NW Energy Coalition

10/16/2026

Yesterday, in partnership with 16 other organizations, we filed a lawsuit against the Montana Public Service Commission for rejecting a 2024 petition demanding that it recognize its constitutional duty to consider climate change in the regulation of Montana gas and electric utilities.

“With each passing year, the effects of greenhouse gas pollution on Montana and the region become more severe. It’s time for the commission to honor its legal obligation and nudge Montana’s utilities towards cleaner, cheaper renewable energy resources.” - Derek Goldman, Montana Policy Associate, NW Energy Coalition

Read more:

Groups seek to confirm commission's obligations to ensure a clean and healthful environment

10/15/2026

Today's the day: "People and Power in the Energy Transition"! Thank you so much to our fall 2026 conference sponsors! ⚡

10/14/2026

Congratulations to our 2026 award winners!! 🎉 We can't wait to celebrate these incredible leaders during our fall conference in Seattle tomorrow.

Headwaters Award: Eileen Quigley
Doug Still Memorial Community Organizing Award: Save Our wild Salmon
Bob Olsen Memorial Conservation Eagle Award: Ann Rendahl
Emerging Clean Energy Leaders Award: Aqsa Mengal and Nick Fitzmaurice

Learn more about our award winners: https://nwenergy.org/fall-2026-conference-agenda-and-speakers/

10/09/2026

Meet the speakers for the fourth and final session of our fall conference: "Data Centers and Energy Affordability"! ⚡

Data center growth and rising energy costs are two rapidly evolving concerns in the energy space. Panelists in this session will explore where these two topics interact, highlight frontline perspectives, and share learnings from policy and regulatory efforts to ensure data center growth is regulated in a way that protects communities and does not exacerbate energy affordability challenges.

Moderators: Aqsa Mengal and Jamie Hearn, Front and Centered
Panelists:
Jennifer Hill-Hart, Oregon Citizens' Utility Board
Shaylee Stokes, The Energy Project
Nico Wedekind, Earthjustice
Derek Goldman, NW Energy Coalition

Learn more about the panelists and register here: https://nwenergy.org/fall-2026-conference-agenda-and-speakers/

10/08/2026

Meet the panelists for the third session at our fall conference, "Building Resilience Through Distributed Energy Resources," co-hosted by Clean Energy Transition Institute! ⚡

We have much of the technology we need, but how can we best integrate it into the grid? Distributed energy resources (DERs), such as battery storage, distributed solar, and demand response, provide an opportunity to solve many of the challenges we have around local resilience and affordability. This panel will explore examples of policy and regulatory solutions to realize the opportunity that integrating DERs can provide to meeting our regions clean energy and equity goals.

Moderator: Jeanne Currie, Clean Energy Transition Institute

Panelists:

Markus Virta, Cascadia Renewables

Leslie Myers, Puget Sound Energy

Grayson Shor, PNW Battery Collaborative

Learn more about our speakers and register here: https://nwenergy.org/fall-2026-conference-agenda-and-speakers/

10/07/2026

Introducing the facilitators for the second session at our fall conference, Veena Prasad and Erika Lundahl from Spark Northwest!

Start with Trust: Ingredients for Successful Community-Led Clean Energy Implementation

Communities across the Pacific Northwest are embracing clean energy - but planning, funding, and installing these projects is where policy turns into reality. Join Spark Northwest for a highly interactive session exploring practical insights into what engaging communities, navigating multiple stakeholders, and aligning projects with local priorities looks like. Participants will work through real-world scenarios in small groups and engage in a collective discussion to reflect on where policy and regulatory decisions can accelerate community-led clean energy projects and how more inclusive clean energy policy starts on the ground in local communities.

Learn more about our conference speakers: https://nwenergy.org/fall-2026-conference-agenda-and-speakers/

Register for the conference here: https://nwenergy.org/fall-2026-conference/

10/06/2026

Our fall conference, "People and Power in the Energy Transition," is just a little more than a week away! 🎉

Meet the panelists in our first session, the Clean Energy Leaders Roundtable! Leaders from each of our conference partner organizations will reflect on where we are in the energy transition and how we can continue to move towards a clean, affordable, and equitable energy system.

Panelists:
Tamara Kennedy, Executive Director, NW Energy Coalition
Guillermo Rogel Jr, Political Manager, Front and Centered
Becky Kelley, Executive Director, Clean Energy Transition Institute
Andrea Axel, Executive Director, Spark Northwest

Learn more about our panelists and register here: https://nwenergy.org/fall-2026-conference-agenda-and-speakers/

10/01/2026

"Looking ahead, we need a diverse portfolio of clean energy, energy conservation and demand response programs, and battery storage to ensure affordable bills, keep the lights on, meet our climate goals, and help salmon and steelhead survive." - Derek Goldman, Policy Associate, NW Energy Coalition

https://missoulacurrent.com/viewpoint-energy-efficiency/

The Ninth Northwest Regional Power Plan comment period is still open until October 16, with options to comment online today and in cities throughout the Northwest over the next couple of weeks. Learn more about the plan and how you can make your voice heard: https://nwenergy.org/9th-northwest-regional-power-plan/

Help Plan the Northwest's Energy Future Amid rising temperatures, lower snowpack, high-tech growth, and clean energy acceleration, we are in a pivotal moment for the Northwest's energy future. This summer and fall, we have an opportunity to share our voices to ensure we choose clean, affordable, and...

09/28/2026

Join the NW Energy Coalition on Thursday, October 15 in Seattle for our annual Fall Conference: People & Power in the Energy Transition. Connect with regional energy experts, advocates, utility leaders, business representatives, and policymakers from across the Pacific Northwest to advance a reliable, affordable, and equitable clean energy future. Info and registration: https://nwenergy.org/fall-2026-conference/

09/17/2026

Meet our new Oregon Senior Policy Associate, Jeff Bissonnette! 👋

Jeff joined the NWEC staff in September 2026 but has had a long association with the coalition before that. He represented a member organization, served as a board member for 13 years (and was board chair during some of that time), and worked as a contractor. Throughout his career, Jeff has been involved in energy, utility, and climate issues with a focus on policy development and implementation, serving as organizing director and then policy director for the Oregon Citizens' Utility Board, executive director of the Oregon Solar Energy Industries Association, and as Pacific Northwest Advocate for the Union of Concerned Scientists.

Outside of work, Jeff is involved in amateur radio and volunteer emergency response, reading, cooking, and seeing horror movies with his son (although he'd really rather watch almost anything else).