Community, Access, Representation and Empowerment (CARE)

Imagine a clean-energy sector where every person and community can shape the solutions they depend on. Where innovation thrives because all voices are welcomed and empowered. Where every project delivers measurable impact alongside environmental and economic benefits. CARE is AESP’s commitment to help make this vision a reality.

Community

People and partners working together to solve big problems.

Access

Ensuring opportunities, technologies, and conversations are open to all.

Representation

Keeping decision-making inclusive and grounded in lived experience.

Empowerment

Driving outcomes that are purposeful, fair, and lasting.

CARE’s vision is simple

A clean-energy ecosystem grounded in collaboration, where every participant is empowered, and where progress is measured not only in megawatts and dollars saved but in stronger communities, improved lives, and a more sustainable future.

How we put CARE into practice at AESP

Governance and operations

We intentionally implement and develop staff policies, procedures, and practices that reflect the communities and professionals we serve.

Continuous improvement

Through candid discussions and robust feedback instruments, we actively solicit ideas, input, and solutions from our members, partners, and the broader industry.

Content and programming

Topic committees, special interest groups and staff routinely identify opportunities to broaden perspectives and strengthen representation across AESP’s programs, events, and content areas.

Special Interest Groups

Our Special Interest Groups allow members to explore topics and challenges related to professional interests, identity, career stage, and more.

AESP CARE Council

Through the CARE Council, industry leaders partner with AESP to shape strategies around community, access, representation, and empowerment, ensuring more voices are heard and strengthening the organization’s impact.

Meeting Venues

When choosing event locations, we prioritize venues that reflect our CARE values, including accessibility, community impact, and opportunities to connect attendees with local energy, environmental, indigenous, and community initiatives.

CARE Book Club (Continental and U.S. Members)

Hosted by The Shared Space Project, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, the club reads one book per quarter and has a virtual meeting to discuss the book. Between meetings, book club participants will be able to engage with each other and the facilitators on the AESP Together platform.

Learn more

Our Commitment to Indigenous Peoples, Truth and Reconciliation

AESP recognizes the unique rights, histories, cultures, and contributions of Indigenous Peoples across the lands where we work — including First Nations, Inuit, and Métis Peoples in Canada, and Tribal Nations and Native American, Alaska Native, and Native Hawaiian Peoples in the United States. We are committed to fostering learning, respectful relationships, meaningful engagement, and opportunities for partnership within the clean energy sector. In Canada, we recognize that reconciliation is an ongoing journey, and our efforts are guided by the Truth and Reconciliation Commission’s Calls to Action. Across both countries, AESP is guided by the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP) and by respect for Tribal sovereignty and self-determination.

AESP’s Community, Access, Representation and Empowerment (CARE) Council

Alvis Wright (Co-Chair)
DSM and Residential Support Manager

Alabama Power Company

Fred Maher (Co-Chair)
Director, Business Development

CMC Energy Services

Andrea Salazer

Product Manager

Micheals Energy

Evan Castro
Director, Project Delivery

Resource Innovations

Rachel Dortin
Director, Community Organizing and Ownership

The Shared Space Project

Lynn Roy
Director and Co-Founder

BrightLine Group

Dena Jefferson
Founder & CEO

RLR Strategic Consulting

Leigh Michael
Senior Director

ILLUME Advising

Catalina Lamadrid
President

Inova Energy Group

Mia Lombardi
Manager, Community Engagement and Investment

National Grid

Danyel Kahumoku
Senior Community Impact Specialist

ICF

Ben Nathan
Director, Affordability and Equity

E Source

Valencia Roner
Chief Operations Officer

Strategic Energy Operations Solutions

Rhosheeda Proctor
Director, Engagement and Belonging

Southern MD Electric Cooperative

Recent CARE Content

What customer “pulse” surveys reveal about energy affordability and assistance barriers

Households, especially low- to moderate-income (LMI), across the United States increasingly struggle to pay their electric and gas utility bills, driving stress, forcing tradeoffs and sacrifices, and creating arrears and disconnection risks. Financial pressure is...

Sticker Price Isn’t the Whole Story: Protecting Consumers from Hidden Energy Costs

AESP strongly supports consumer choice, transparency, and affordability. But true affordability must account for the full cost of ownership — not just what a customer pays at checkout. For millions of households, the monthly utility bill is part of the purchase price....

Clean energy starts with people—and culture matters

Traditionally, household energy use has been viewed as a matter of personal or family choice. As an industry, when we design and deliver clean energy programs, we often assume that families use energy in roughly the same ways. As a result, we’ve paid relatively little...

The Real AI: Ancestral Intelligence — A Native Hawaiian Perspective on Energy Futures

“Abundance flows from reciprocity, not extraction.” Across the globe, new data centers are being built to power machine learning, cloud services and the digital economy we’ve come to call AI. These facilities consume massive amounts of electricity and water, and their...

Powered by Pride: Building connection and representation in energy

Every June, rainbow logos light up corporate websites and social media in a show of support for the LGBTQIA+ community. But beyond flags and hashtags, what does meaningful support look like? This question is especially relevant in industries like energy, where...

The High Efficiency/Low Emissions Housing Myth

Flawed Assumptions Like most of you, KPIs are my deliverer or my doom. So when I saw a recent study from McGill University and University Michigan at Ann Arbor on energy justice, efficiency, and emissions, I was wide-eyed. The study found a paradoxical relationship...