Issue: Energy Policy

Views on grid-connected battery energy storage systems (BESS) are positive, but awareness is low: people are at an early stage of learning (and likely thinking) about this emerging technology, and over time opinions could potentially be swayed either way. Results from a national survey and a message test indicate no major opposition to BESS, and support is high after being informed about basic information, though there are some concerns about risks. When asked, people rate grid reliability as the most convincing reason for BESS, followed by its ability to support intermittent renewable energy; BESS’s positive impacts on local economies and lowering utility bills were also convincing. In testing, both high production value videos featuring testimonials from renewable energy workers as well as simpler graphic explainer videos were persuasive.

Salem Alliance for the Environment is a volunteer organization fighting the climate crisis and working for a sustainable future for Salem, MA. This resource documents the development of Offshore Wind and a Community Benefits Agreements (CBA) in Salem.

This report includes case studies of farmers, township officials, and county leaders who have navigated the challenges of siting and permitting issues for clean energy projects, and provides a path forward to improve permitting processes, respect landowner rights, and expand rural economic opportunity.

We have our work cut out for us. Every day, the Trump administration launches a fresh attack on clean energy. Today, I want to share a path forward to bolster our clean energy narrative and messaging (so we can organize more effectively), based on my conversations and insights from the Lab’s Clean Energy Hub.

This article discusses the state of and paths to mitigate misengagement, or engagement processes that are insular, instrumental, abbreviated, and that hold a single objective for solar projects. Researchers discuss a framework for a more meaningful community engagement process called community-centered solar development (CCSD).

A new poll from Data for Progress explores voter attitudes toward nuclear and geothermal, particularly in the context of local deployment and decarbonization.