I love the World Cup. I realize how rare it is for so many of us across the world to be watching something together in real time. I relish the joy and collegiality.

In that spirit, I want to recognize how inspired we are by our energy colleagues. Every day our staff pass around some tidbit of interesting work going on. To share a wee sampling of what’s inspiring us right now, we’re watching… Powerhouse Texas’s understanding that the axis of good policy is an educated legislature; Frontier Energy’s re-imagining of how we package and deliver energy efficiency services for hard-to-reach households; Bandera Electric Coop’s smart thermostat and battery aggregation programs that meaningfully lower energy costs for their members; SUN’s pilots of small plug-in solar and batteries; and Base’s determination to mainstream small batteries, both to optimize clean and reliable energy.

We are a community of innovators! TEPRI is a beneficiary of your great ideas, and we are inspired to reciprocate!

So, I want to offer a few items. First, my best effort at a jargon(less) definition for VPPs: ‘small scale generation (like home batteries), pooled together and sold.’ Obviously this still needs work. Ideas welcome.

Next, I know the summer heat can be intense, but it also slows us down. Conference season goes quiet, and we have time to relax with friends and family. So, I want to pass on a couple of joys to honor the season. The way Doug Lewin consumes books, I consume music and food. I have spent years of my life unwinding in my screened-in porch while creating playlists. And I have done my 10,000 hours in the kitchen (a benefit of age is that 10,000 hours kindly arrives). I am providing you with a great summer recipe and playlist. Enjoy!

My taste is broad but I’m a sucker for a beat.

These are the real thing, not AI.

Thank you for your partnership!

Margo Weisz, TEPRI Executive Director

TEPRI is partnering with Google to bring meaningful solutions to energy challenges in communities where they have a presence. Google established an Energy Innovation Fund to support innovative projects that improve energy affordability, strengthen community resilience, and expand access to energy solutions. The funds will have two general focus areas:

Multifamily Innovation Fund

Supports innovative energy solutions in new and existing multifamily housing developments. Potential projects may include energy efficiency upgrades, building electrification, smart energy technologies, demand response initiatives, solar energy, battery storage, and community resilience hubs.

Rural Project Fund

Supports innovative energy and infrastructure solutions that benefit rural and low-density communities. Potential projects may include community solar, energy efficiency improvements, weatherizing health centers and hospitals, microgrids, agricultural energy solutions, and other projects that reduce energy costs while strengthening community resilience.

We have a fantastic Community Advisory Council of leaders who reside in the focus communities (Ellis, Haskell, Armstrong, and Wilbarger counties); they will provide direction and review of projects. We welcome partners who want to work with us to develop an energy system that meets the needs of our neighbors and our communities.

Margo Weisz testified before the Texas House Committee on State Affairs, discussing the key role that DERs could play in addressing the acute and growing energy affordability challenges in our state. She presented TEPRI’s Community Voices in Energy survey findings illustrating that half of low- and moderate-income Texas households struggle to pay their electricity bills each month. She also explained new disconnection data published by the federal EIA that shows how Texas led the nation in utility disconnections in 2024. Citing TEPRI’s affordability projections, Weisz warned that while electricity bills already grew by roughly 30% over the past five years, they are projected to climb another 30% in the next five. She discussed how DERs have the potential to address these high energy burdens, and that we need to develop market signals to incentivize companies and utilities to embrace a dynamic energy future that deploys demand response, virtual power plants, smart appliances, and efficiency upgrades that will ease costs for families while building a more robust, clean, and resilient grid.

This summer, we’re excited to welcome two new faces to the TEPRI team: our newest fellow and summer intern. Both have already jumped into projects across our research portfolio, bringing new perspectives, skills, and energy to our work. We’re pleased to introduce them and share a little more about what they bring to TEPRI.

Catherine Rosas · Energy Fellow

Catherine Rosas is a recent Master of Public Affairs graduate from The University of Texas at Austin’s LBJ School of Public Affairs, with a specialization in social and environmental policy. Her work focuses on effectively connecting policy to communities through policy analysis and accessible policy communications. Catherine has experience in both grassroots nonprofit organizations and the Texas Legislature, where she has supported policy development, advocacy, and community engagement initiatives. Passionate about public service, Catherine is committed to advancing equitable, evidence-based policies that strengthen communities across Texas. Catherine will focus on supporting TEPRI’s 2026 Community Voices in Energy Survey, in addition to TEPRI’s Energy Efficiency Portfolio.

Key DeVaughn · Data Analyst Intern

Key DeVaughn is a Master of Public Affairs student at the UT Austin LBJ School and holds a bachelor’s degree in Public Policy, with a concentration in science and technology policy, from Stanford University. After spending more than a decade leading software product and engineering teams, he is now focused on the interplay of energy, artificial intelligence, and the future of work. Key will support development of TEPRI’s 2026 Community Voices in Energy statewide and regional data insights.

TEPRI received a grant from Lyda Hill Philanthropies (LHP) to support the next phase of work at the two resilience hubs developed with Foundation Communities in Arlington, and to provide technical assistance to other communities interested in replicating this model. Phase 2 work in Arlington includes working closely with FC staff to put the processes and procedures in place for safe operation of the hubs during power outages, and to conduct two years of in-depth project monitoring and evaluation (M&E). TEPRI will repeat the resident survey and conduct an in-depth performance and savings analysis of the solar + battery energy systems (BESS) and virtual power plant participation to better understand their resilience, energy, and financial benefits over time.

TEPRI and FC continue to share highlights and lessons learned from Year One, Project Development, with interested communities, including presentations at the North Central Texas Council of Governments, the South Central Climate Resilience Forum in San Antonio, and TEPRI’s Powering Resilience webinar. The LHP grant and support from the Cynthia and George Mitchell Foundation support this portfolio of work, including:

• TEPRI is working with Harris County to develop options for enrolling their solar and battery assets at eight community centers in a virtual power plant program. Our analysis will explore how the centers’ distributed energy resources could provide value to the grid while supporting the on-site energy and resilience benefits they are designed to deliver.
• TEPRI is also working with Vision Galveston and with Cornerstone Community Action Agency in Weatherford, TX, to explore solar and battery storage as a backup power solution for on-site community resilience hub sites that would provide safe places for residents to access essential services during extended power outages. In addition to predevelopment work, TEPRI is evaluating options to connect to virtual power plant technology that can generate increased savings for the sites.

Thanks to a grant to cdcb from the Hershey Foundation’s Texas Coastal Frontline Fund, come dream. come build. and TEPRI continue to partner to integrate low-cost solar into cdcb’s energy-efficient modular DreamBuild homes in the Brownsville area. Installation has begun on the second phase of DreamBuild solar homes, and TEPRI is evaluating solar certification training options for cdcb and local partners.

TEPRI has also partnered with affordable housing developer Proyecto Azteca to provide no-cost solar to low-income households in Hidalgo County. The project has been pre-approved for funding from AEP/Frontier Energy’s low-cost solar rebate program, and we’ve received match funding from Google for the first five homes. TEPRI has developed educational materials in English and Spanish and is coordinating the solar installations and project evaluation. Proyecto is leading on community outreach and follow-through.

TEPRI recently participated in the RISE Catalyst Workshop hosted by UTRGV’s Dr. Cecilio Ortiz-Garcia and Dr. Marla Perez-Lugo. The workshop brought together community leaders and researchers from Puerto Rico, the Lower Rio Grande Valley, and other regions to plan a commemoration of the impact of Hurricanes Irma and Maria in Puerto Rico, and to identify how we can apply lessons learned to other communities. This was a great chance to exchange ideas with local partners working on community resilience projects!

Margo Weisz will join the panel “The Future of Smaller-Scale Clean Energy: Resi, Community & Other Distributed Projects” at the Texas Clean Energy Summit, August 18–20 in Austin. Joining panelists from the National Laboratory of the Rockies, Austin Energy, and the Texas PACE Authority, she’ll dig into what’s driving and slowing distributed generation growth in Texas. The discussion will tackle which distributed generation assets are best positioned to succeed.

Margo will also join a panel discussion at the American Solar Energy Society’s conference on October 29, titled “How Data Centers Are Reshaping Energy Demand.” The session will explore how community interests and emerging technologies, like quantum computing, waste heat recovery, and pairing data centers with renewables and storage, can help ensure this growth is powered as cleanly, efficiently, and responsibly as possible.

Watch our webinar to learn about the development and implementation of backup power systems at two community resilience hubs located within Foundation Communities’ affordable housing learning centers in Arlington, Texas. Hear from the TEPRI team, Foundation Communities’ Sustainability Department, and project developer Holistic Utility Solutions as they discuss the planning process, technical design, operational considerations, and lessons learned from bringing resilient backup power to affordable housing communities.

David Martin Davies cited TEPRI’s Affordability Study in his reporting for the Texas Tribune.

Read Here →

Tiffany Wu joined the Texas Energy and Power podcast to discuss ERCOT’s batch zero process.

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Krysti Shallenberger, Shelby Green, and Jonathan Kim cited TEPRI’s Affordability Study in reporting for the Energy & Policy Institute.

Read Here →