Workforce, Community & Diversity Programs
Energy Improvements in Rural or Remote Areas (ERA)
The Energy Improvements in Rural or Remote Areas (ERA) program will provide financial investment, technical assistance, and other resources to advance clean energy demonstrations and energy solutions in rural and remote areas that can be replicated and scaled. There are two topic areas: Community-Scale Demonstrations and Large-Scale Demonstrations.
READ MORE
Energizing Rural Communities Prize (American-Made Challenges)
The $15 million Energizing Rural Communities Prize challenges individuals and organizations to develop partnership plans or innovative financing strategies to help rural or remote communities improve their energy systems and advance clean energy demonstration projects. The Energizing Rural Communities Prize has two tracks, both following a two-phase timeline:
- The Partner track—with a $10 million cash prize pool—will support plans to connect rural or remote communities to government funding, technical assistance, or a network of partners that can help implement clean energy demonstration projects.
- The Finance track—with a $5 million cash prize pool—will support plans to access capital or to develop community ownership models to help finance clean energy demonstration projects in rural or remote areas.
READ MORE
Energy Transitions Initiative Partnership Project Community – Technical Assistance
The National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) partners with the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) Energy Transitions Initiative Partnership Project (ETIPP) to help remote and island communities transform their energy systems and increase energy resilience. ETIPP employs a community-driven approach to identify and plan resilient clean energy solutions that address a community’s specific challenges. This approach combines the experience and expertise of local community leaders, residents, and organizations with the ETIPP partner network. The ETIPP partner network connects selected communities with regional nonprofit or academic organizations (“regional partners”), energy experts at DOE research institutions (Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, NREL, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, and Sandia National Laboratories), and DOE clean energy technology offices to navigate options for addressing local energy resilience challenges.
READ MORE
Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP)
The Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP) helps keep families safe and healthy through initiatives that assist families with energy costs. LIHEAP provides federally funded assistance to reduce the costs associated with home energy bills, energy crises, weatherization, and minor energy-related home repairs. LIHEAP can help you stay warm in the winter and cool in the summer through programs that reduce the risk of health and safety problems that arise from unsafe heating and cooling situations and practices.
READ MORE
Clean Energy Deployment on Tribal Lands
Through this funding opportunity announcement (FOA), the DOE is soliciting applications from Indian Tribes, which include Alaska Native Regional Corporations and Village Corporations, Intertribal Organizations, and Tribal Energy Development Organizations to:
- Install clean energy generating systems and/or energy efficiency measures for tribal buildings
- Deploy community-scale clean energy generating systems or community energy storage on tribal lands
- Install integrated energy systems for autonomous operation (independent of the traditional centralized electric power grid) to power a single or multiple essential tribal buildings during emergency situations or for tribal community resilience
- Provide electric power to tribal buildings, which otherwise would be unelectrified
READ MORE
Joint Office of Energy and Transportation – Technical Assistance
The Joint Office provides technical assistance on planning and implementation of a national network of electric vehicle chargers and zero-emission fueling infrastructure as well as zero-emission transit and school buses.
READ MORE
i2X Technical Assistance
The Interconnection Innovation e-Xchange (i2X) is a stakeholder partnership to enable a simpler, faster, and fairer interconnection process for clean energy resources while enhancing the reliability, resiliency, and security of our electric grid. One of the key activities of i2X is to provide technical assistance that will directly support stakeholders in improving interconnection practices and processes for electricity distribution systems and the transmission system, also known as the bulk power system. The technical assistance must be specific to the interconnection of solar, wind, storage, or electric vehicle charging facilities, or a hybrid integration of these technologies. The i2X team has allocated up to $750,000 for this technical assistance opportunity and intends to select up to 12 projects.
READ MORE
Mass Fleet Advisor
Mass Fleet Advisor aims to bridge the technical expertise gap by pairing businesses and non-profits with a technical consultant who will work with you to analyze your fleet and come up with an electrification plan that is tailored to your business. Lead by CALSTART, Inc., the consultant team will provide FREE electrification planning to interested private, commercial, and non-profit fleet managers. Sixty-Five eligible fleets will receive one-on-one support and a Fleet Electrification Report including a site assessment, total cost of ownership analysis, vehicle market inventory analysis, charging analysis, and next step recommendations.
READ MORE
EmPower Massachusetts
EmPower Massachusetts offers multiple stages of investment in communities and community-based organizations so that they can explore, develop, and implement program models or projects that provide access to the benefits of clean energy for previously underserved populations. This MassCEC program crowd-sources new and innovative ideas, then helps put them into action. EmPower offers funding to meet the following goals:
- Build organizational capacity ($5,000 to $25,000 grants)
- Explore innovative solutions ($5,000 to $25,000 grants)
- Implement solutions ($50,000 to $150,000 grants)
READ MORE
MassCEC: Equity Workforce Training Implementation Grants
MassCEC’s Equity Workforce Training Implementation Grants provide up to $1,200,000 across two to three years in grant funds and technical support to applicants developing or expanding programs that provide job training and support services to underserved individuals seeking employment in the clean energy sector. Successful applicants will propose projects that address barriers faced by these populations, demonstrate a high-level of employer engagement and leverage of existing workforce development systems, and lead to high-quality careers in climate-critical occupations.
READ MORE
MassCEC: Community Engagement Planning Grants
Through this Request for Proposals (“RFP”), the Massachusetts Clean Energy Technology Center (“MassCEC”) is offering Community Engagement Planning Grants. The Community Engagement Planning Grants will provide direct support to community-based organizations, municipalities, or other entities that represent the community interest (“Communities”) to support meaningful community input in the development and deployment of solar energy projects owned by electric and gas distribution companies (“EDCs”).
READ MORE
RFP: Climate Finance Accelerator Launch Assistance (Massachusetts)
The Massachusetts Clean Energy Center is issuing this Request for Proposals (RFP) seeking an individual or firm to support MassCEC in the launch of a Climate Finance Accelerator or Climate Bank and in applying for federal funding from the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund (GGRF), as enabled in the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA). MassCEC seeks a Contractor with experience in climate finance to support MassCEC’s climate finance efforts including the following key activities:
- Developing and submitting an application (or applications) for funding made available through the GGRF, as a direct and/or indirect recipient.
- Supporting the launch of a Climate Finance Accelerator, including development of initial offerings and programming, engagement with key stakeholders, development of private sector partnerships, and marketing the initiative. This Includes:
- Engaging in the ongoing partnership effort with the City of Boston and Green Ribbon Commission to help inform the business plan deliverable and translate that business plan into direct implementation; and
- Providing support in implementing the structural and organizational elements of a climate finance accelerator, informed by recommendations from the partnership effort, which may include formation of a non-profit entity.
READ MORE