In Minneapolis, energy costs are rising and energy pollution is causing significant local and global problems. In Minneapolis we have a once-in-a-generation opportunity to make cleaner, more affordable, and more local energy available to all in Minneapolis.

When you went to pay your power bill you might have noticed that Xcel Energy customers in Minneapolis are now paying 9 percent more for electricity as of January 1, 2013.

According to a press release from Xcel Energy in November of 2012 and a December 2012 Star TribuneArticle, starting January 1, 2013 a typical residential customer will pay about $8 more per month due to the Xcel’s rate increase.

In the December 13, 2012 Star Tribune Article, “Xcel says the increase is needed to recoup investments in its two nuclear power plants, counter a drop in electric sales and pay for other power plant and transmission upgrades as well as higher property taxes.”

Minneapolis Energy Options (MEO) sat down with WCCO today to discuss the Xcel rate case and why Minneapolis residents shouldn’t be paying more to use less energy. Xcel stated that it needed to recoup the profits to counter a drop in electric sales due to consumers using less. MEO thinks residents should get rewarded for using less energy not have to pay more.

Watch the video below and hear the whole story and click HERE to learn more about how you can work with Minneapolis Energy Options to secure a Clean, Affordable, Reliable, and Local Energy future for all. 

Watch Video Here: CBS/WCCO Interim Xcel Rate Hike Showing Up In Electricity Bills

Lets keep our options open!

John Farrell spoke to the Stone Arch discussion forum of the local DFL Education Foundation on January 12, 2013, about  the Minneapolis Energy Options campaign to let the people of Minneapolis take charge of their energy future. The grassroots campaign is challenging the energy monopoly of Xcel and Centerpoint Energy and hopes to give the city’s homes and businesses a clean, local alternative to dirty, imported energy.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download | Embed

The linked podcast is a segment from the Stone Arch Discussion Group, a project of the DFL Education Foundation. It was recorded on January 12, 2013, at Gardens of Salonica in NE Minneapolis. Production services provided by Minneapolis-based multimedia company iDream.tv.

MEO Campaign Organizing Meeting!

Wednesday January 23, 2012 from 6:30 PM - 7:30 PM

Come learn about our efforts to keep our city’s energy options open and how you can help build the movement to help us move from energy consumers to energy deciders! This event will focus on the rollout of the new MEO campaign and allow you to sign up to work on the campaign.

The event will include:

• Introductions to each other and the campaign
• Explanation of campaign strategy and timeline
• Identifying where you can volunteer with the SIX MEO committees
• Organizing our MEO committee next action steps

Cookies, refreshments, and enthusiasm provided!

He’s been on the job less than 72 hours, but already Dylan Kesti is making his mark as the campaign coordinator for Minneapolis Energy Options, a campaign to keep our city’s energy options open so we can secure an affordable, reliable, clean, efficient, and locally-controlled energy future.

Dylan Kesti joins Minneapolis Energy Options(MEO) with a rich history in organizing and progressive politics.  Dylan holds a dual degree in global politics and communication from The College of St. Scholastica, and a M.A. in global environmental policy from American University based in Washington D.C. As an undergraduate Dylan studied sustainable development in Ghana, and co-led a January-term service-learning trip in Guatemala.

As a graduate student Dylan spent a semester at the U.N. University for Peace in Costa Rica, and afterwards worked as an intern with the Environmental Working Group in Washington, D.C. lobbying for a fair and sustainable farm bill for domestic farmers.

Most recently Dylan was teaching with the Higher Education Consortium of Urban Affairs (HECUA) as the Instructor to a semester long program on Environmental Sustainability.

Dylan’s résumé also includes a stint with the Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy (IATP) working on U.S food justice issues with LaDonna Redmond. Dylan has also worked with the Land Stewardship Project researching beginning farmer tax credits. Even in his free time Dylan continues to work for social, racial, and environmental justice in policy and practice as a policy advocate and activist. He is a co-founder of The Great Minnesota Outing, volunteers with Youth Farm and Market Project, and is a member of Sustainable Progress through Engaging Active Citizens (SPEAC).

Dylan Kesti can also be found on Twitter @DylanKesti or at[email protected].