Power outages can be particularly challenging for communities already facing other forms of inequity, such as high unemployment, poor healthcare, lack of access to good education, financial struggles, housing issues, food insecurity, and other hardships. For some, losing power means not just inconvenience but real danger. Families living in older homes may struggle more with heating and cooling, and those without financial means might be unable to afford backup power options like generators. Energy resilience helps ensure everyone can maintain a safe and stable living environment regardless of economic status!
Virginia Energy Resilience Study (VERS)
Resilient Virginia is working with Virginia Energy and other partners on the US DOE funded Virginia Energy Resiliency Study (VERS). This project is working with economically impacted communities to measure their energy resilience and identify practical long-term solutions to reduce their vulnerabilities. There are two phases of the project that will involve community participation.
Phase One – Measuring Energy Resilience
Think about the last time the electricity went out in your home. Did you have to stumble around in the dark looking for a flashlight? Maybe you couldn’t cook dinner or charge your phone. Now, imagine if this happened frequently or lasted for days. Energy resilience aims to prevent these disruptions and keep our lives running smoothly.
During this phase, communities are invited to use the Community Energy Resilience Workbook and Scoring Tool (developed by James Madison University Center for the Advancement of Sustainable Energy) to measure community energy resilience. By answering the questions in the workbook, they will gain insights into:
- Where energy improvements are needed
- Practical solutions to reduce or eliminate weaknesses
- Long-term solutions to meet their energy needs
Phase Two – Case Study Design Projects
During this phase, the team will work closely with ten Virginia communities on case study design projects. These case studies will result in a customized engineering design for an energy resilience hub.
NOTE: Communities can choose to participate in Phase One or Phase Two or they can choose to participate in both phases.
More Details About VERS
Learn more about the project on Virginia Energy’s website.
How Can Communities Participate?
To participate, a community can apply by filling out this form or by emailing resilience@energy.virginia.gov.
Request More Information
To request more information, email resilience@energy.virginia.gov.
Project Partners
