KLA Perspectives

Why a “Heat Pump 101” Workshop Isn’t Enough

If you're reading this, you probably already know that a heat pump heats and cools your home in one system, using electricity instead of fossil fuel and can be 3x more efficient. Heat pumps work to bring down energy bills and climate pullution.

As local governments focused on affordability and climate solutions, getting residents to switch to heat pumps is the sweet spot. But it’s not as easy as it could be.

Climate change becomes personal long before it becomes a policy discussion. It can look like a hotter house during a heat wave, a basement that floods after heavy rain, a heating system that needs replacing, or a transportation choice that suddenly affects a household budget.

That is why climate change is not only an environmental issue or a political issue. It is a human issue. People experience it through the places they live, the systems they rely on and the decisions they are already making.

For local governments, that creates an opportunity. Residents do not need to understand every part of a climate action plan before they act. They need a clear next step that fits the decision already in front of them.

Home electrification and energy efficiency should always be considered top priority climate action strategies given their high-impact potential. The availability of incentives and rebate programs in this space are important – but residents actually utilizing those incentives is critical to match the urgency of the climate crisis. 

When creating and implementing climate action plans, we often see these issues from a 10,000-foot level, but it’s important to know how these rebate systems play out on the ground in order to address barriers that residents may face in accessing the benefits that electrification and efficiency can bring. 

This month’s blog is guest written by KLA’s Technology Director, Danielle Civitillo, who utilized local incentive programs to assess her home’s energy efficiency and install energy-efficient insulation as a renter in Massachusetts.

We get it. Especially around the holidays, many people tend to avoid conversations that they perceive to be controversial: whether that be politics, personal life, or the climate crisis. But the recent uptick in understanding and concern about the latter provides the opportunity for climate conversations with friends and family to not only be uncontroversial, but productive in facilitating positive climate action.