2. Communicating for Success: Content Strategy, Design & Outreach for Powerful Energy Programs Dan Thiede CERTs Communications Manager, UMN Extension RSDP

3.  Overview of CERTs  Communications & Program Design  Case Studies  Questions Today’s talk

4.  Learn about a range of programs used to promote clean energy in Minnesota  Discover effective strategies for advancing energy and sustainability programs What you’ll learn

5. Mission: We connect individuals and their communities to the resources they need to identify and implement community-based clean energy projects CERTs: Minnesotans Building a Clean Energy Future cleanenergyresourceteams.org

6. A Statewide Partnership

7. Provide seed grant funding and more Deliver research-based campaigns Spur other statewide programs What Does CERTs Do? Host events, tours, and conferences Help with community organizing Connect people to technical resources Write blog posts & case studies Create educational guides Manage diverse web-based tools

8. Energy Efficiency

9. Renewable Energy

10. There is a strong interplay between communications and good program design & delivery.  How can you design programs to meet demands for education and technical assistance on sustainability topics?  How can you best communicate these programs to meet your outreach and impact goals? Design & Deliver Great Programs

11. Some essentials for getting started: 1.Set clear, realistic & outcome- oriented goals 2.Understand your key audience, their motivations & barriers 3.Think about resources you’ll need 4.Brainstorm your mix of owned, earned, paid, and partner assets 5.How will you measure success? Approach to Planning

12. Some essentials for getting started: 1.Set clear, realistic & outcome- oriented goals 2.Understand your key audience, their motivations & barriers 3.Think about resources you’ll need 4.Brainstorm your mix of owned, earned, paid, and partner assets 5.How will you measure success? GOAL AUDIENCE MESSAGE RESOURCE PARTNER MEDIA EVENT Approach to Planning

13. We’ll explore five specific examples of CERTs programs and the role of communications in design & delivery: 1.Right Light Guide 2.Renewable Energy for Greater MN 3.Property-Assessed Clean Energy 4.Minnesota GreenStep Cities 5.Community Solar Gardens GOAL AUDIENCE MESSAGE RESOURCE PARTNER MEDIA EVENT Program Case Studies

14. 1. Right Light Guide CASE STUDY: Reduce confusion by educating people about new energy-efficient light bulb options Consumers Learn about lighting options and find the lights you need Guide, Recycling Finder Utilities Newspapers, PSAs, Social media Minnesota State Fair mncerts.org/lighting

15. 1. Right Light Guide CASE STUDY:

16. 1. Right Light Guide CASE STUDY:

17. 1. Right Light Guide CASE STUDY: Public Service Announcements

18. 1. Right Light Guide CASE STUDY:

19. 2. Renewable Energy for Greater MN CASE STUDY: Make it easier for farmers and businesses to navigate the project planning process Farmers, Rural businesses Clean energy is plentiful in Minnesota; We’re here to help you get projects done Sample applications, Technical assistance USDA, Extension, Farm associations Rural papers & radio, farm media Farming specialty: Dairy, Poultry

20. 2. Renewable Energy for Greater MN CASE STUDY:

21. 2. Renewable Energy for Greater MN CASE STUDY: mncerts.org/greatrenewables

22. 2. Renewable Energy for Greater MN CASE STUDY:

23. 3. Property-Assessed Clean Energy CASE STUDY: Help counties and local businesses partner to get energy projects done Counties, Businesses PACE can help you finance energy upgrades without no upfront costs Factsheet, Map, Stories, Promo kit Providers, Counties, Associations Counties join, Success stories Support county & association events

24. 3. Property-Assessed Clean Energy CASE STUDY:

25. 3. Property-Assessed Clean Energy CASE STUDY: Customized County Promotional Packages:  Factsheet  Press release  Newsletter content  Website content  Social media text  PSA script mncerts.org/pace

26. 3. Property-Assessed Clean Energy CASE STUDY:

27. 4. GreenStep Cities CASE STUDY: Increase adoption of sustainability efforts across small and medium sized cities Cities Join other cities using proven best practices to achieve your sustainability goals Best practices, Technical assistance Agencies, Associations, Nonprofits Local papers, Social media Conferences, Workshops, Networking

28. 4. GreenStep Cities CASE STUDY: mngreenstep.org

29. 4. GreenStep Cities CASE STUDY:

30. 4. GreenStep Cities CASE STUDY:

31. 4. GreenStep Cities CASE STUDY:

32. 4. GreenStep Cities CASE STUDY:

33. 5. Community Solar CASE STUDY: Educate people about this new option for benefiting from solar energy Residents, Organizations, Local governments With community solar gardens you can easily be powered by clean energy and save money Websites, Factsheets, Maps Utilities, Agencies, Associations Statewide where programs exist Community, Neighborhood, Conference

34. 5. Community Solar CASE STUDY:

35. 5. Community Solar CASE STUDY:

36. The Minnesota Solar Suitability App displays solar insolation and solar photovoltaic (PV) potential with 1 square meter resolution for the entire state of Minnesota. It was created using Lidar data and GIS technology. mn.gov/solarapp 5. Community Solar CASE STUDY:

37. cleanenergyprojectbuilder.org 5. Community Solar CASE STUDY:

38. 5. Community Solar CASE STUDY:

39. 5. Community Solar CASE STUDY:

40. 5. Community Solar CASE STUDY: Trevor Drake, project manager with the Great Plains Institute and the Clean Energy Resource Teams, two nonprofits that helped coordinate the solar bid, said it is the first time local governments have joined together for such a solar bid. “This is important for creating access to the solar garden market for local governments,” he said. Most solar garden programs, like Connexus’, started out with pay-upfront pricing. With panels costing hundreds of dollars each, homeowners could easily fork out $20,000 to go all solar. But more than half of the co-op solar garden programs now offer various pay-as-you go plans, according to the Clean Energy Research Teams, a University of Minnesota group tracking shared solar. “There just aren’t a lot a people who have a lot of cash to put down,” said Dan Thiede, CERTs communications manager. “For a lot of consumers, they don’t necessarily have that money to put in up front, so pay as you go is really appealing,” said Lissa Pawlisch, director of the Clean Energy Resource Teams (CERTs), a University of Minnesota extension program that offers Web-based comparison tools, tips and other information to help people understand solar garden transactions.

41. 5. Community Solar CASE STUDY:

42. 5. Community Solar CASE STUDY: A community solar garden is a little like its agricultural namesake. In both cases, subscribers share the labor and expense as well as the harvest. But instead of tomatoes, carrots and potatoes, subscribers to a solar garden get cash. Specifically, the value of their share of the solar panels’ electricity, at current prices, is deducted from their bills. “They’re paying you a little more than they would if you just had solar panels on your roof,” Dan Thiede, communications manager at the University of Minnesota-based Clean Energy Resource Teams. That’s thanks to a renewable energy credit the solar developers receive. Because the bill credit is based on the panels’ output, it will depend in part on how much the sun is shining in a given month. In return, subscribers will pay for the electricity these panels produce. There are two ways to pay: on a monthly basis, like an electricity bill payment, or in a larger lump sum. In either case, customers are likely to at least break even, Thiede said. “With community solar in Xcel territory, as long as terms are decent with the developer — which in most cases they are favorable — people are going to be ahead financially, if not in year one then in year two,” he said. The Clean Energy Resource Teams’ website has a decision making tool that consumers can use to gauge whether to subscribe to a solar garden. Thiede said it uses standard solar garden rates, plus a conservative estimate for how much electricity costs will grow in subsequent years.

43. Questions? Dan Thiede CERTs Communications Manager 612-626-0556 / thie0235@umn.edu GOAL AUDIENCE MESSAGE RESOURCE PARTNER MEDIA EVENT Recap: 1.Set clear, realistic goals 2.Understand your key audiences 3.Think about resources 4.Brainstorm outreach & partner assets 5.Decide how you will measure success 6.Create & deliver great, effective programs!