breaking with state policy" in order to introduce initiatives and efforts aimed at reducing greenhouse gas emissions and mitigating the impacts of climate change. Although the state controls financial allocations, city and county governments as well as community-driven efforts have still resulted in a reduction of electrical consumption and fossil fuel consumption.

Enrolling administrators and financial planners in sustainable projects takes proving that investments pay for themselves. With the help of pressure from students and faculty, Penn State Universities administrators have adopted a long-term strategy to reduce the university’s carbon footprint and implement sustainable practices. Students produced the data that illuminated the university’s unsustainable practices; the numbers now show that their efforts are paying off.

Energy developers and Indigenous communities are coming together to share ownership of renewable energy projects to promote equity and inclusion within the projects directly impacting Indigenous land. Co-ownership is on the rise globally and offers benefits like insights from Indigenous knowledge of the land and less risk of the project being canceled or protested in court.

The town of Ithaca is working with its local gas utility and area homeowners to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by removing gas pipes from homes and businesses by switching them over to electricity, primarily from renewable sources. While the transition is a long process, the town expects to achieve about a 30% reduction in emissions in the next year.

Over 70 Catholic dioceses in the Philippines have entered into an agreement with energy resource company WeGen Laudato Si to install solar panels on their parishes, schools, and other buildings. The Diocese of Maasin on Leyte Island became the first in the world to completely shift to renewable energy. Installing the panels can be expensive, but shifting to solar has saved one diocese at least 100,000 pesos a month in energy bills.

A small town in Virginia has been divided over whether or not they should allow a compressor station to be built, so to help mend this rift, a local non-profit brought community members together for a weeklong solar boot camp. The nonprofit, which marries "green workforce development and environmental justice," used grant-funding to offer a cross-section of community members training that gives them the means to pursue careers in solar employment.

One Minneapolis resident launched a grassroots education campaign to help her neighborhood reduce carbon emissions from home heating by upgrading her home insulation and using electric appliances. She then shared information about the energy-efficiency improvements and available rebates to fund them. Between 2019 and 2024, area residents using these strategies reduced natural gas use by 29%, and is now being replicated in other neighborhoods throughout the city.

Between 1992 and 2011, Nepal and the Netherlands collaborated to install 260,000 domestic biogas digesters across the country that convert livestock and human waste into clean cooking fuel to address energy security and deforestation challenges. The program has helped families save $111 annually on gas and prevents over-consumption of firewood.

Throughout the state, Maine launched several workforce development programs to meet clean energy goals by training workers to help install heat pumps and perform other clean energy jobs. For example, Kennebec Valley Community College's heat pump lab has trained more than 300 students since 2021.