Chambers of commerce and similar organizations are trusted thought leaders and primary connectors to small businesses. They have the power to effectively work with their members as well as key energy efficiency influencers such as utilities, banks, and local governments to ignite greater interest and investment in building performance and secure deeper savings in hard-to-reach buildings. As such, IMT and COSE’s Small Business Energy Initiative provides energy efficiency education paired with tailored technical and financial resources to chamber leaders and their small business members. The aim of the Initiative is to solidify an energy efficiency model that is applicable to any chamber or membership organization in the country to execute and maintain.
In September, 2017, the Small Business Energy Initiative convened an Energy Symposium, bringing together 19 members of chambers of commerce, small business associations, and organizations from across the country. The Symposium focused on: best practices, models of success, the role of the chamber/organization in improving energy performance, engaging the right stakeholders, working with landlords and tenants, and developing and leveraging an energy efficiency ecosystem for non-dues revenue.
Many ideas, references, and questions were voiced and documented over the course of the day-long Symposium that will inform future program development. To build upon the Symposium with participants and other interested parties, the following Report-Out is intended to:
- Present the key themes that were heard during the Symposium;
- Provide follow-up links to existing resources and references; and
- Highlight upcoming opportunities for additional actions.
COSE and IMT hope that the information shared here encourages further conversations and action to improve energy efficiency for small businesses. For anyone interested in joining the Small Business Energy Initiative, Contact IMT’s Alexandra Harry at alex.harry@imt.org for more information.
