New research looks into the coping mechanisms that families use to navigate energy insecurity, as a guide for policy-based solutions. 
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The number of American households experiencing energy insecurity spiked during the COVID pandemic in 2020, as growing unemployment and falling incomes made it difficult for more households to balance utility bills with other financial demands. Yet the rising incidence of energy insecurity, and the often short-term focus of assistance to keep families financially afloat, belies the reality that energy insecurity is often a chronic challenge that predates acute financial crises, and persists long after.

Sanya Carley, director of the Energy Justice Lab at Indiana University’s O’Neill School of Public and Environmental Affairs, discusses the nature of household energy insecurity, and novel research into the coping mechanisms that families experiencing energy insecurity use to juggle often competing needs of energy, food, and healthcare. Carley also talks about existing public policy measures to address energy insecurity, and the need for new types of data to underpin effective policy action.

Sanya Carley is director of the Energy Justice Lab at Indiana University’s O’Neill School of Public and Environmental Affairs, and a visiting scholar at the Kleinman Center for Energy Policy at the University of Pennsylvania.

Related Content

Gender Baseline Assessment of Energy Compacts https://kleinmanenergy.upenn.edu/research/publications/gender-baseline-assessment-of-energy-compacts/ 

Opportunities to Equitably Expand Bikeshare: Learning from the Covid-19 Period https://kleinmanenergy.upenn.edu/research/publications/opportunities-to-equitably-expand-bikeshare-learning-from-the-covid-19-period/ 

Barriers to Energy Efficiency Adoption in Low-Income Communities https://kleinmanenergy.upenn.edu/research/publications/barriers-to-energy-efficiency-adoption-in-low-income-communities/ 



Energy Policy Now is produced by The Kleinman Center for Energy Policy at the University of Pennsylvania. For all things energy policy, visit kleinmanenergy.upenn.edu

New research looks into the coping mechanisms that families use to navigate energy insecurity, as a guide for policy-based solutions. ---
The number of American households experiencing energy insecurity spiked during the COVID pandemic in 2020, as growing unemployment and falling incomes made it difficult for more households to balance utility bills with other financial demands. Yet the rising incidence of energy insecurity, and the often short-term focus of assistance to keep families financially afloat, belies the reality that energy insecurity is often a chronic challenge that predates acute financial crises, and persists long after.
Sanya Carley, director of the Energy Justice Lab at Indiana University’s O’Neill School of Public and Environmental Affairs, discusses the nature of household energy insecurity, and novel research into the coping mechanisms that families experiencing energy insecurity use to juggle often competing needs of energy, food, and healthcare. Carley also talks about existing public policy measures to address energy insecurity, and the need for new types of data to underpin effective policy action.
Sanya Carley is director of the Energy Justice Lab at Indiana University’s O’Neill School of Public and Environmental Affairs, and a visiting scholar at the Kleinman Center for Energy Policy at the University of Pennsylvania.
Related Content
Gender Baseline Assessment of Energy Compacts <a href="https://kleinmanenergy.upenn.edu/research/publications/gender-baseline-assessment-of-energy-compacts/">https://kleinmanenergy.upenn.edu/research/publications/gender-baseline-assessment-of-energy-compacts/ </a>
Opportunities to Equitably Expand Bikeshare: Learning from the Covid-19 Period <a href="https://kleinmanenergy.upenn.edu/research/publications/opportunities-to-equitably-expand-bikeshare-learning-from-the-covid-19-period/">https://kleinmanenergy.upenn.edu/research/publications/opportunities-to-equitably-expand-bikeshare-learning-from-the-covid-19-period/ </a>
Barriers to Energy Efficiency Adoption in Low-Income Communities <a href="https://kleinmanenergy.upenn.edu/research/publications/barriers-to-energy-efficiency-adoption-in-low-income-communities/">https://kleinmanenergy.upenn.edu/research/publications/barriers-to-energy-efficiency-adoption-in-low-income-communities/ </a>
 
Energy Policy Now is produced by The Kleinman Center for Energy Policy at the University of Pennsylvania. For all things energy policy, visit kleinmanenergy.upenn.edu

Energy Policy Now offers clear talk on the policy issues that define our relationship to energy and its impact on society and the environment. The series is produced by the Kleinman Center for Energy Policy at the University of Pennsylvania and hosted by energy journalist Andy Stone. Join Andy in conversation with leaders from industry, government, and academia as they shed light on today's pressing energy policy debates.

Energy Policy Now

Energy Policy Now offers clear talk on the policy issues that define our relationship to energy and its impact on society and the environment. The series is produced by <a href="https://kleinmanenergy.upenn.edu/podcast/">the Kleinman Center for Energy Policy</a> at the University of Pennsylvania and hosted by energy journalist Andy Stone. Join Andy in conversation with leaders from industry, government, and academia as they shed light on today's pressing energy policy debates.

New research looks into the coping mechanisms that families use to navigate energy insecurity, as a guide for policy-based solutions.

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