| Community Choice Aggregation (CCA) | CCAs allow communities to bundle the local demand for electricity and buy supply to meet the community's demand. This allows any town to replace the utility company as the "default supplier." Community power provides residents with greater choice over their energy future, such as increased energy innovation and energy efficiency, while also potentially lowering electricity costs. |
| Discount rates | The rate of return used to discount future cash flows and net benefits back to their net present value to determine if an investment generates a positive return over its lifespan. Discount rates are used to evaluate whether energy programs are cost-effective. (State of New Hampshire Public Utilities Commission's Report on Energy Efficiency, Planning, Programming, & Evaluation) |
| Distributive justice | Outcome focused view of justice; distributive justice speaks to whether the distribution of benefits and harms is equal within the energy system. (Adapted from Initiative for Energy Justice: The Energy Justice Workbook) |
| Electrification | Electrification refers to the process of replacing technologies that use fossil fuels (coal, oil, and natural gas) with technologies that use electricity as a source of energy. Depending on the resources used to generate electricity, electrification can potentially reduce carbon dioxide emissions from the transportation, building, and industrial sectors, which account for 65% of all US greenhouse gas emissions. (Resources for the Future) |
| Energy (in)security | Energy security is defined as as the uninterrupted availability of energy at an affordable price. At a system-wide level, it refers to the stability of energy infrastructure like fuel supply chains and the electricity grid. At the household level, it refers to consistent access to the energy needed for safety and wellbeing, including heating, cooling, and the operation of lighting and appliances without sacrificing other necessities such as rent, food, and medical care. (U.S. Department of Energy, IEA, Cook et al. 2018) |
| Energy audit | An energy audit is conducted to determine the energy consumption and efficiency of a building and identify energy-saving opportunities. This includes assessment of the building's heating and cooling systems, insulation (including the basement and attic), and airtightness. Based on this assessment, the energy auditor will produce a report of energy efficiency recommendations to reduce energy consumption and costs, and improve comfort inside the home. (Just Energy) |
| Energy burden | The percentage of gross household income spent on energy costs. According to DOE's Low-Income Energy Affordability Data (LEAD) Tool, the national average energy burden for low-income households is 8.6%, three times higher than for non-low-income households which is estimated at 3%. (U.S. Department of Energy) |
| Energy democracy | Communities should have the agency to shape their energy futures. Energy democracy pushes for the decentralization of energy systems and the expansion of public participation in energy-related policymaking. Energy democracy understands the transition to renewable energy to be an opportunity to redistribute political and economic power towards egalitarian ends. (Stephens 2019) |
| Energy efficiency | Using less energy to get the same job done – and in the process, cutting energy bills and reducing pollution. Many products, homes, and buildings use more energy than they actually need, through inefficiencies and energy waste. Energy efficiency is one of the easiest ways to eliminate energy waste and lower energy costs. (Energy Star) |
| Energy justice | Refers to the goal of achieving equity in both the social and economic participation in the energy system, while also remediating social, economic, and health burdens on those historically harmed by the energy system. (Initiative for Energy Justice) The Dartmouth Energy Justice Clinic recognizes 5 pillar of energy justice: recognition justice, distributional justice, procedural justice, restorative justice, and epistemological justice. |
| Energy poverty | Refers to a lack of access to modern energy resources. According to the International Energy Agency on Energy Access, “billions of people continue to be without basic modern energy services, lacking access to either electricity or clean cooking facilities." Energy poverty impacts people in both developing and developed countries. |
| Environmental justice | Environmental justice is the fair treatment and meaningful involvement of all people regardless of race, color, national origin, or income with respect to the development, implementation, and enforcement of environmental laws, regulations, and policies. It refers to the idea that everyone should have equal access to a healthy environment and not be disproportionately affected by environmental harms. Environmental justice seeks to address historical and ongoing patterns of environmental discrimination and ensure that marginalized communities have a voice in environmental decision-making. |
| Environmental racism | Environmental racism refers to the disproportionate exposure of communities of color and low-income communities to environmental hazards, such as pollution and toxic waste. This occurs when these communities are targeted for the location of polluting industries, waste facilities, and toxic dumps, leading to significant harm to the health and well-being of residents. It perpetuates existing health and economic disparities, and can lead to further marginalization of already vulnerable communities. Addressing environmental racism requires systemic changes to ensure that all communities have equal access to a healthy environment and a voice in environmental decision-making. |
| Epistemological (in)justice | Epistemological (in)justice refers to the devaluation of knowledge produced from groups that are discriminated against based on prejudices such as gender, social origin, race, and ethnicity. The concept of “epistemic injustice” explores the power and the ethics of knowing, including exclusion and silencing, systematic distortion or misrepresentation, undervaluing communicative practices, unfair distinctions in authority; and unjustifiable distrust. (Fricker 2007) |
| Frontline communities | The communities who often experience the first and most severe consequences of climate change. In the context of energy justice, these groups are most adversely affected by the enduring energy system and resulting pollution. Frontline communities include, but are not limited to, communities of color, low-income communities, indigenous communities and communities placed near extractive energy production. (Adapted from Initiative for Energy Justice: The Energy Justice Workbook) |
| Heat pumps | Heat pumps are an energy-efficient and environmentally friendly alternative to traditional heating and cooling systems. They work by transferring heat from the air or ground outside to the interior of a building, thus reducing the need for electricity to generate heat. This results in lower carbon emissions and a smaller carbon footprint compared to traditional heating systems. Additionally, heat pumps can also provide hot water, further reducing the energy consumption of household appliances. (National Grid) |
| Hydropower | Hydropower is defined as power that is generated from the natural flow of water. It generated by the energy unleashed from the elevation difference of water flowing in vs out of the turbines in a dam/diversion structure. The turning turbines generate electricity. |
| Just transition | The energy transition away from an fossil-fuel economy towards a low-carbon, regenerative economy. A truly just transition will remedy the past harms of the fossil-fuel energy system, as well as other injustices of an extractive economy. Particularly, the "just transition" will look to center communities of color, indigenous communities, low-income communities, and other frontline communities in shaping and benefiting from policy. (Adapted from Energy Justice: The Energy Justice Workbook) |
| Mini grids | A mini-grid is a set of small-scale electricity generators interconnected to a distribution network that supplies electricity to a small, localized group of customers. It usually operates independently from the national transmission grid. Renewable energy mini-grids, powered by solar, wind or hydro, are emerging as the superstars of energy access, particularly in rural areas, where they have become a viable option for providing reliable and high-quality electricity to rural populations and businesses. (UN Industrial Development Program) |
| Net energy metering | An on-site renewable energy system’s accounting “for the value of the electricity produced when production is greater than demand. Net metering allows customers to bank this excess electric generation on the grid, usually in the form of kilowatt-hour (kWh) credits during a given period. Whenever the customer’s system is producing more energy than the customer is consuming, the excess energy flows to the grid and the customer’s meter ‘runs backwards.’ This results in the customer purchasing fewer kilowatthours from the utility, so the electricity produced from the renewable energy system can be valued at the retail price of power.” (A Guide to Community Shared Solar) |
| Net zero | Cutting greenhouse gas emissions to as close to zero as possible, with any remaining emissions re-absorbed from the atmosphere, by oceans and forests for instance. (UN Net Zero Coalition) |
| Passive solar design | Passive solar design refers to the use of the sun’s energy for the heating and cooling of living spaces by exposure to the sun. When sunlight strikes a building, the building materials can reflect, transmit, or absorb the solar radiation. Passive design typically includes South-facing windows, thermal chimneys, and natural ventilation. Such systems do not involve substantial use of mechanical and electrical devices, such as pumps, fans, or electrical controls to move the solar energy. (Adapted from Williams College) |
| Power Purchase Agreement | "An agreement between a wholesale energy producer and a utiltiy under which the utility agrees to purchase pwoer. The [Power Purchase Agreement] includes details such as the rates paid for electricity and the time period during which it will be purchased." (A Guide to Community Shared Solar) |
| Procedural justice | Who is at the decision-making table? Procedural justice focuses on process as opposed to outcome. It ensures the equitable engagement of all stakeholders regardless of background or identity. (Adapted from Initiative for Energy Justice: The Energy Justice Workbook) |
| Shared solar | Shared solar, also known as community solar and community distributed generation, is the option for customers to purchase shares in or subscriptions to a local solar generation facility and to receive compensation such as a credit on their electricity bills. (Heiss and Lee 2020) |
| Virtual net metering | “[V]irtual net metering allows net metering credits generated by a single renewable system to offset load at multiple retail electric accounts within a utility’s service territory. As with traditional net metering, credits appear on each individual customer’s bill.” (A Guide to Community Shared Solar) |