Latest News

Why is the Community Engagement Approach so new and unfamiliar to Utility Bureaucracies?

Posted by on September 12, 2016

The Minneapolis Clean Energy Partnership is trying to turn the tide of history against past utility incentives which explain why community engagement is not yet...

How can we Motivate Funders to Say Yes to Community Engagement Projects for Saving Energy?

Posted by on September 12, 2016

Community members on the Clean Energy Partnership's 2015-2016 Energy Vision Advisory Committee (EVAC) succeeded in beginning a serious movement to shift the focus of the...

Solstice Celebrations at Xcel Energy Applaud New Solar Gardens But Push for Equal Access

Posted by on June 27, 2016

On Tuesday June 21st, 2016, Community Power, community members, & coalition partners held a colorful "Solar Solstice" celebration in front of Xcel Energy Headquarters in...

An Equitable Clean Energy Future Accessible to all Minnesotans: Removing the Barriers

Posted by on May 08, 2016

If we are fortunate to get a Clean Power Plan implemented in Minnesota, it is important that energy equity be prioritized in addition to carbon...

Remembering Kirk Washington Jr.

Posted by on April 14, 2016

At the intersection between activism and poetry, at the intersection between community art and cultural-civic engagement, Kirk used artistic expression to foster social change. He...

Minneapolis Clean Energy Partnership Continues to Gain National Recognition and Awards

Posted by on April 08, 2016

The Minneapolis Clean Energy Partnership has helped the City win milestones of national recognition even when it existed only on paper. At that time in...

Xcel, Centerpoint, Minneapolis give $10,000 each to EVAC’S new Community Engagement Pilot Project

Posted by on February 22, 2016

The Minneapolis Clean Energy Partnership has a conduit for community input on how to meet City energy goals known as the Energy Vision Advisory Committee...

Why the traditional passive marketing approach to energy efficiency programs has been inadequately effective

Posted by on February 22, 2016

Utilities like Xcel and Centerpoint frequently include lists of energy-saving steps and ratepayer-funded energy efficiency programs when they mail their bills to customers, often because...

Why Community Engagement is Crucial for Multi Family Energy Efficiency

Posted by on February 16, 2016

 Xcel and Centerpoint have jointly created and launched a new joint multifamily energy efficiency program just this past October. As of Mid-February, 30 qualified buildings...

The difference between Community Engagement and Marketing

Posted by on February 16, 2016

Community engagement is a process where an organization (or coalition or organizations) acting for community benefit (such as saving energy in multiple buildings) works to...

Xcel Energy "wins" Renewable Energy money for Garbage Burner in Red Wing

Posted by on January 26, 2016

What: The Minnesota Public Utilities Commission quietly helped along Xcel Energy’s request to use ratepayer renewable energy fund dollars to retrofit a garbage processing facility...

Federal 30% Solar Tax Credit Extended

Posted by on December 26, 2015

Community Solar Garden (CSG) developers in Minnesota spent much of 2015 in a state of foreboding tension. They were being sandwiched between Xcel’s slow pace...