Funding Updates 

DOE Announces $46 Million to Boost Energy Efficiency and Slash Emissions from Buildings

DOE’s Buildings Energy Efficiency Frontiers and Innovation Technologies (BENEFIT) funding opportunity will provide $46 million to 29 projects across 15 states. The funding will support building technologies and retrofit practices that will create healthier households and communities and reduce energy waste. BENEFIT will advance cost-effective solutions to electrify buildings across the nation while also improving their energy efficiency.

DOE Announces $28 Million for 10 Projects to Decarbonize the Nation’s Water Treatment Sector

Cleaning water is an energy intensive process. EERE’s Industrial Efficiency and Decarbonization Office invested $28 million in 10 projects to decarbonize the entire life cycle of Water Resource Recovery Facilities. These facilities, which treat wastewater from public water systems, are among the country’s largest industrial electricity users, and are an essential part of our nation’s water infrastructure—simultaneously producing clean water, generating renewable energy, recovering nutrients from wastewater, and reducing our impact on the natural environment.

International Collaborations

Interagency Collaboration Exploring Green Shipping Corridors between the U.S. and the UK

DOE and the United Kingdom government’s Department for Transport are requesting information to understand the issues related to establishing a green shipping corridor between the two countries. Green shipping corridors are defined as shipping routes that showcase zero- and near zero- emission lifecycle fuels and technologies. Responses are due September 29.

Clean Energy Champions

Summer Intern Energizes the Wind Energy Technologies Office

This summer, intern Wendell Grinton has been supporting EERE’s Wind Energy Technologies Office. He is offering valuable insight on the office’s wind market reports, which detail trends in wind development, technology, cost, and performance, as he wraps up his doctorate degree in civil engineering at Virginia Tech.

Ripple Effect: Mirko Musa Wants to Rescue Rivers—and the World—With Help From Water Power

Mirko Musa, a research and development analyst at Oak Ridge National Laboratories, was always fascinated by the power of rivers and how they could sculpt landscapes. Now, he’s finding ways to harness that power and protect rivers at the same time.

Energy Milestones

Celebrating 25 Years Since the First Energy Savings Performance Contract Signing

Energy savings performance contracts (ESPCs) began as a pilot program 25 years ago and have now become one of the most widely used project financing methods in the federal government. While U.S. federal agencies pioneered this kind of financing, ESPCs can also be used by state and local governments, universities, schools, hospitals, and even private companies to further their energy projects. Learn about the impact of ESPCs and how it all got started.

Join DOE at two upcoming Clean Energy Jobs and Workforce Accelerator Workshops in Milwaukee, WI, on August 29–30, and Atlanta, GA, on September 21–22. We are seeking stakeholder input on how to fill the gaps in economic and workforce development efforts to ensure that investments in clean energy result in high-quality, accessible careers.

Events and Webinars 

Wildfires – How Can Residential Energy Efficiency Create a Healthier Indoor Environment?

August 10 | 1 p.m. ET

In this Better Buildings peer exchange call, learn about the impact and broader geographic reach of wildfires across the United States and some of the health concerns that exist for residential occupant air and water quality.

Here Comes the Sun: Innovative Community Solar Systems

August 15 | 11 a.m. ET

Learn about the benefits of community solar and find out how Better Buildings partners are planning and implementing best practices to encourage equitable community solar systems.

Fall 2023 Geothermal Collegiate Competition Informational Webinar

August 15 | 12 p.m. ET

Join organizers to learn about the Geothermal Collegiate Competition that opened on August 2, including deliverables, timelines, and cash prizes.

Faster Resilience Assessments: An Introduction to the Technical Resilience Navigator Lite

August 15 | 1:30 p.m. ET 

This training will introduce participants to the Federal Energy Management Program’s new tool, the Technical Resilience Navigator Lite, which offers users a way to kick-start their planning efforts by quickly identifying risks to critical loads.

U.S. National Clean Hydrogen Strategy and Roadmap Webinar

August 18 | 10 a.m. ET

Save the date.  More details forthcoming.

The Path Forward: Customized Clean Energy Solutions for Communities

August 24 | 1 p.m. ET 

Hear from local leaders from Unincorporated Norcross, Georgia about how the Expert Match Program helped their community envision a path forward for building modernization and future clean energy developments.

Careers in Clean Energy

Every Thursday in September | 12 to 2 p.m. ET

Join us in September for “EERE STEMtember Sessions: Careers in Clean Energy,” a weekly webinar series highlighting EERE careers in renewable energy, sustainable transportation and fuels, buildings and industry, and business operations. Each two-hour webinar will feature EERE leaders and employees, who will share their career journeys and explain why it is the most exciting time to be part of the clean energy revolution at DOE. Hear from hiring managers about the key duties and skills required for positions and how you can apply to be a clean energy champion.