Category: energy poverty

Mar 26 2024 by David Breecker

Energy Sovereignty Workshop a Great Success

Posted in energy access, energy poverty, MSL news, partners, research, Uncategorized, workforce

On March 12th and 13th, 2024 MSL and its partners at Navajo Technical University, Rochester Institute of Technology, and Seattle University convened key stakeholders for an inaugural Energy Sovereignty Research Workshop.  Funded by the National Science Foundation (with additional support from the New America Foundation and Remy’s Good Day Fund), 32 participants representing academia, Tribal governments and agencies, Federally Funded Research and Development Centers, and energy sector organizations gathered at the Hyatt Tamaya at Santa Ana Pueblo for the event, designed to create a research agenda aimed at supporting clean energy transitions in Tribal Nations.

(more…)


Dec 12 2023 by David Breecker

MSL teams for Energy Sovereignty Research

Posted in energy access, energy poverty, MSL news, partners, research, Uncategorized, workforce

The National Science Foundation has awarded funding to MSL, Navajo Technical University, Rochester Institute of Technology, and Seattle University for an energy sovereignty research workshop. This project will convene a diverse group of stakeholders from academia, Tribal governments and agencies, Federally Funded Research and Development Centers, and energy sector organizations for a two-day event, designed to create a research agenda aimed at supporting clean energy transitions in Tribal Nations, and education and workforce training needs to achieve ambitious Tribal aspirations. MSL Member Sandia National Laboratories’ Indian Energy program is also serving on the organizing committee. (more…)


Nov 01 2022 by David Breecker

MSL, RIT, Navajo Tech Win Energy Sovereignty Grant

Posted in energy access, energy poverty, Innovation, MSL news, partners, R&D, research, workforce

MSL, Rochester Institute of Technology, and Navajo Technical University have been awarded a grant from the Public Interest Technology University Network (PIT-UN) program to further the partners’ work with Native American communities in the tribal energy sovereignty area. PIT-UN’s mission is to help advance the field of public interest technology to bring positive impact to communities around the globe. MSL’s Energy Sovereignty Institute (ESI) initiative will also participate. (more…)


Sep 02 2022 by David Breecker

UPDATE: MSL, RIT TEAM FOR GLOBAL ENERGY ACCESS WORKSHOP IN RWANDA

Posted in energy access, energy poverty, Innovation, MSL news, partners, research, Uncategorized

Update 8/27/22:  MSL’s Global Energy Access Innovation Workshop in Rwanda with the Rochester Institute of Technology was an unqualified success. Hosted as part of the IEEE PowerAfrica Conference, 25 thought and practice leaders from Asia, Africa, Alaska, Native America, and the Caribbean Islands convened for a two-day immersive innovation process designed and facilitated by MSL. The excitement was contagious, the feedback was exceptional, and the group unanimously committed to continued collaboration, on which we have begun work. (more…)


Jun 01 2022 by David Breecker

MSL, RIT Team for Global Energy Access Workshop in Rwanda

Posted in energy access, energy poverty, Innovation, MSL news, partners

MSL has partnered with the Rochester Institute of Technology to convene an Energy Access Innovation Workshop in August of 2022, to be held in conjunction with the IEEE PES/IAS PowerAfrica Conference in Kigali, Rwanda. The workshop is designed to accelerate applied innovation in the energy access and equity domain, and to lay the foundation for a Global Energy Access Lab (GEAL) to meet the challenge of affordable, equitable, and clean energy access for 2 billion underserved people worldwide. (more…)


Feb 23 2022 by David Breecker

Energy Sovereignty Videos Available

Posted in energy access, energy poverty, Innovation, MSL news, partners, Uncategorized

We are pleased to share two short videos produced by MSL’s  Energy Sovereignty Institute for the Indian Energy community. The first, “Tribal Energy Sovereignty,” features interviews with a variety of experts on tribal energy and its relationship to tribal sovereignty, featuring: Joseph Kunkel (Northern Cheyenne), Co-Director of ESI and Director of the Sustainable Native Communities Design Lab; Sherralyn Sneezer (Diné), PhD student at Rochester Institute of Technology; Stan Atcitty (Diné), Distinguished Member of the Technical Staff, Sandia National Laboratories; and Tiana Suazo (Taos/Jemez Pueblo), Executive Director, Red Willow Center: (more…)


May 11 2021 by David Breecker

Energy Sovereignty Institute, Rochester Institute of Technology Welcome PhD Student

Posted in energy access, energy poverty, MSL news, partners, R&D, research, Uncategorized

We are delighted to announce that Sherralyn Sneezer (Navajo/Dine) has been selected from a highly competitive field of applicants as our first PhD student in energy sovereignty research topics, via MSL’s  Energy Sovereignty Institute and its partnership with the Golisano Institute for Sustainability at Rochester Institute of Technology. Sherralyn’s research will be supervised by Dr. Nathan Williams, an Assistant Professor at the Golisano Institute, in collaboration with MSL.
(more…)


Feb 25 2019 by David Breecker

Energy Sovereignty Workshop with NM Tribes

Posted in energy access, energy poverty, Indigenous energy, MSL news, partners, Uncategorized

The Energy Sovereignty Institute (MSL’s partnership with the Sustainable Native Communities Collaborative) will convene a workshop and summit of key New Mexico tribal energy stakeholders in the summer of 2019. This event will begin the process of developing ESI’s programming across a number of critical areas, deepening its resources in support of New Mexico tribes, and then expanding this model to national scale. The workshop is generously funded by Enterprise Community Partners and Cornerstones Community Partnerships.

The Institute is a social innovation initiative designed to promote the benefits of decentralized energy systems and technologies for Native American communities, and to advance their availability and use.  (more…)


Dec 31 2018 by David Breecker

“Reciprocal Innovation” Framework Planned

Posted in energy access, energy poverty, MSL news, partners, R&D

MSL has partnered with TFE Energy and Carnegie Mellon University Africa to plan the development of a “reciprocal innovation” framework, connecting the industrialized and emerging economies, in the area of distributed and off-grid energy systems. This framework will begin with a structured workshop, gathering global thought leaders from the technology, finance, and policy domains, and designed to promote creative and synergistic problem solving and sharing of ideas and inspirations. 

Carnegie Mellon, a leading U.S. research university, operates a campus in Kigali, Rwanda with a major focus on the emerging knowledge-based economy on the African continent. CMU Africa’s graduate programs are educating future leaders who will use their hands-on, experiential learning to advance technology innovation and grow the businesses that will transform Africa.

TFE Energy, a unit of TFE Consulting, is an EU- and Africa-based, values-led energy business, whose scope includes renewable energy technologies and energy access. TFE Consulting is an international advisory business supporting leading companies, investors, international lenders, organizations, and governments, with deep experience in Europe, South Asia, and Africa.  (more…)


Mar 27 2018 1Commentby David Breecker

Energy Sovereignty Institute In Development

Posted in energy access, energy poverty, Indigenous energy, MSL news, pilot projects, research

Building on a successful workshop in January of 2018, MSL has partnered with the Sustainable Native Communities Collaborative (SNCC) to form the Energy Sovereignty Institute (ESI). ESI is a not-for-profit social initiative, designed to promote the benefits of decentralized energy systems and technologies for Native American communities, and to advance their availability and use.

SNCC focuses on culturally and environmentally sustainable development with American Indian, First Nations, and Indigenous communities. As sustainable energy, housing, and community design are inextricably woven together in any effective development framework, SNCC and MSL combine the needed skills, experience, and networks to advance a shared mission and agenda. (more…)