The Virginia Multifamily Energy Efficiency Coalition connects the dots between housing affordability, energy costs, and poverty to drive policy changes that boost energy efficiency investments in Virginia affordable apartment complexes.
Our goal is to advance policies and programs that will provide comprehensive energy efficiency services to the state’s multifamily affordable housing stock.
Boosting Energy Efficiency Investments
Boosting energy efficiency investments in Virginia’s affordable apartment complexes provides a triple win for Virginia: It keeps housing affordable, cuts energy consumption, and creates skilled local jobs.
Everyone, regardless of whether they own or rent their home, has the right to live in a healthy, safe, energy efficient, and affordable home. Our work helps break the cycle of poverty for Virginia families, and ensure that all low-to-moderate income Virginias can participate fully in the clean energy economy.
Working Together
Our coalition includes a group of experts: housing developers, housing authorities, housing advocates, weatherization agencies, residential energy efficiency professionals and state and national environmental advocacy groups.
MFEEC has three workgroups to advance our goal: Policy, Coalition Building and Outreach & Implementation.
Our Guiding Principles
Inclusion
We will actively work to amplify the voices and perspectives of people of color, low-income residents, rural communities, and marginalized communities in policy decisions so that such decisions may have a comprehensive and transformative impact.
Honor and Elevate our Partners
We will honor and elevate our Partners’ strengths and efforts. We will leverage the assets of our Partners with an understanding that their unique assets, perspective, and expertise make the collective effort stronger.
Trust and Transparency
At the core of a successful and engaging Coalition is the practice of relationship-building to deepen trust and transparency. We commit to open communication, accountability, and authenticity. Accordingly, the coalition will not commit to a position that would come at the detriment of one or more members.
Push Solutions Grounded in Coalition Vision
Solutions should work towards and be consistent with the Vision established by the Coalition. When appropriate, these solutions should seek to incorporate best practices from other jurisdictions to advance innovative ideas in the Commonwealth, recognizing Virginia’s demographics, politics, and trends. Where appropriate, solutions should advance the Coalition’s commitment to equity.
Graceful Coordination
There are many Coalitions that each of us may be involved with operating at different scales. We seek to complement and coordinate with other Coalitions and collaboratives, using our work to identify new shared priorities, amplify synergies, and pursue innovative solutions.
History
Mounting interest in addressing the need for multifamily energy efficiency in Virginia brought together numerous housing and energy efficiency groups in 2015. The interest in forming a new coalition was driven by the desire to bring about greater collaboration between the affordable housing and energy efficiency sectors with the goal of fostering greater investment and eliminating barriers to multifamily energy efficiency in Virginia. The result was the formation of the Virginia Multifamily Energy Efficiency Coalition (MFEEC), a diverse, multi-sector group of efficiency advocates, housing developers, housing authorities, Weatherization Assistance Program providers, residential energy professionals, state and national environmental groups, and consumer advocacy groups.
