Testimonials

As one of the co-chairs of the Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency Caucus, we're very proud to team up with EESI every year on the Expo, proud to team up with you on the member briefing, and grateful to all of you for the expertise that you provide on very important issues. […] And we just hope that in all the hurly-burly and back and forth in the United States Congress, we will succeed together in breaking through the politics and make sure that the policy arguments and the science win out at the end of the day. This is not a battle for one day or for two days, these issues are things that have obviously been worked on for a very long time and we got a long way to go but I am pleased that we are making progress. Slower than we would all like but we're going to keep marching forward when it comes to energy efficiency and renewable energy.

Senator Chris Van Hollen (Maryland)

Our efforts in Congress are aided by the great work of groups like the Environmental and Energy Study Institute and I'm thankful to have partners like you to help inform good energy policy. I look forward to continue working with all of you to create a more energy-efficient society and provide the resources needed for these overlooked communities.

Member of Congress James E. Clyburn (South Carolina)

EESI is extraordinary. It serves as a vital link between Congress and the environmental community as well as private sector organizations involved in environmental and energy issues. It holds about 20 briefings a year for Members of Congress and their staffs, open to the public, with an average attendance of about 100. It puts together coalitions of private organizations and NGOs to formulate passable environmental and energy legislation and stop damaging legislation, with great success. It also assists Members of Congress with the handling of environmental and energy issues in their districts.

Dick Ottinger, Dean Emeritus, Pace University School of Law; former Member of Congress (D-NY)

There could not be a more critical role for a non-partisan, public interest, non-profit than to advise and educate Congress on energy and environmental issues. It’s what EESI does well— and it’s essential that they continue to do so.

Claudine Schneider, former Member of Congress (R-RI)

I think EESI has been an enormously positive influence on understanding in the Congress and in the public of the nature of the climate change challenge, the nature of the solutions, what we can do with energy efficiency, and the ways in which clean energy can be brought to bear [...]. It’s a very lean, efficient, effective operation, so I think I’m getting the most bang for my charitable buck by giving it to EESI.

Dr. John Holdren, former President Barack Obama's Science Advisor

You reach across aisles, you reach across disciplines, you reach across time. […] You do amazing analytics to help support legislation that is pending. […] I think of EESI as kind of nimble and stealthy and enabling, never in the limelight but building those kind of partnerships that are necessary so that when the time is right and you reach the tipping point, that they have helped it happen. […] You've worked on the Clean Air Act, and the Farm Bill, and on climate change, and on air pollution—an amazing breadth of stuff. […] I see you as educating the lay public as well as scientists, politicians, vice presidents and presidents for over 30 years.

Dr. Rosina Bierbaum, Professor, School of Natural Resources and Environment, University of Michigan; served as Acting Director, White House Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP)

Anne Saliers, the Community Energy Services Manager for the Holland Board of Public Works, describes how EESI helped Holland, MI, set up an on-bill financing program that makes it easier for families to pay for energy efficiency improvements in their home. Learn more about EESI's On-Bill Financing Project.

Transcript: One of the organizations that I learned about was the Environmental and Energy Study Institute out of Washington DC and—lo and behold—it was like a gift just falling in my lap that they were looking for municipal utilities and rural co-ops to help them develop on-bill loan programs. So I was delighted to learn that there were resources that could help educate us and help get us started with the design of the program.

The Environmental and Energy Study Institute takes great pain to ensure they provide non-partisan, factually substantiated information to congressmen, senators, and public, private, and governmental institutions to help society, civilization, and the environment.

Joseph Cavarretta, Association Executive Consultant, Association Futures

I love that EESI provides information to policymakers and decision makers on a wide variety of topics, from climate change, to renewable energy policy and energy efficiency. I think they provide a real service to folks on the Hill, staffers, Congressmen, and Senators on an individual level. On-bill financing is one way in which EESI is helping communities. I'm originally from South Carolina, Congressman Jim Clyburn’s district where the on-bill financing project began. Providing low-income people with home energy upgrades that make their homes more energy efficient is a big deal. It's a great thing that EESI, as an organization, puts its money where its mouth is and is really practical for people.

Harmon (Monty) Cooper, Counsel, Crowell & Moring

EESI is a superbly run nonprofit with huge impact—dedicated to bipartisan discussion of the pressing challenges facing Congress. Through its briefings—open to all—and its briefing papers on the issues of the day, EESI is a trusted source of information for Members of Congress and staff and provides high-quality content for experts and beginners. As an organization, it has a decades-long history of top-notch staff and provides internships that have led many former interns to top level jobs on the Hill or in Federal agencies. Find EESI briefings online and see for yourself!

Shelley Fidler, Principal, Government Affairs, Energy and Environmental Policy, Van Ness Feldman Attorneys at Law

At this critical time, EESI plays an extremely important role by educating Congress and the public about climate change. Founded by a bi-partisan group of Congresspeople, the organization has credibility on both sides of the aisle. EESI makes us hopeful that something can be done before it is too late.

Laura Kalick, Founder and CEO, Kalick Law LLC

EESI does excellent work, and lord knows it’s important to help educate our staff (and members) on Capitol Hill! That is a really important part of the total package that makes up the value proposition that is EESI.

Bill Libro, Retired (formerly Director, Federal Affairs at ALLETE / Minnesota Power)

This organization works tirelessly to promote and support efforts to protect the integrity of our environment. They do this in a strategic and unique way: by addressing and relating to powers in the education, policy, legislative and industrial sectors. Further, they address multiple areas of impact and influence: power generation, transportation, agriculture, and finance. I'm delighted to give them my highest rating.

Barry Scott, State Program Director, The NEED Project

Solid timely clean energy reports on a variety of topics followed by top-tier experts and speakers in the subsequent EESI Capitol Hill educational events. No other group offers this breadth and depth of information and experts within the clean energy field.

Scott Sklar, Adjunct Professor, George Washington University; Director, GWU Solar Institute; President, The Stella Group, Ltd

Your weekly report is the best thing I get and read.

Edna Sussman, Independent Arbitrator and Mediator; Principal, SussmanADR LLC

"Before moving to my present position I was a Congressional staffer for many years and worked for both political parties. For many of those years, I was working on topics within EESI's sphere of influence and regardless of my position, EESI was a trusted source of information for my colleagues on Capitol Hill and me, and a place I could turn to for more information. EESI has always had a very talented and knowledgeable group of people working for them. They are unparalleled in their primary niche of providing timely and objective information on a spectrum of environmental and energy topics to Capitol Hill. I hope they keep up the good work for many years to come."

Jim Turner, Visiting Assistant Professor, University of Virginia School of Engineering and Applied Sciences

EESI gives the most balanced, useful, complete and relevant information on topics concerning the environment and energy. I use their fact sheets and white papers all the time for my work within these fields. EESI is the Go-To organization.

Mary Paul Jespersen, former Senior Commercial Advisor, Royal Danish Embassy

EESI has the unique ability to both educate key policy-makers and the general public through their well-organized newsletters, fact-sheets and briefings on the Hill. I had the rewarding experience of interning with EESI for several months, and could not be more impressed with the staff's involvement and leadership in today's energy and climate change issues on a national level. Their weekly newsletters and briefings cover a wide-range of issues and are still my go-to news sources.

Caitlin Madera, Program Manager, Maryland Smart Energy Communities, Maryland Energy Administration

Thanks to EESI — really just a phenomenal organization at bringing good information up to Hill staff.

Neil Brown, former Professional Staff Member for Senator Richard Lugar (R-IN), Senate Foreign Relations Committee