How the Next Mayor Can Accelerate Boston’s Equitable Clean Energy Transition
Recommendations to advance equitable city climate action in Boston through the clean energy transition
By Jacquie Ashmore, Institute for Sustainable Energy & Browning the Green Space; Cutler Cleveland, Institute for Sustainable Energy (now the Institute for Global Sustainability); Rouwenna Altemose, All In Energy & Browning the Green Space; Jeannie Ramey, Climable; Gabe Shapiro, All In Energy & Browning the Green Space; Mary Wambui, Planning Office for Urban Affairs & Browning the Green Space; Jen Stevenson Zepeda, Climable
September 2021
How can Boston’s next mayor equitably and rapidly accelerate the city’s clean energy transition to mitigate the negative impacts of climate change and fossil fuel emissions for the city and region? Part of a four-part series published by the Boston Area Research Initiative (BARI), this whitepaper highlights guidance from the academic community—including the Institute for Sustainable Energy (now the Boston University Institute for Global Sustainability)—and other experts on how to purposefully embed equity in the planning, decision-making, and infrastructure for the city’s energy systems.
Download Report
Key Recommendations
Near-term
- Establish a broad and equity-focused framework to measure the City’s progress in mitigation, adaptation, and resilience action.
- Assess the impact of two recently enacted measures — Community Choice Aggregation and the Building Energy Reporting and Disclosure Ordinance — and identify whether they meet decarbonization and equity targets or whether adjustments or additional measures are needed.
- Invest in solar and weatherization in low- to moderate-income communities, ensuring financing that does not reduce the availability of affordable housing.
- Support community-based efforts to transition vulnerable communities to resilient energy systems.
- Engage diverse community members meaningfully and communicate climate science appropriately.
- Demonstrate that the mayor is resolute in their commitment to an equitable clean energy transition and ready to capitalize on substantial federal support, not weakened by the challenges of addressing the pandemic.
Long-term
- Center decisions on equity and linking considerations of mitigation, adaptation, and resilience — especially when working on affordable housing and infrastructure.
- Work to inform and engage community members and collect the necessary environmental justice data to measure progress.
Download BARI Whitepaper Series
Download Carbon Free Boston Reports
Boston’s leadership on equity and mitigation includes the
Carbon Free Boston reports, authored by the ISE: