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Knowledge is power: Lessons from the United States to strengthen community capacity for co-design and co-delivery of energy efficiency programs Cover

Knowledge is power: Lessons from the United States to strengthen community capacity for co-design and co-delivery of energy efficiency programs

Open Access
|Aug 2026

Figures & Tables

Table 1

Case Study Summary Matrix of Building Blocks of Behavior Change.

BUILDING BLOCK FRAMEWORKSMUD REGIONAL WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT TEAMMASS SAVE® COMMUNITY FIRST PARTNERSHIP PROGRAMENERGIZE CONNECTICUT℠ COMMUNITY PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE
Audience: Defining the audience for intervention will help gauge the barriers these individuals face and facilitate a tailored program design. Different audiences benefit from different methods of engagement.Community-based organizations (CBOs) rooted in underrepresented neighborhoods serving marginalized populations.Massachusetts municipalities and CBOs.Environmental justice (EJ) communities as defined by the Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection (DEEP) map for the state.
Behavior: The specific behavior for the audience that the program aims to change.Increase representation of underrepresented groups in the energy efficiency sector and adjacent trades through skill development and networking.Adopt energy efficient and behaviors in a way that increases customer trust and program participation.Increase participation in energy efficiency offerings.
Content: The message and message framing the program uses to spur behavior change.SMUD funds and convenes partners, and coordinates relationships among CBOs who do the program design and delivery.Fund an energy advocate, local marketing efforts, and resources like training on energy efficiency and electrification, expert support, co-branded multilingual marketing materials, coaching and best practices to encourage program participation.Partner with local CBOs to deliver outreach plans that promote energy assessments, weatherization, and other energy-saving upgrades.
Delivery: How the program delivers this content to the audience, including messengers and partners, mediums for communication, as well as timing of program implementation.CBOs in underrepresented communities deliver trainings including curriculum development, certification facilitation, recruitment, access to wraparound services, placement and tracking.Supported by a vendor, Mass Save program administrators are the primary implementer, communicating directly with partners and energy advocates and developing and delivering resources that promote energy efficient solutions.Email, social networks, word of mouth, and various print and digital media, and provide partners freedom to deliver outreach efforts in the best way for their specific communities.
Evaluation: The documentation and measurement of program progress and impact to inform further program improvement.While this is a portfolio of efforts and not a specific program, there are not program level evaluations. Core metrics of success include number of people trained and whether they are placed in living wage, zero-carbon careers.The focus of evaluation is on participation metrics and successful community events, but the specific KPIs are still being finalized.Provide tailored goals to partnerships on reaching a target number of leads or completed assessments, regularly receive feedback from partners, generate multiple reports to track progress.
Language: English
Page range: 43 - 43
Submitted on: Mar 17, 2026
Accepted on: May 15, 2026
Published on: Aug 13, 2026
Published by: European Council for an Energy Efficient Economy (eceee)
In partnership with: Paradigm Publishing Services

© 2026 Maya Saterson, Laney Sullivan, John Massie, Tegan Mauldin, Alysse Rodrigues, Kira Ashby, Emily Hogan, published by European Council for an Energy Efficient Economy (eceee)
This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.