City of Atlanta relaunches its Clean Energy Advisory Board

The City of Atlanta has relaunched its Clean Energy Advisory Board to help build public support from a diverse group of stakeholders for its clean energy plan.

It will also enable the City to leverage local expertise on energy issues.

Clean energy goals

The Clean Energy Advisory Board was originally launched in 2020 following a recommendation in the Clean Energy Plan. In March of 2019, the Atlanta City Council adopted the Clean Energy Atlanta plan, which charts a path to achieve 100 per cent clean energy by 2035.

With a focus on energy equity, Clean Energy Atlanta stated that “100 per cent of Atlantans should have access to 100 per cent clean energy”.

“The nation’s climate crisis has created an urgent need for equitable solutions that accelerate a transition to clean energy,” said mayor Andre Dickens. “Like many of our efforts in Atlanta, reaching these clean energy milestones is a group project, which is why the community-led Clean Energy Advisory Board will play a pivotal role in reducing carbon emissions and building more sustainable and climate resilient communities.”

“The nation’s climate crisis has created an urgent need for equitable solutions that accelerate a transition to clean energy”

The Clean Energy Advisory Board will include 25 civic leaders from the public, nonprofit and private sectors, each of whom can serve two-year terms. Six seats on the board are allocated for community leaders from the city’s six most energy burdened Neighbourhood Planning Units (NPU).

Residents in these southwest Atlanta neighbourhoods experience energy burdens that are three to four times higher than national averages, according to data from the American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy (ACEEE).