Xcel Energy’s Underserved Populations Toolkit will help you leverage resources to engage and communicate with underserved populations to promote energy efficiency activities. It includes a step-by-step guide on developing and implementing strategies to engage these populations.
Communities may have a variety of reasons for wanting to engage underserved populations. Some households may be over-burdened with energy costs, or others may not be receiving information through typical channels and therefore require a different outreach tactic. Communities may also have goals related to equity, providing the resources to each community or individual to be successful. Whatever your community’s reason for reaching out to underserved populations, engaging these populations in energy efficiency increases their access to resources and in some cases, improves their financial situation, contributing to the community’s overall economic and environmental health.
The goal of this toolkit is to help communities leverage existing programs and organizations to provide energy efficiency opportunities to underserved populations. Once the Energy Action Team has identified underserved populations as a focus area, it’s important to build strategies for addressing the identified needs, working with partner organizations in the community, and conducting outreach. This toolkit will guide users through determining the most pressing gaps and needs for these households.