ASC's Intersections Newsletter — Week of January 11, 2021
Nora's Note
Change for good? January 13 was Virtual Capitol Hill Day for Goldman Sachs 10,000 Small Businesses and thousands of us met with our representatives in Washington to advance a small business agenda that includes increased access to capital, support for child care, lower health care costs, liability shields against COVID-related lawsuits and more. My team met with Representatives Adriano Espaillat, Mondaire Jones, Kirsten Gillibrand and spent 30 minutes with Chuck Schumer, who thanked us for the courage of small business through the pandemic, called the relief bill a stopgap and said “COVID has shown with a magnifying glass some of the faults in our society and we must solve them for the long term.” We wish all our representatives a safe transition.
Transportation
RMI details urgency of ride-hailing electrification. While drivers for transportation network companies (TNCs) like Uber only drive a portion of the total miles driven in the United States, one study estimates the impact of switching one TNC car to an electric car would result in three times the emissions reductions than switching a non-TNC car. A new report from the Rocky Mountain Institute also sees great potential in electrifying the cars used in TNC operations and proposes solutions to some of the greatest barriers to doing so. These challenges include currents gaps in charging infrastructure and the cost of buying or leasing an electric car. Read on to learn more about how TNCs are currently adding electric vehicles to their platforms.
WTOP: Public transit ‘completely impossible’ for some trips around the DC region
ABC News: Are hydrogen fuel cell vehicles the future of autos?
Streetsblog USA: Why Sustainable Transportation Advocates Need to Talk About Seating
City Limits: New York City Needs More Bicycle Parking to Meet Surge in New Pandemic Riders, Report Says
BBC: Greener planes of the future... or just pretty plans?
CNN: Self-driving pioneer Waymo dumps the term 'self-driving'
Progressive Railroading: New England governors, DC mayor join effort to reduce pollution
Mass Transit: USDOT awards $41 million to improve transportation design and access
Energy/Environment
We Already Have the Key to a Clean Energy Economy. We’re Just Not Using It. Advocates say states and utilities are moving too slowly to communicate the benefits of smart meters, a powerful tool that shows consumers the connection between their energy use and its impact on clean energy, the grid and their wallets. Across the United States, over 90 million smart meters have been installed. Advanced Metering Infrastructure 2.0 (AMI 2.0) systems, the next generation of smart meters, can process millions of data points to instantly generate a range of insights. This data can help utilities optimize their operations, while policymakers can use AMI 2.0 data to establish the transparent measurement of clean energy goals. Read on to learn why two energy industry insiders believe that state regulators must set requirements for AMI capabilities and outcomes in their initial approval orders.
NJ Spotlight News: Giant turbines will generate power at New Jersey’s first offshore wind farm
Bloomberg Green: The 10 Ways Renewable Energy’s Boom Year Will Shape 2021
T&D World: NREL, Project Partners Team Up to Advance Species Conservation, Wind Energy Deployment
CBS News: What the "green" economy looks like after the coronavirus pandemic
Wired: Climate Change Is Turning Cities Into Ovens
WICZ: Binghamton University Researchers Receive $2.6M Grant for Solar Energy
Yale E360: One-Third of U.S. Rivers Have Changed Color Since 1984
Grist: Today’s wind turbine blades could become tomorrow’s bridges
Economic Development
Funding challenges limit minority-owned businesses’ access to energy efficiency. For a successful green economic recovery, minority-owned businesses must have better access to both capital and to energy efficiency programs. During the pandemic, Black-owned businesses have closed at double the rate of white-owned firms, and minority-owned businesses have seen more drastic decreases in cash reserves. Energy efficiency programs can help minority-owned businesses save money on utilities, reducing the burden of energy costs, but require that businesses have enough capital to invest in the programs. One potential solution is for local business associations and other organizations to help minority-owned businesses build stronger relationships with lenders before specific needs arise. Read on to learn more about how future policies can better support minority-owned businesses and energy efficiency goals.
Lockport Union-Sun & Journal: Empire State Development announces restaurant recovery fund
CBS News: Small businesses may soon find relief as feds move to revive Paycheck Protection Program
High Country News: How the Zoom boom is changing the West
NY Times: Jobs Recovery Goes Into Reverse as Pandemic Takes a New Toll
WIVB: Dunkirk family-owned ice cream manufacturer receiving $750,000 grant from National Grid
Westfair Communications: CT reinvigorating business recruitment and retention efforts
Governing: Stronger Hurricanes Challenge Housing Recovery Plans
Spectrum News: Reviving the Environmental Bond Act, with Jobs as the Pitch
New at ASC
Our recent webinar “How to Maximize Your Virtual Engagement" with CEOs Nora Madonick (ASC) and Rebecca Karp (Karp Strategies) is now available on-demand.
Learn to use new technology to reach and engage audiences
Find out what works and what doesn’t
Take away guidance from real-world scenarios
The webinar showcased the teams' collaboration—Toolkit for Virtual Engagement—and you can download it today at ascRemote to build a strategy to meet your audiences where they are to advance the civic planning projects and initiatives that will speed recovery.
Get in touch to learn how our signature approach can work for you.
Subscribe to Arch Street Communications' Newsletter Intersections