KLA Perspectives

At KLA is fresh off two conferences: the American Public Works Association (APWA) PWX Conference and the New England Chapter of APWA (NEAPWA) Conference. Speaking to an audience of public works professionals at both events, we joined our partners on panels to discuss public works’ ongoing role in climate action implementation and how to embrace collaborative approaches that integrate sustainability considerations across all local government operations.  

We've shared some broad brushstrokes from those presentations here, the focal point of both being our Climate Action Framework -- a tool that can help make your climate, sustainability and resilience plans stick. 

At KLA we're on a mission to elevate local climate action to match the urgency of the climate crisis. For us, the last few days have only sharpened that focus. 

We're coming off Climate Week in NYC, under the banner of "It's Time." We could not agree more and echo what we heard in the opening remarks: "It’s Time to think about the crucial decisions and action we need to start taking right now."

Hurricane Helene and other storms then underscored that urgency with a path of destruction across the South, devastating mountain communities in Western North Carolina hundreds of miles from any coast. No place is immune to extreme weather exacerbated by climate change. 

Guest post by Annabel Coplan, KLA's Summer 2024 Climate Analysis Intern.  

This summer, I was a Climate Analysis Intern at KLA as part of my studies at Boston University focusing on Environmental Analysis and Policy.  An area that my internship touched on that I found both interesting and so relevant to my work and our world is the notion of social vulnerability. I wanted to share a bit about what that is, how it's measured, and why it's a critical piece of climate action and resilience planning. 

Guest post by Theresa Acheampong, KLA's Summer 2024 Climate Storytelling Intern. 

My summer at KLA has exposed me to key elements that make a product successful on all ends through understanding user behavior.  

One of the most interesting aspects of this internship was gaining a deeper understanding of how to think about the end-user. For example, a study revealed that 57% of viewing time for users was primarily at the top part of the webpage, known as the “fold”. Another study found that on average, it takes 50 milliseconds for users to process and assess the visual appeal of a website. These studies, among others, highlight the importance of how KLA thinks about implementations to the Dashboard and Dashboard services.   

Through my daily tasks and research, I learned so much about the importance of viewing a product from the end-user's perspective. Here are three of the many ways I’ve learned to think about the end-user through my internship with KLA:   
 

Each summer, KLA works with MassCEC’s Clean Energy Internship program to connect with passionate, committed, and mission-driven students from across Massachusetts, our home base. The KLA Summer Internship helps connect a broad range of students to the local climate action process and brings fresh perspectives to our work fighting the climate crisis one local government at a time.  

For local governments, climate action plans need to do more than just outline a path to emissions reductions. A strong climate action plan not only properly analyzes current conditions to create a feasible path forward, it galvanizes support and incentivizes the necessary action from residents and local businesses to reduce climate impacts and support resiliency. 

Earth Day Is Over. Time to Kick Climate Action into High Gear – With or Without a Plan  

Don’t squander momentum from Earth Day by waiting to take action.  

As local government reps in the climate and sustainability space, we too often get stuck in a rut, waiting to complete   a specific process before we take action. We all know the drill: Conduct a GHG inventory, then go through a planning process, then hire a “sustainability coordinator” and only then does the real action kick off. While it’s important to have a plan to guide the action, humanity can no longer afford to wait for that process. Reports from the United Nations and others have made it clear that we are not on track to meet the necessary reductions to avoid catastrophic climate change. 

It’s Time to Go Big to Protect Our Home. 

It’s unavoidable: if you are a local government or community group representative, taking part in upcoming Earth Month and Earth Day events is a must. 

And for good reason: every April, there is a surge of interest in eco-friendly solutions – in fact, Google searches surrounding climate change and sustainabilityoften peak this time of year. Unfortunately, many Earth Day promotions and events are focused on surface-level, individualistic solutions (think re-usable straws) that don’t truly match the urgency of the climate crisis.  

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.