Michael Chasnow is a Finance Analyst with the Environmental Finance Center.
At the EFC, we do a lot of work on energy efficiency and renewable energy (EERE) lending programs — from designing community energy finance programs to market assessments for EERE retrofit financing programs. Sometimes, it’s easy to to overlook why we try to scale energy efficiency retrofits. Why does energy efficiency matter, and why should individuals care?
There are several important reasons why energy efficiency matters, including:
- Dollar savings to individuals and organizations
- Energy savings that also reduce CO2 emissions
- Local jobs created