Outreach Strategies to Scale Up Building Decarbonization

Jon Braman
Proposal Status
Ready for Committee Review
Username
Jon Braman
Proposer First Name
Jon
Proposer Email
jbraman@brightpower.com
Proposer Last Name
Braman
Proposer Phone
(646) 780-5533
Proposer Job Title
Executive Vice President Strategic Initiatives
Proposed Session Description
Bright Power’s experts on outreach and education for building owners will share proven strategies for engaging thousands of building owners in energy and water benchmarking and other building energy services. In order to successfully retrofit buildings, track the impacts of energy upgrades, and connect building owners with financing or technical assistance, it is critical to first contact, engage, and communicate with them effectively. Outreach is too often overlooked by technical service providers and programs. In this session, Bright Power will share tested outreach strategies to help expand the reach of energy programs, policies and low-carbon building solutions. Potential co-presenters include the Building Energy Exchange.
Why is this session important?
Scaling up deep energy retrofits and other strategies for building decarbonization requires not only solutions that work technically and financially; it requires that building owners and other key decision-makers engage with programs and solution providers to implement these solutions. As governments, lenders, utilities and technical service providers aim to expand the reach of energy programs, and ensure new building policies are effectively implemented, building owner outreach, engagement and communication strategies are critical. Many service providers and even energy programs are focused on bespoke technical solutions and may not have experience with large-scale outreach. Without the right strategies, building owner engagement can become a major bottleneck, resulting in efforts that fall far short of impact targets or potential. With the proper planning tools and approach to engaging building owners, programs and service providers can effectively reach larger segments of the market.

Comments

Michaela Boren… Fri, 04/29/2022 - 2:39 pm

Round 1: Maybe to Yes - I agree that this topic ("outreach and education for building owners will share proven strategies for engaging thousands of building owners") is very important, especially if we are to reach our decarbonization goals. The audience will benefit from learning about these outreach strategies and this information was mentioned in the planning session. However, would also like to hear from a building owner and what their experience was like/what strategy worked the most for them. Side note for later - this proposal has 4 speakers and the session is only 1 hour.    

Danielle Donnelly Mon, 05/02/2022 - 10:54 am

Maybe. I agree with Michaela that it would be good to get an owner's perspective in here. I'm unclear on how Bright Power's engagement with their benchmarking customers has resulted in successful retrofits. What is the trigger point/catalyst for the owner? How are owners with the greatest retrofit potential identified?The session proposal does not make a clear connection between outreach strategies and a measurable increase in retrofits. I would also like to hear how Bright Power or BE-Ex could partner with community organizations to spread knowledge and existing resources to LMI/DAC owners and emerging developers. They are open to including speakers from these groups but do not describe a strategy for integrating that speaker into the existing proposal. 

Stuart Brodsky Wed, 05/04/2022 - 5:25 pm

No, I think there's room for a session on decarbonization of new development, and room for a session on deep energy retrofits. But I don't see the reasoning of trying to do both things in one session.  Oops, This isn't my topic to review. 

Monisha Royan Thu, 05/05/2022 - 12:03 am

Round1: Maybe to Yes. Focusing on creating awareness to building owner is a good initiative. 'Maybe' is because the speakers are not diverse. Yes, if the speakers also include building owners/ tenants/ Facility managers.

Diversity and Inclusiveness
Effective outreach and communication strategies can help reach low-income communities to ensure they can reap the benefits of building efficiency and decarbonization. Outreach can allow programs to reach market segments that may be outside the networks of established providers. We would welcome ideas for additional presenters from community based organizations or non-profits with specific experience on outreach in low-income communities who could be added to this presentation.
Learning Objectives
Learn how to develop effective messaging for education and communication materials around building energy.
Learn planning techniques that use “systems thinking” to ensure that outreach efforts can reach ambitious volume targets for engagement and participation.
Learn outreach routines that optimize response and success rates.
Learn tips to engage building staff for utility data access and collection.
Has this session been presented before?
No

NYC 2022 Areas of Focus

Session Format
Interview or structured conversation among panelists

Strongest Content Connection - NYC 2022

Comments about your speaker roster
Bright Power speakers are confirmed and this could be an engaging session with just the Bright Power team. However, adding additional presenters such as Richard Yancey from Building Energy Exchange could add other interesting and useful strategies to broaden the reach of building energy programs and solutions. Please let us know if it would be helpful to attempt to confirm additional speakers in the near term.
Reviewer 1
Boren, Michaela
Proposal #
146
Committee Decision
Rejected

Presenters