“True breakthroughs don’t happen in isolation. The solutions that alter the course of things, transform the way we approach long-standing challenges, and reshape what is possible begin by bringing people together.”
On October 10th, 2024, mHUB held a salon-style discussion on the intersections of climate tech and workforce, economic development, and advancing health outcomes. Over 40 leaders joined mHUB from family offices, foundations, community-based organizations, and nonprofits to discuss the gaps and opportunities in scaling an inclusive and equitable clean energy economy in Chicago.
Speakers included:
- Elevate’s COO Delmar Gillus;
- Co-Founder and CEO of JustAir Solutions Darren Riley;
- Executive Director of Greater Englewood Chamber of Commerce Felicia Slaton-Young;
- Chief Strategy Officer of the Pritzker Traubert Foundation Andy Beideman.
After hearing from our speakers, participants were divided into breakout groups to continue the discussion and speak more to their respective work. Major themes and highlights from those conversations are included below:
In-Person Convenings: mHUB CEO and Co-Founder Haven Allen opened the morning with remarks on the power of convening and the value of coming together in person to create new connections and explore collaborations. Similar sentiments were shared and included a desire to do more in-person convenings where there is an opportunity to talk to other stakeholders within the ecosystem, identify synergies, and build relationships. Chicago’s strength lies in its ability to organize and collaborate. Convenings, such as this one held at mHUB, can help to build an interconnected ecosystem.
Building Bridges: One of the main themes that emerged during the workshop is the need for more bridges -- philanthropic dollars to bridge gaps in federal funding, as well as the need to create stronger pathways between the work of community-based organizations and entrepreneur and workforce development organizations, and ultimately, better pathways to employment.
Urgency: There was acknowledgement that the impact of the climate crisis does not discriminate and the consequences of not focusing on climate is too great.
Economic Inclusion: The conversation around who gets to capitalize from clean energy jobs and technology and who is involved in the conversation is pivotal. Economic and wealth creation benefits of the clean energy transition should be spread out evenly across Chicago. It’s vital to keep community as our 'north star' and continue to find spaces to have real and vulnerable conversations and learn from one another. There is an awareness that there is money to be made within this clean energy transition but it’s not totally clear how to tap into these opportunities and drive positive impact beyond the headlines.
Storytelling: There is a need to share and highlight more stories about the connections between climate action, community revitalization, job creation, and health.
Youth: There was optimism about the younger generation’s focus on climate and the need to expose them to clean energy opportunities early on. Awareness of climate change and exposure to clean energy and tech jobs and opportunities are critical to make this transition inclusive. In discussing how Chicago Public School high school students might be educated about clean energy career opportunities that build generational wealth, some ideas that popped up included exploring opportunities to provide grants for high school and college tech programs to upskill workers and inspire students toward energy transition careers. Additionally, Chicago boasts one of the world’s largest wastewater treatment plants which could serve as a foundation for early STEM education and workforce development in clean energy fields.
Tapping into Chicago’s Assets: Chicago has vast vacant land, underutilized infrastructure, and untapped talent that could be organized to secure federal dollars for clean energy projects. Organizations like World Business Chicago (WBC) are working to raise awareness about federal grant opportunities coming down the pipeline and connect nonprofits and universities with these opportunities.
The Role of Philanthropy: Philanthropic dollars can and do make a difference and can provide more flexibility than public and private sector funding, particularly as it relates to pilot and early-stage programs and resource-intensive activities such as ecosystem building and relationship building between stakeholders, which are critical yet underappreciated and often underfunded activities. Finding open-minded and creative funders who can serve as a catalyst for funding and connections, as well as help drive systems change and ecosystem building - is critical. There is a need to nurture and grow public, private, and non-profit partnerships, especially for systems change. Organizations with in-house grant writers are more likely to win grants compared to others with strong ideas but no grant-writing capacity. This is a potential area for philanthropy to support.
Remaining Questions/Challenges:
- Solar projects in rural areas are becoming solar farm hubs but they are far from the city, making it difficult for some workers to take on those solar jobs.
- How do we help individuals think about global climate solutions when they are focused on immediate personal struggles? For example, some communities express concern over how new technologies like heat pumps may affect daily life.
- Importance of including the expertise and perspectives of folks living in these communities when developing technologies.
- There is a mismatch between workforce opportunities in climate and the number of available jobs, which reinforces distrust in training organizations.
- There is a sense that while entrepreneurship is appealing, it does not seem accessible to some individuals.
- There is a need to focus on long-term livable wages within clean energy and tech over seasonal, short-term opportunities.
- Many utility veterans are retiring after 30+ years of service, creating a need to introduce young people to the field early and equip them with predictive analytics, sensors, and data skills. This is often referred to as a “Silver Tsunami.”
Overall, the day's discussions were highly engaging and an important step in bringing together people actively working toward shaping a healthy future.
If you are interested in learning more and would like to stay engaged on these conversations, please reach out to mHUB's Director of Advancement, Elizabeth Andrews.
