Join us for two presentations from the Minnesota Department of Commerce. Jake McAlpine, Energy Equity Programs Supervisor, will present an overview of the federally funded Weatherization Assistance Program, and will cover how the program is structured, the services it provides, and the program's evolution since its inception in 1978. Michael Schmitz, Director of the Office of Energy Assistance Programs, will give an overview of the work their office does. The Minnesota Energy Assistance Program (EAP) helps hundreds of thousands of low-income Minnesotans maintain safe, affordable, and continuous home energy each year. Michael will provide an overview of the program, review the factors that compel households to need such programs, and discuss some of the challenges and opportunities EAP faces.
This is a public event presented by the Center for Science, Technology, and Environmental Policy.
About the Speakers:
Jake McAlpine has worked in the Minnesota Weatherization Assistance Program since 2009. He started working with the Sustainable Resources Center in Minneapolis as an energy auditor and later as the program coordinator. In 2015, he moved to the Minnesota Department of Commerce to be the technical and training administrator. He now supervises the Energy Equity Programs team, which administers the Weatherization Assistance Program for the state. He has a Bachelor of Science degree from the University of Minnesota in Residential Building Science and Technology.
Michael Schmitz has worked with the Energy Assistance Program at the Minnesota Department of Commerce since 2012, and as its director since July 2019. He has more than 17 years of experience working in the areas of poverty, energy, the environment, and community development. His experience ranges from work with the state government, to urban Minneapolis neighborhood organizations, to subsistence farm communities in rural Ecuador. He served as a Peace Corps volunteer in Turkmenistan from 2003–2005 and has a master’s in International Development from American University’s School of International Studies. He lives in Minneapolis with his wife and two small children.
The STEP Seminar Series is an interdisciplinary platform for scholars and practitioners to discuss research and policy issues in the broad domain of science, technology, and environmental policy. The seminar series provides an informal setting for feedback and engagement with ongoing research projects and policy debates.
We invite scholars from all disciplines and practitioners working in all action arenas with connections to the fields of scholarship that shape science, technology, and environmental policy. The seminar series takes place throughout the academic year at the Humphrey School of Public Affairs, typically over lunchtime on Mondays. Interested speakers should email Olivia Schares for a list of available dates. Please complete this form to add yourself to our mailing list for future events.
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