MISSION
The DC Project advances economic and environmental justice by creating clean energy career opportunities for people who need them most.
WHO WE ARE
WeatherizeDC is a campaign of The DC Project, a non-profit based in Washington, D.C., founded by former leaders of the Obama for America campaign. Staff are trained in grassroots organizing techniques rooted in metrics-based, data-driven field methods that empower neighborhood volunteers to affect systemic change.
WHAT WE DO
WeatherizeDC launched in September and is the nation’s most robust community engagement program around home efficiency, proving that it's really possible to create good green jobs. WeatherizeDC is weatherizing 200 homes by March, which in turn will generate up to seven good green jobs, save homeowners up to 30% on their energy bills and offset 3,645 metric tons of carbon.
WeatherizeDC quickly identified two realities: home weatherization represents one of America's few industries primed for expansion and job creation and that a missing link has been a partnership between non-profits, organized labor and the local small businesses that perform the audits and weatherizations and ultimately hire new workers. WeatherizeDC is forging these crucial and sustainable partnerships with small home performance businesses, the community and organized labor to advance economic and environmental justice.
HOW WE DO IT
WeatherizeDC's trained field organizers coordinate community leaders to gather together their neighbors and friends through community energy meetings, door-to-door canvasses and events to help one another through the details and process of home weatherization. Energy audits and weatherizations then take place in discounted group rates and the local home performance businesses finally grow and finally hire given the increased interest and demand.
To ensure high-road employment for the new career opportunities, WeatherizeDC brokered a groundbreaking Community Workforce Agreement (CWA) between a leading national labor union and a local home performance business. The CWA ensures that jobs generated by WeatherizeDC are filled by local residents from communities of high unemployment, and that all workers receive certification-based training, support to encourage career mobility, and a truly livable wage.
IMMEDIATE IMPACT
As of the beginning of December, WeatherizeDC generated enough new home weatherization demand for the first home performance partner to hire its first new full-time worker. WeatherizeDC is on track to place 200 homes in the weatherization pathway, enough work to employ 4-7 unemployed community members and mitigate 3,645 metric tons of carbon (equal to 600 cars off the road).
