Greening Affordable Rental Properties

BLEC Speakers and Other Organizers — Speakers and other organizers for the Brookland-Lakeview Empowerment Center energy efficiency workshop. February 27, 2025

The Greening Project is an effort to help low-income neighborhoods throughout South Carolina save money and protect the environment! We help you increase energy efficiency in your rental home, which also improves health and quality of life for you, your family, your community, and the planet.

In addition to providing guidelines for energy efficiency habits and devices in your home, these workshops are meant to introduce you to programs that help you weatherize your home. Eventually, we aim to increase the reach of the program and further benefit the environment by providing funding information for renewable energy and sustainable, cooling residential gardening.

Our Mission:

We provide educational energy efficiency workshops to low-income neighborhoods because we want to...

For Individuals	Sustainable Community Development
Reduce energy bills	Share funding options for weatherization in homes
Decrease utility shutoffs	Collect data to evaluate and scale educational efforts statewide
Promote energy efficiency habits	Partner with local organizations to maximize energy efficiency
Distribute energy-saving devices

Energy Saving Tips

According to the S.C. Energy Office and Dominion Energy, the quickest tips for saving energy (and costs) is to use less of it!

Set thermostat to 78°F+ in summer and 68°F− in winter to save energy	Take shorter showers and use cooler water to cut hot water use
Use ceiling fans (clockwise) instead of AC when possible	Unplug devices or use smart power strips to cut standby energy to reduce your electricity bill by up to 20%
Switch to LED bulbs to use up to 90% less energy	Install weatherization devices (such as insulation or window film) to increase home energy efficiency year-round

Learn more about the Energy Office's energy saver tool kit and Dominion Energy's Neighborhood Energy Efficiency Program (NEEP)

Energy Burdens and Improving Quality of Life

Energy burdens are increasing annually, especially in the southern U.S. Distributing energy efficiency devices to low-income groups helps reduce energy use and costs.

This is especially important in affordable multi-family housing to reduce financial hardships and improve quality of life. Optimal use of these devices along with energy efficiency habits build the foundation for a lower energy bill.

Funding

With limited time to access IRA (Inflation Reduction Act) and IIJA (Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act) funding, now is a crucial time to make these smart changes as an owner or resident.

See Energy Funds for All for more information.

Come to Our Workshops!

Join us in-person for a free meal and a complementary energy saving toolkit (limited supply). We will also be hosting speaker from local organizations that want to give you their professional advice on reducing your energy bill while helping the planet.

The long-term benefit of energy efficiency is the reduction in the need for expensive, dangerous and polluting power plants, which are often located in disadvantaged communities. The workshops will not only benefit your home but also enable data collection to show the benefits of energy efficiency and weatherization.

Join Our Program!

We also provide information about workforce development at our workshops. Energy auditors and weatherization experts are always in demand and required for energy efficiency and weatherization.

Training is available locally and requires only a few weeks in the classroom to become certified. See Solar United National and Connections Workforce Development Group for details.