Topic:
The Connection Between Race and Energy
In This Episode:
01:35  Guest Denise Fairchild is introduced.
02:12  Denise explains what energy democracy is and why it’s important.
05:31  How does energy shape our political system?
08:11  Denise talks about the ownership and distribution of energy.
11:03  Denise touches on how a community ownership of energy would work and gives examples of models.
17:01  Denise tells why production decentralization matters and if distributive production meets all of our needs.
21:22  What is the connection between race and energy?
24:30  Denise describes how confronting racial issues will drive a new energy democracy.
28:29  Denise mentions the parallels between fossil fuel interests and the struggle to end slavery.
30:48  Denise shares where people can go to buy her book.
Guest and Organization:
Denise Fairchild is president and CEO of Emerald Cities Collaborative, a national nonprofit organization of business, labor, and community groups dedicated to climate resilience strategies that produce environmental, economic, and equity outcomes. She is co-editor of the new book "Energy Democracy: Advancing Equity in Clean Energy Solutions".
Take Away Quotes:
“It’s interesting that we are really seeing the reason for economic democracy when we look at what’s going on in Puerto Rico right now.  It is the prime example about how the burning of fossil fuel is leading to climate crisis, that’s led to the loss of life and property, showing that the fossil fuel economy, the extractive economy, not only impacted our environment but our economy.”

“Our current economy, our dirty energy economy, is also impacting issues of equity.  Dirty energy lifts up the racial inequality that exists in our current capitalist economy.  Those that are most challenged by and vulnerable to the impacts of dirty energy are low-income people.”

“Energy democracy’s addressing the challenges of a centralized monopoly over energy where profit matters more than planet and people.”

“If you can put the source of energy on your rooftop or in a community, two or three miles from where energy’s going to be used, you’re going to save 20 or 30% more in terms of the cost of transmitting energy.”
Resources:
Emerald Cities Collaborative

"Energy Democracy: Advancing Equity in Clean Energy Solutions"

Island Press Urban Resilience Project

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