Community Energy has been working with electric utilities for ten years (Happy Anniversary!).   I have had the privilege of working with our utility partners for four, and we are proud to be part of some very successful green power partnerships.  This has given me the opportunity to experience the internal cogs of some utilities.

One thing to be said for any big company is that change can be slow to happen, utility companies included.  So, when I attended a conference focused on how utilities engage their customers with regard to new technologies and new initiatives, I was really happy with the discussions and presentations I observed!

In pop culture, the electric utility is often depicted as Mr. Burns on The Simpsons.  He is miserly, callous, detached, and unsympathetic (need I go on?) and controls Springfield’s electricity (a nuclear plant) with an iron fist. 

But the utility company representatives at the conference were more like Lisa Simpson, the overly compassionate and cause-of-the-week endorsing middle daughter on the show.  They were concerned about how to engage and educate customers around environmental initiatives such as energy efficiency,  carbon offsets,  RGGI initiatives and RECs.  The conference representatives expressed the challenges they faced championing these services internally, but they were willing to have the necessary dialogue with the "Mr. Burns" of their companies.

I witnessed a softer side of utilities; the side that strives to be environmentally conscious and socially aware.  But consumers need to help guide them down this fairly new path. So, I encourage each of you to become more energy-aware, and call your local electric utility to learn more about the green initiatives in your service area. I think you'll be pleasantly surprised.