Strategic Community Initiatives
Strategic Community Initiatives delivers tailored climate and energy solutions to foster sustainability and savings for communities.
Overview
About Strategic Community Initiatives
Through Strategic Community Initiatives (SCI), EcoWorks creates tailored climate and energy solutions for municipalities, school districts, health systems, small businesses, and non-profit organizations. SCI has facilitated more than $6 million in clean energy investments, achieving lifetime savings of $30 million for over 35 municipalities across Michigan.
Strategic Community Initiatives (SCI) create tailored climate and energy solutions for municipalities, school districts, health systems, small businesses, and non-profit organizations. SCI has facilitated more than $5 million in clean energy investments, achieving lifetime savings of $30 million for over 30 municipalities across Michigan.
- Reduce or eliminate significant variable costs
- Free up capital for reinvestment in future initiatives
- Enhance resilience against extreme weather and climate impacts
- Involve constituents in creating healthy, dynamic, and inclusive communities
Services
Building Capacity for Energy Resilience
Public organizations can benefit from enhanced technical expertise and staff support to create energy plans and carry out energy projects.
EcoWorks' energy managers collaborate with clients to
Assess energy needs and concerns
Set energy savings targets
Benchmarking energy usage
Develop & manage holistic energy, climate action, & decarbonization plans.
Energy project managers bring versatile skills, handling all aspects of energy policies and projects, from utility bill analysis to implementing large-scale energy projects. SCI provides customized solutions, promoting collaboration, cost-efficiency, and climate leadership for organizations of any size.
Our Work in Action
SCI solutions foster climate leadership, regardless of organization size.
Community Engagement
In Detroit, EcoWorks played a key role in creating the City’s first Sustainability Action Agenda by managing a team of 14 sustainability ambassadors. Together, we attended over 100 community meetings, collected 1,200 surveys, and reached more than 6,800 Detroit residents in just 8 months, ensuring robust, inclusive engagement throughout the process.
Climate and Sustainability Goals
In collaboration with the City of Pleasant Ridge, SCI developed a Community Energy Strategic Plan with extensive community input and financing options. SCI also oversaw the installation of a 20 kW solar PV array at the community center, projected to save $82,500 and generate 754 MWh over the next 25 years.
Community organizations and public institutions must be accountable to the people they serve, and we believe inclusive engagement is essential for equitable energy and climate planning. In Detroit, EcoWorks played a key role in creating the City’s first Sustainability Action Agenda by managing a team of 14 sustainability ambassadors. Together, they attended over 100 community meetings, collected 1,200 surveys, and reached more than 6,800 Detroit residents in just 8 months, ensuring robust, inclusive engagement throughout the process.
A shared vision aligns partners toward common goals, with commitments to net-zero emissions or 100% clean energy providing the urgency to drive progress. SCI supported 438 U.S. mayors, including 20 in Michigan and several EcoWorks clients, in upholding the Paris Climate Agreement. In the City of Ferndale, SCI developed a revolving energy fund that reinvests savings from energy efficiency upgrades into future clean energy projects. SCI also established a framework for fund management and project selection, highlighted by an LED streetlighting project expected to save 800,000 kWh, 1.1 million lbs of CO2, and $150,000 annually.
Effective engagement, visioning, and planning lead to success only when followed by action. SCI partners with clients to provide the necessary financing and expertise for implementation. In collaboration with the City of Pleasant Ridge, SCI developed a Community Energy Strategic Plan with extensive community input and financing options. SCI also oversaw the installation of a 20 kW solar PV array at the community center, projected to save $82,500 and generate 754 MWh over the next 25 years.
Our Partners
Our mission is simple: To enable Michigan communities to thrive economically and environmentally through addressing the urgent challenges of climate change. Our partners’ support empowers us to create change.
