As the Director of NRDC’s California Energy Efficiency Policy at NRDC in San Francisco my main task is to advise and collaborate with the utilities to help them achieve their energy efficiency goals. Specifically, I participate in energy efficiency proceedings at the California Public Utilities Commission and the California Energy Commission and work collaboratively with the utilities and other stakeholders to ensure the investor-owned utilities’ efficiency programs continue to be a model for other states and around the world. I also work to ensure that the publicly owned utilities meet the legal requirements to set and meet their aggressive energy saving targets.
Prior to joining NRDC, I worked on renewable energy, energy efficiency, and energy education projects for the New York City Economic Development Corporation in Manhattan and also worked for the City University of New York to identify policy barriers and recommendations for installing solar energy in Manhattan. I have a Masters of Public Administration in Environmental Science and Policy from Columbia University-SIPA and a Master of Arts in Education from San Francisco State University.
Posted May 7, 2012 by Lara Ettenson in Curbing Pollution, Environmental Justice, Health and the Environment, Living Sustainably, Moving Beyond Oil, Solving Global Warming
Is your home or business wasting much of the energy you pay for every month? Probably. Many older homes and apartments are leaky, poorly insulated, and have inefficient heaters. We all know this is uncomfortable and expensive, but what can...continued→
Posted November 11, 2011 by Lara Ettenson in Curbing Pollution, Solving Global Warming
Energy efficiency continues to be the cheapest, cleanest, fastest source of energy available today. Take California for instance. Over the last several decades, California has implemented a number of key energy policies – efficiency programs, innovative changes to the utility...continued→
Posted August 10, 2011 by Lara Ettenson in Curbing Pollution, Solving Global Warming
Last week, NRDC released our assessment of California’s publicly owned utilities’ progress towards achieving all cost-effective energy efficiency, evaluating both their achievements over the past five years as well as their targets through 2020. We performed this analysis to see...continued→
Posted October 21, 2010 by Lara Ettenson in Curbing Pollution, Green Enterprise, Health and the Environment, Living Sustainably, Moving Beyond Oil, Solving Global Warming
Thankfully, the California Court of Appeal Fourth District lifted a restraining order today that would have blocked the California Energy Commission’s (CEC) ability to distribute $33 million in federal energy funds in time to meet a critical Department of Energy...continued→
Posted October 14, 2010 by Lara Ettenson in Curbing Pollution, Health and the Environment, Living Sustainably, Moving Beyond Oil, Solving Global Warming
Today, the Superior Court in Riverside County dealt a major blow to an innovative program spearheaded by the California Energy Commission (CEC) and the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) that is set to save Californians money on their energy bills,...continued→
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