Director of Energy Justice

Massachusetts Clean Energy; Boston; On-site; PHP 9,398,000 - 13,158,000; Full time

Job summary

City of Boston is seeking a Director of Energy Justice to lead the City’s equitable energy work, overseeing programs like Equitable Electrification and Municipal Energy Teams. The role focuses on resilience, decarbonization of municipally-owned buildings, and a city-wide, community-driven energy strategy.

The Director will collaborate with BPDA and other agencies to advance climate action, engage with utilities, and supervise teams delivering resilience projects across Boston’s neighborhoods.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree required.
• J.D. or Master’s degree strongly preferred and may substitute for 3 years of experience.
• Knowledge of federal/state energy laws and policies.
• Experience in community engagement strategies preferred.
• Strong written and verbal communication skills.
• Ability to lead cross-functional teams and manage multiple projects.

Responsibilities

• Oversees community energy resilience planning and outreach programs.
• Leads citywide resilience planning and coordination with BPDA and other agencies.
• Develops strategies for building decarbonization and electrification of municipal buildings.
• Represents the City in local, national and global forums on climate action and energy resilience.
• Builds partnerships with utilities, businesses, nonprofits, and community groups.
• Manages teams implementing community energy resilience initiatives.

Skills

Public leadership

Community engagement

Policy communication

Project management

Strategic planning

Stakeholder collaboration

Energy resilience

Education

Bachelor's degree

J.D. or Master’s degree in energy/environmental science/urban planning/engineering/policy

Tools

Microsoft Office

Google Suite

Job description

As part of Mayor Wu’s vision for a Green New Deal for Boston, the City of Boston is seeking a Director of Energy Justice. The Director will oversee all of the City of Boston’s energy work, specifically the Equitable Electrification and Municipal Energy Teams. The Director will lead the development and implementation of strategic initiatives and programs to ensure the City of Boston becomes a national leader in equitable, community-driven energy resilience and grid modernization work. The Director oversees the ongoing work of the Renew Boston Trust, the City’s program to implement energy and water efficiency and decarbonization measures in municipally-owned buildings and street lighting, and the development of related new initiatives to advance this work.The Director also oversees the City’s municipal aggregation program, Boston Community Choice Electricity. The Director is responsible for developing partnerships across the city, particularly with infrastructure and energy planners in the Office of Planning and the Boston Planning and Development Agency, as part of an all-of-government approach to equitable climate action. The Director is a leader for the City in equity and the energy sector, engaging with Boston’s energy utilities and in the engagement of other municipal offices as well as stakeholders in all segments of the Boston community.

The Director of Energy Justice reports to the Commissioner of the Environment Department, and interacts with all segments of Boston’s municipal government and of the Boston community. As part of the management team of the Environment Department, they will work closely with other members of the management team and have important administrative responsibilities.

Terms:

Job Duties/Responsibilities

• Oversees community energy resilience planning, including the City’s Equitable Electrification Initiative, citywide energy literacy outreach campaign and Community Choice Electricity (CCE) Program outreach
• Oversee citywide resilience node planning, including development of community-based resilience centers for heating and cooling emergencies with resilient, islandable power, as part of an all-of-government approach to climate resilience planning and action.
• Develops Environmental Justice neighborhood Solarize programs for residential solar/storage installations
• Oversees Municipal Energy Unit
• Develops strategy for future municipal building decarbonization and electrification, including evaluation of the City’s performance contracting program and determination whether the City will undertake other models offered by Energy Service Companies for the City’s municipal building work.
• Develops strategy for renewable energy content of municipal and CCE electricity load
• Coordinates with the Boston Planning and Development Agency’s (BPDA) infrastructure and energy planners on grid planning, including transmission, distribution system upgrades, and non-wire alternatives with utilities; and on thermal decarbonization initiatives, including the future of the natural gas system; the steam system; and geothermal and sewer heat recovery planning
• Co-Chairs Boston Smart Utilities Steering Committee with BPDA Sr. Infrastructure and Energy Planner
• Co-Chairs Energy and Infrastructure Working Group with BPDA Sr. Infrastructure and Energy Planner
• Stays current with important related scientific and policy developments and conveys them in practical terms to Boston stakeholders.
• Works with partner departments and agencies and external partners to implement community energy resilience projects and programs across the City, including the BPDA, the Department of Emergency Preparedness, Planning Department, Boston Housing Authority, Mayor’s Office of Housing and other key sector stakeholders on community energy resilience work.
• Represents the City of Boston in local, national and global forums around climate action and energy resilience strategies and initiatives.
• Identifies obstacles to improving community energy resilience by residents and businesses, small and large, and institutions and develops strategies to reduce those obstacles.
• Builds strong, collaborative partnerships with utility, business, institutional, non-profit, neighborhood groups and resident associations to ensure that all parts of the Boston community, and especially the most vulnerable members of the community, have the support and resources necessary to develop community-driven resilience solutions and to improve their access to renewable energy and other distributed energy resources.
• Recruits, trains and manages teams engaged in implementation of community energy resilience and municipal energy efficiency initiatives, and summer and year-round fellows.
• Establish and manage partnerships and strategic alliances with key local and regional government stakeholders and across diverse sectors, professional disciplines and communities.
• Performs related duties as required.

Qualifications

• Five (5) to seven (7) of full-time or equivalent part-time experience in energy, climate, urban planning, law, engineering, or a related field and at least three (3) years of management experience. Additional experience preferred.
• A bachelor's degree is required.
• A J.D. or master’s degree in energy, environmental science, urban planning, engineering, policy or a related field is strongly preferred and may be substituted for three (3) years of the required experience. Management experience may not be substituted.
• Knowledge of relevant Federal and State laws (e.g. regional operation of the grid, state oversight of utilities and energy efficiency), federal, state and local energy policies.
• Knowledge of and experience with effective community engagement strategies strongly preferred.
• Demonstrate passion and commitment to public leadership on environmental justice and commitment to city leadership on climate and equity.
• Demonstrate experience tackling complex problems with creative, effective solutions in a fast-paced work environment.
• Highly organized, with the ability to simultaneously handle many tasks, organize complex projects, and meet deadlines;
• Strong communication skills, with ability to write about and present complex policies, research, and ideas in a clear and concise manner.
• Ability to work collaboratively and respectfully within a team and share credit for high-impact work.
• Willingness to practice accessible, responsive, community-engaged leadership for residents of City of Boston.
• Excellent interpersonal skills and strong commitment to integrity and inclusivity in the workplace.
• Outstanding interpersonal skills with the ability to work with diverse interests and backgrounds.
• Energy, creativity, and entrepreneurship.
• Ability to exercise good judgment and focus on detail as required by the job.
• Knowledge with Microsoft Office and Google Suite.