Stacy Miller wants to see a world that runs on clean, affordable electricity.
“I want people to have the opportunity to participate in a clean energy economy,” said the Eagan, Minnesota resident. “I want to see people have the opportunity to live in a pollution-free world, to breathe clean air, and to drink clean water.”
That’s the charge she brings to her work as a director on the Dakota Electric Co-Op Board and to the advisory board of the Beneficial Electrification League. She’s also a director for the Minnesota Rural Electric Association.
One strong interest for Miller is expanding opportunities for schools to purchase electric school buses. “That’s a memory from my childhood, living in rural Ohio and having a 45-minute school bus ride with the bus sometimes full of diesel fumes,” she said. “I’ve had the opportunity to ride an electric school bus recently and it’s everything it promises to be—quiet and free of fumes.”
Miller, who also supports the Sierra Club North Star Chapter and the climate group South Metro MN350, said through her advocacy, she aims to make it easy for school officials to make the switch to electric buses.
“With electric buses, there are health benefits for students, teachers, and the environment generally,” said Miller, who is also a sustainability program coordinator for the City of Minneapolis. “People want to electrify, especially after they ride in an electric school bus. The first electric bus in our territory has been quite a hit.”
Miller is also a major proponent of electric cars. “I look for opportunities to make it easier for people to get into their first electric vehicle (EV),” she explained. “I firmly believe that once you drive electric you’ll never want to go back to an internal combustion engine.” Building out EV infrastructure, like a network of charging stations, is critical, she added, and that helps lower costs for everyone, not just the EV drivers. As more and more people drive electric, utilities will sell more electricity, and the cost per kilowatt-hour will go down for everyone.
In her tenure as a director for the Dakota Electric Board and the Minnesota Rural Electric Association, Miller has been a strong advocate for clean, affordable, community-controlled electricity for all. “For me, the electric co-ops have such an opportunity for people to exercise democracy with their energy, to be able to choose their resource and the ability to have it locally produced, by rooftop or community solar, for example,” said Miller. “It will give people more control over the cost of their energy, but only if we’re intentional about our programs and policies.”
Making sure everyone has access to clean energy is a priority for Miller as well. She helped write and pass a resolution for the state rural electric association to center diversity, equity, and inclusion. She also encourages people of color and women to seek election on local electric co-op boards nationwide.
Miller is also helping administer a grant that would make energy efficiency updates and electrification more accessible to low-income people and people of color. “I’m really excited about the innovation co-ops can bring to low-income and communities of color,” she explained. “We need to make sure that communities are not left behind in this energy transformation.”
“The whole point here is to transform that market, to create a replicable pathway for people everywhere who want to become more energy efficient—it’s better for the environment and it saves people money.”
She encourages people who want to help to seek out local opportunities to support clean energy and electrification. “There’s plenty to work on out there,” said Miller. “Be that champion in your community.”
Miller says all this effort is worthwhile because it brings her community closer to the future she wants to see. “I can’t imagine not doing this work,” she said. “If we’re successful, it’ll make a difference in people’s everyday lives.”