Breaking Barriers Collaborative

Earlier this month, our program director Paul Bloom was at the Washington Oregon Cascadia Higher Education Sustainability Conference (WOHESC), where he spoke on a panel about jumpstarting campus decarbonization efforts with electric vehicles.? Thanks to moderator Briar Wray (formerly Schoon) (Portland Community College) and fellow panelists Sara Holzknecht (Bellevue College), Brandon Lesowske (Portland State University), and Jaime English (Portland Community College) for the great conversation! Our Fleet Decarbonization Accelerator program has supported quite a few higher education institutions in their efforts toward fleet electrification—including Portland Community College and Bellevue College! Is your college or university next??https://lnkd.in/gxMvfbFg

Our team recently traveled down to Portland to meet with Jacob Sherman, MBA?from the Portland Bureau of Transportation, and we learned about a pilot program they were running: a downtown loading zone that’s for zero-emissions vehicles only!? Innovative programs like this one are great for accelerating the transition to EVs.

We’re looking forward to this year’s Green Transportation Summit and Expo—and we hope you’ll join us! GTSE is a great way to learn more about the latest developments in fleet electrification and how your peers are successfully decarbonizing. Early-bird tickets are available through March 31 and can be purchased here:?https://lnkd.in/dyGqvVTh Are you an alumnus of our Accelerator program? Reach out to program manager Adam Nashban and he’ll give you an exclusive discount code for 50% off (good for purchases made through end of March).

Save the data! As recent changes in federal policy threaten to take important government data offline, organizations have jumped into action to preserve critical climate and energy information. Atlas Public Policy's Climate Program Portal now offers access to hundreds of web pages about the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) and the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) as well as a searchable library of fact sheets, data, tools, and more. Explore the portal:?https://lnkd.in/datJaX4p

You don’t have to know a single thing about EVs to take part in our Accelerator program. We’ll teach you everything you need to know to electrify your fleet. Just ask Erin LeFever at Seattle Aquarium! Learn more about the Fleet Decarbonization Accelerator: https://lnkd.in/gxMvfbFg

As companies and organizations explore the benefits of fleet electrification, it helps to be able to see relevant health and environmental data about the areas where they work. Public Environmental Data Partners recently preserved the EJScreen, a data mapping tool (formerly hosted by the federal government) that can help you take a data-driven and equitable approach to decarbonization. Check out the data for your area!?https://lnkd.in/eeTmHq8n

?Curious about electrifying your fleet?? We just launched a new newsletter dedicated to sharing resources that can help businesses and organizations of all sizes make the jump to electric. Check it out and sign up to learn more about changes to EV policy, cutting-edge EV products, funding opportunities, and much more:?https://lnkd.in/dRAdsn2N

Will we see you at the Washington Oregon Cascadia Higher Education Sustainability Conference (WOHESC) this March 5–7? We’re looking forward to presenting alongside Jaime English (Portland Community College), Brandon Lesowske (Portland State University), and Sara Holzknecht (Bellevue College).

Applications close this upcoming Wednesday, March 5 for our current job opening! We’re looking for a Fleet Electrification Program Manager to help Pacific Northwest businesses accelerate equitable climate action by adopting?zero-emissions Medium- and Heavy-Duty vehicles. If you think you could be a fit, we’d love to hear from you! And if you know somebody who might be a great fit, please share this with them.

Here’s what we know now about how the new administration’s proposed changes to EV policy will impact fleet electrification: ? Yes, wavering federal support for EVs is a blow that creates uncertainty about incentives and funding that have been supporting the country’s transition to electric. ? But! Here in the Pacific Northwest, state and local financial incentives for fleet electrification are still holding steady. ? And in the end, many experts expect that market forces and wealth of benefits will dictate continued long-term EV adoption, especially as the price gap continues to shrink between the average EV and gas-powered vehicle. We take a closer look at proposed federal policy changes and their implications in our latest blog: https://lnkd.in/gZCktGwV