HeatSmart for Chinese Speakers

Lexington Climate Action Network (LexCAN) recently launched HeatSmart for Chinese Speakers, a new program dedicated to exposing more local residents to renewable energy options. The program provides a list of vetted, reputable contractors and advisors to help residents make the switch to clean heating and cooling technologies, like heat pumps and solar systems. The effort hopes to break down the linguistic barriers and make information more accessible for underserved communities.

Originally founded as the Lexington Global Warming Action Coalition in 2005, LexCAN has  worked to build the citizens’ knowledge of environmental issues and potential solutions. 

“Our mission is to educate the community about the urgency of addressing climate change, to advocate for policies, and to promote bold solutions to climate change,” Andy Joynt, Clean Heat Outreach Specialist at LexCAN, said.

Through their long-standing presence in town, LexCAN noticed that they were not reaching the entire Lexington community. 

“While we tend to get good attendance in our events, we tend to see a lot of familiar faces,” Joynt said. “That was kind of the genesis for us connecting with Massachusetts Clean Energy Center and EmPower to help fund outreach efforts to other groups in Lexington.”

EmPower, a MassCEC program which has run for five years, has funded close to 200 projects across Massachusetts. The grant process provides community organizations thousands of dollars to improve accessibility to clean energy. 

“We’re really looking for a diversity of projects,” Lisa Dobbs, senior program manager at MassCEC, said. “That includes a range of approaches, such as the types of technologies we’re helping people gain access to, as well as a diversity of geographies and communities being supported.”

LexCAN’s most recent initiative, Heat Smart for Chinese Speakers, is focused on the town’s Mandarin-speaking community. Chinese residents make up more than 15% of Lexington’s total population and about half of its Asian population.

Grants from MassCEC will help fund Heat Smart for Chinese Speakers and strengthen its outreach efforts. The project is also receiving additional support from MassSave and the Grassroots Fund.

“LexCAN is having interpreted home tours which are a cool feature that we are excited to see: they are actually having native speakers there to translate in real time and provide a physical, welcoming presence,” Dobbs told LexObserver.

LexCAN hopes that their work will not only expose more people to the possibilities of clean energy, but also empower community members to encourage one another to make the switch.

“We’ve learned that testimonials are extremely powerful. People in the community who have already adopted heat pumps and are experiencing the benefits can be especially effective advocates,” Joynt told LexObserver. “Their firsthand experiences will help others who are considering whether these changes would make sense in their own homes.

LexCAN plans to expand beyond the Chinese population, including other minority groups across Lexington. Joynt believes that their work can potentially help other towns develop clean-energy practices: “That playbook we’ve developed is something we want to share with communities beyond Lexington. That was a key part of our grant applications. There’s no reason our efforts should stop at Lexington’s borders.”

“The more we invest in organizations doing this work on the ground, the healthier our communities will be,” Dobbs said.