Recent + PAst Activities
|
2024 March
Three3 provided a presentation on Energy Burden within the Context of Affordable Housing for TVA's Connected Communities webinar series on Affordable Housing. Co-presented included: Ali Mooney (Guidehouse) and Clifton Harris (Urban League of Middle Tennessee). 
2024 February
Interdisciplinary Collaboration & Community Engagement on Just, Resilient and Sustainable Ecosystems Threecubed participated in this UT, Knoxville, workshop by providing a presentation on our observations of what matters for successful, authentic community engagement. 
2023 October
Cities United Three3 staff, Jha'Niyah Holland, participated in the Cities United's 10th Annual Convening in Atlanta, as a graduating fellow of the program. Cities United's conference engaged individuals and provided "thought-provoking discussions, sharing of innovative solutions, and empowered one another to create safe, healthy and hopeful communities." Ms. Holland shared her work as a research fellow. 2023 October
Energy and Environmental Justice (EEJ) Workshop UT Knoxville convened a workshop on EEJ issues and work being done to advance outcomes across the Southeast. Three3 presented on Indoor Environmental Quality, Health, and Justice. 2023 October
United Way of Greater Knoxville (UWGK) Upward Summit Threecubed participated in the UWGK's Upward Summit by providing presentations related to our community food systems assessment. The first presentation provided an overview of findings across all data and information gathering activities. The second facilitated discussion on the use of justice-oriented frameworks in community food systems work; as well as the need for intentional space to create common language and terms within food justice. 2023 April
Three3 Updated the national weatherization network on several projects at the Building Performance Association's Home Performance Conference held in Seattle. Presentations were given on:
December 2022
Thriving Communities Participatory Action Research Project ThreeCubed prepared and delivered a training module on Youth Participatory Action Research (YPAR) with a cohort of career readiness students at Knoxville-based nonprofit, SEEED. The project, funded through the United Way of Greater Knoxville and the Southeast Sustainability Directors Network, aimed to first train young people on conducting participatory action research and then guide them on implementing a project by their own design. During the training, an in-depth interview was drafted with the overarching question of, 'What does it mean for a community to thrive?' In addition to the interviews (and a series of focus groups led by the young researchers), a mapping and GIS training module will be taught by local experts. The final product consisted of a community-wide presentation of findings delivered by four YPAR and CB-PAR participants. Over 60 community change leaders and stakeholders across government, private and non-profit sectors attended. 2022 April
The final results from our Non-Energy Impact (NEI) study of the TVA Home Uplift weatherization pilot were revealed at the Building Performance Association's Home Performance Conference held in Nashville this April. This study focused on seven metro areas across the Tennessee Valley that participated in the Home Uplift pilot and recruited 701 Home Uplift households and 300 control group households to complete surveys and in-depth interviews. Based on the survey findings, a number of NEIs were monetized to illustrate how this low-income weatherization program can achieve cost savings across a range of health and household benefits. Click here for the final report. 2021 November
ThreeCubed was one of 18 applicants from across the country chosen by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) to conduct housing-related hazard and energy efficiency research studies. Our work will be supported by local non-profit, SEEED (Knoxville) Green | spaces (Chattanooga), United Housing Inc. (Memphis), Slipstream (Wisconsin), and Boston University School of Public Health. Collectively, the grantees, that include other universities, public health, and national housing organizations, were awarded a total of $15.7 million. The research grants are funded by HUD’s Office of Lead Hazard Control and Healthy Homes (OLHCHH) and aim to identify and improve methods for the detection and mitigation of housing-related health and safety hazards including lead and other indoor air pollutants. Click here for the HUD press release. 2021 September
We are so excited to release final results from our multi-year, multi-region evaluation of the health and safety-related non-energy impacts (NEIs) of weatherizing affordable multifamily housing. This study is the most comprehensive evaluation of multifamily (MF) NEIs, encompassing the Northeast and Midwest regions of the U.S., that has been conducted to date. This first-of-many publications from this study was prepared for the Massachusetts Energy Efficiency Program Administrators focusing on multifamily buildings served through the Mass Save® income-eligible coordinated delivery initiative. Click here for a project overview and here to download the full report. 2020 November
Webinar: Evaluating the Health, Social, and Building Systems Resilience Benefits of Weatherizing Affordable Multifamily Housing Three3 and project partner, Slipstream, facilitated a webinar on key findings generated from our study measuring health and resilience benefits of weatherizing affordable multifamily buildings across the Northeast and Midwest regions of the US. The webinar served to re-convene experts that helped inform the study during our series of design workshops held in 2017, and to engage others working at the intersections of health, energy, housing, and resilient communities. 2020 October Plugged into Energy Research Lecture Series: Energy Efficiency, Health, and COVID-19 Bruce and Erin were invited to present at the Plugged Into Energy Lecture Series organized by the University of Rhode Island's Cooperative Extension. This presentation highlighted select evaluation results about the health benefits attributable to improving the energy efficiency of low-income homes across the Tennessee Valley and in affordable multifamily buildings in the Northeast and Midwest regions of the US. Preliminary results about the impacts of COVID-19 on utility affordable for low-income households across the Tennessee Valley were also presented. 2020 August Tennessee Conference on Social Welfare (TSCW): Understanding and Measuring the Health and Well-being Benefits of Adequate Housing Erin presented on how adequate housing and affordable utilities are important social determinants of health (SDoH). The research presented included both quantifiable (survey) and qualitative (in-depth interviews) data to help participants understand why housing matters for advancing social outcomes. Findings across multiple studies – from the Tennessee valley and beyond – that have been used to measure the non-energy impacts (e.g., asthma outcomes, resilience indicators) of low-income weatherization and healthy housing programs were discussed. 2020 August Energy Outwest (Virtual Conference): Bridging Health Care and Weatherization Writing a “prescription” for weatherization is something that more health sector partners are seeing the value in. Additionally, health care funds are a potentially rich source of funding to deepen investment in low-income homes. In this panel discussion, Bruce and Erin discussed a current project funded by the Energy Foundation which allows for direct referrals of patients from East Tennessee Children’s Hospital to Knoxville-Knox County Community Action Committee. Partner organizations that also shared their insights on the project included Jason Estes, with Knoxville-Knox County Community Action Committee and Dale Grubbs, with Knoxville Utilities Board. 2019 October Wx Rx: Convening of local experts on housing and health On October 25th, Three3 and the City of Knoxville's Office of Sustainability facilitated a cross-sector working group to design a local system where patients with chronic or severe health conditions can be referred to the area's housing and weatherization social service agency to help address home conditions and hazards posing risk to these individuals. Knoxville Mayor, Madeline Rogero, introduced the need for this pilot project in order to better understand the needs and operations from multiple sectors and organizations in the local community working to achieve health equity. 2019 October 3rd International Placemaking Week Beth attended the 3rd International Placemaking Week in Chattanooga. This "conference without walls" was cohosted by The Enterprise Center and Project for Public Spaces. Breakout sessions were held within community-oriented organizations and spaces clustered in Chattanooga's innovation district. This event embraced a wide variety of sectors and disciplines and created a dynamic forum for attendees to develop and share concrete strategies to advance placemaking both locally and globally. 2019 October 2019 SEEA Conference on Energy Efficiency Bruce and Erin attended the 2019 Southeast Energy Efficiency Alliance Conference on Energy Efficiency in Atlanta. The 2019 SEEA Conference 'focused on the dynamic, interconnected roles played by policy, transportation and technology in the region’s energy future'. Sessions and discussions promoted rich understanding on topics from the future of electric school buses to diversity inclusion in the workforce and other equity concerns. 2019 October All In: Data for Community Health Bruce presented at the All In National Meeting 2019 in Baltimore, MD, with Liz Curry from Vermont Energy Investment Corporation. Together, Liz and Bruce underscored the importance of Energy-Plus-Health partnerships and services, as well as data collection and integration to measure impacts of low-income weatherization programs on health and wellbeing outcomes. 2019 October Anticipation 2019 Bruce and Erin attended the Anticipation 2019 conference in Oslo, Norway where they presented on the topic 'Anticipation and Human Rights'. This presentation provided a brief summary of international human rights law in general and then specifically with respect to housing. It considered how access to adequate housing facilitates a ‘capacity to care’ for others, thereby advancing the social contract between people and their government. The presentation explored various global and national trends that we anticipate will put pressure on the ability of the countries to meet the housing needs of disadvantaged households. Trends considered included: aging of society; increasing cost of and lack of availability of affordable housing; segregation (current and historical); and climate change (i.e., sea level rise, coastal and urban flooding, extreme weather events, droughts, wildfires, internal climate change migrants). |
|
2019 October
2019 ACEEE National Conference on Energy Efficiency as a Resource Michaela was fortunate to be able to co-present with Elizabeth Parsons from the Tennessee Valley Authority on the topic of 'Scaling Low-Income Energy Efficiency Program Delivery' at American Council for an Energy Efficient Economy's Energy Efficiency as a Resource conference in Minneapolis. Together, they provided information on the development of TVA's low-income weatherization initiatives and programs over time, and Three3's evaluation of the multiple non-energy impacts (NEI) of the TVA supported weatherization work. |
|
2019 September
University of Michigan
In September, Bruce was invited to give a presentation at the University of Michigan’s (UMICH) School of Public Health on our non-energy impacts (NEIs) of low-income weatherization research. The presentation was well attended and appreciated. Afterwards, Bruce met with our new University of Michigan colleagues to discuss a R01 proposal to the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS) to explore a new set of health-related NEIs, including beneficial impacts on mental health and sleep. Three3 was pleased to assist UMICH with their effort, which resulted in a formal proposal being submitted to NIEHS in November, 2019.
2019 September
Energy, Health and Justice Roundtable
Erin was invited to participate in the a select convening of stakeholders organized by WE ACT for Environmental Justice and Columbia University and hosted by the Environmental Protection Agency in New York City. The convening focused on strategies for aligning stakeholder interests and knowledge and imagining alternatives and solutions for individuals and populations faced with unjust energy, health and housing issues and associated poor outcomes.
University of Michigan
In September, Bruce was invited to give a presentation at the University of Michigan’s (UMICH) School of Public Health on our non-energy impacts (NEIs) of low-income weatherization research. The presentation was well attended and appreciated. Afterwards, Bruce met with our new University of Michigan colleagues to discuss a R01 proposal to the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS) to explore a new set of health-related NEIs, including beneficial impacts on mental health and sleep. Three3 was pleased to assist UMICH with their effort, which resulted in a formal proposal being submitted to NIEHS in November, 2019.
2019 September
Energy, Health and Justice Roundtable
Erin was invited to participate in the a select convening of stakeholders organized by WE ACT for Environmental Justice and Columbia University and hosted by the Environmental Protection Agency in New York City. The convening focused on strategies for aligning stakeholder interests and knowledge and imagining alternatives and solutions for individuals and populations faced with unjust energy, health and housing issues and associated poor outcomes.
2019 August
International Energy Program Evaluation Conference
Beth was invited to present her peer reviewed conference paper at IEPEC in Denver. The paper titled "Go Big or Go Home: Scaling NEIs to the Multifamily Sector" compared preliminary results from our regional non-energy impact research of weatherizing affordable multifamily buildings results to Three3's single-family non-energy impact research. The final conference paper can be found here. IEPEC is an annual professional conference for energy program implementers, evaluators of those programs, local, state, national and international representatives, and academic researchers involved in evaluation.
International Energy Program Evaluation Conference
Beth was invited to present her peer reviewed conference paper at IEPEC in Denver. The paper titled "Go Big or Go Home: Scaling NEIs to the Multifamily Sector" compared preliminary results from our regional non-energy impact research of weatherizing affordable multifamily buildings results to Three3's single-family non-energy impact research. The final conference paper can be found here. IEPEC is an annual professional conference for energy program implementers, evaluators of those programs, local, state, national and international representatives, and academic researchers involved in evaluation.
2019 May
Network for Energy, Water, and Health in Affordable Buildings (NEWHAB)
Erin and Bruce attended and participated in the NEWHAB Convening in Los Angeles. The theme for the convening was: People Power – Building Healthy Homes for All. NEWHAB attracts individuals with wide ranging expertise to share their experiences in promoting the energy and water efficiency of affordable multifamily buildings across the U.S. Erin and Bruce were invited to present preliminary results from Three3’s research on the non-energy impacts and resilience benefits of weatherizing affordable multifamily buildings.
Network for Energy, Water, and Health in Affordable Buildings (NEWHAB)
Erin and Bruce attended and participated in the NEWHAB Convening in Los Angeles. The theme for the convening was: People Power – Building Healthy Homes for All. NEWHAB attracts individuals with wide ranging expertise to share their experiences in promoting the energy and water efficiency of affordable multifamily buildings across the U.S. Erin and Bruce were invited to present preliminary results from Three3’s research on the non-energy impacts and resilience benefits of weatherizing affordable multifamily buildings.