Barriers to Low-Income Uptake of Energy Efficiency and Beneficial Electrification in the Northeast Kingdom
by Tara Santi, EAN Summer Intern
August 2020
Tara Santi participated in EAN’s first intern cohort, in the summer of 2020. She joined EAN as a recent graduate of Middlebury College (Middlebury 2020) with a degree in Human Ecology (Environmental Studies and Sociology and Anthropology) and a minor in French. After graduating, she researched the radical implications of climate change educaton in universities. The paper she co-authored is pending publication in the journal Antipode. She hopes to pursue a career in food justice, regenerative agriculture, and community-building. Tara currently works on a vegetable farm near Missoula, Montana with the intention of learning how healthy food systems can bring communities together and play a vital role in climate mitigation.
During her time at EAN, Tara conducted a study on increasing energy efficiency and beneficial electrification in low-income households in the Northeast Kingdom. Her project emphasizes the structural and program barriers for low-income households in the Northeast Kingdom and the need for continued attention on the region. It also suggests several preliminary recommendations for increasing low-income household program participation.