The Intersections of Energy and Housing Justice: Lessons from the COVID-19 Pandemic

The COVID-19 pandemic has disproportionately affected working class and Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC) communities, who have been more likely to contract and die from the virus. These inequalities in part stem from higher rates of comorbidities such as asthma, which can be connected to local built environments. One area where these inequalities are starkest is in energy generation and distribution, where marginalized communities are both more likely to be exposed to hazards from energy production, whereas at the same time more likely to struggle to afford that energy, leading to difficult trade-offs with other necessities. In turn, many of these inequalities can be tied to spatial patterns of residential segregation, such as redlining, which cut off BIPOC communities in from the prevailing wealth generating mechanisms of the past century, leading to the patterns of divestment and hazard exposure seen today. In this article, we explore the connections between public health, energy production and consumption, and redlining, using Milwaukee, WI as a case study. Using data from March to June 2020, we perform quartile regressions to assess the relationship between positive COVID cases, local demographics, and the local energy environment. We find that low-income and BIPOC communities were more likely to contract COVID, while also facing higher energy burdens and exposure to respiratory hazards, as well as a statistically significant relationship between COVID rates and redlining policy. We argue these results call further research into the connections between energy insecurity and other forms of injustice that manifest within racial capitalism.

A Cyber-Physical-Social Perspective on Future Smart Distribution Systems

An increasing number of distributed energy resources (DERs), such as rooftop photovoltaic (PV), electric vehicles (EVs), and distributed energy storage, are being integrated into the distribution systems. The rise of DERs has come hand-in-hand with large amounts of data generated and explosive growth in data collection, communication, and control devices. In addition, a massive number of consumers are involved in the interaction with the power grid to provide flexibility. Electricity consumers, power networks, and communication networks are three main parts of the distribution systems, which are deeply coupled. In this sense, smart distribution systems can be essentially viewed as cyber-physical-social systems. So far, extensive works have been conducted on the intersection of cyber, physical, and social aspects in distribution systems. These works involve two or three of the cyber, physical, and social aspects. Having a better understanding of how the three aspects are coupled can help to better model, monitor, control, and operate future smart distribution systems. In this regard, this article provides a comprehensive review of the coupling relationships among the cyber, physical, and social aspects of distribution systems. Remarkably, several emerging topics that challenge future cyber-physical-social distribution systems, including applications of 5G communication, the impact of COVID-19, and data privacy issues, are discussed. This article also envisions several future research directions or challenges regarding cyber-physical-social distribution systems.

When disadvantage collides: The concentrated effects of energy insecurity and internet burdens in the United States

Energy and internet insecurity are exacerbated by the compounding of multiple forms of social-economic disadvantage during extreme events. This study demonstrates the effects of concentrated disadvantage on internet and energy burdens and utility hardships in the United States during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2021. Based on 1991 online respondents, we found that internet and energy burdens are higher in Florida than in California, but utility hardship is greater in California. Women, renters, low-income households, and people of color have higher internet and energy burdens than their counterparts. Unique to this study, people with higher energy medical needs are more likely to suffer from energy and internet insecurity than people without such needs. Low-income women, low-income homeowners, and homeowners of color with more energy medical needs have- higher energy burdens than their counterparts. Low-income men, people of color, and Black/Latino residents with higher levels of energy medical needs, and renters with disabilities and homeowners with medical needs affected by heating and cooling experienced higher levels of utility hardship than their counterparts. These findings suggest that energy insecurity is not just determined by income but by other social and health factors. The findings provide policy implications.

Social and Environmental Assessment of a Solidarity Oriented Energy Community: A Case-Study in San Giovanni a Teduccio, Napoli (IT)

Renewable energy communities (RECs) are alternatives toward sustainable production and consumption pathways. In 2020, Italy implemented the EU Directive 2018/2001, defining a common framework for promoting energy from renewable sources. The “Famiglia di Maria”, a foundation dealing with social issues in San Giovanni a Teduccio, Napoli (Italy), in collaboration with “Legambiente” and “Con il Sud” Foundations, released the first Solidarity Oriented Renewable Energy Community project in Italy. Therefore, by applying social life cycle assessment (s-LCA) and life cycle assessment (LCA) methodologies, this study aims to: (i) promote the dissemination of RECs in the Italian and European contexts, (ii) suggest REC scenarios for the best social and environmental solutions, and (iii) support the policymakers for sustainable local development. Some key results show that the solidarity-oriented project has already produced mature outcomes about community cohesion. In contrast, technical skills and awareness about environmental issues still need to be further developed and shared among the stakeholders. Finally, social and environmental indicators converge on the self-consumption model as a feasible alternative for energy justice, community empowerment, and economic and market competition independence.

Extreme events, energy security and equality through micro- and macro-levels: Concepts, challenges and methods

Low-income households face long-standing challenges of energy insecurity and inequality (EII). During extreme events (e.g., disasters and pandemics) these challenges are especially severe for vulnerable populations reliant on energy for health, education, and well-being. However, many EII studies rarely incorporate the micro- and macro-perspectives of resilience and reliability of energy and internet infrastructure and social-psychological factors. To remedy this gap, we first address the impacts of extreme events on EII among vulnerable populations. Second, we evaluate the driving factors of EII and how they change during disasters. Third, we situate these inequalities within broader energy systems and pinpoint the importance of equitable infrastructure systems by examining infrastructure reliability and resilience and the role of renewable technologies. Then, we consider the factors influencing energy consumption, such as energy practices, socio-psychological factors, and internet access. Finally, we propose interdisciplinary research methods to study these issues during extreme events and provide recommendations.

The energy crises revealed by COVID: Intersections of Indigeneity, inequity, and health.

The global COVID-19 pandemic is a health crisis, an economic crisis, and a justice crisis. It also brings to light multiple ongoing, underlying social crises. The COVID-19 crisis is actively revealing crises of energy sovereignty in at least four ways. First, there are many whose access to basic health services is compromised because of the lack of energy services necessary to provide these services. Second, some people are more vulnerable to COVID-19 because of exposure to environmental pollution associated with energy production. Third, energy services are vital to human wellbeing, yet access to energy services is largely organized as a consumer good. The loss of stable income precipitated by COVID-19 may therefore mean that many lose reliable access to essential energy services. Fourth, the COVID-19 crisis has created a window of opportunity for corporate interests to engage in aggressive pursuit of energy agendas that perpetuate carbon intensive and corporate controlled energy systems, which illuminates the ongoing procedural injustices of energy decision making. These four related crises demonstrate why energy sovereignty is essential for a just energy future. Energy sovereignty is defined as the right for communities, rather than corporate interests, to control access to and decision making regarding the sources, scales, and forms of ownership characterizing access to energy services. Energy sovereignty is a critical component in the design of a post-COVID-19 energy system that is capable of being resilient to future shocks without exacerbating injustices that are killing the most vulnerable among us.