Grounded: a Podcast by the Oregon Department of Energy

School season is all year round for ODOE’s schools program team. School districts in Portland General Electric and Pacific Power territories, like Bend-LaPine, are eligible to use Public Purpose Charge Schools Program funds for energy audits, projects, or for electric vehicles or chargers. Energy efficiency is a key part of the Oregon Energy Strategy and provides a more comfortable learning environment for students and teachers.

Guests: Christie Sphoon, ODOE’s schools program lead, and Anne Birky, Bend-La Pine Schools’ Facilities Support Supervisor.

Grounded music by PaulYudin

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Resources:

• Public Purpose Charge Schools Program: https://www.oregon.gov/energy/energy-oregon/Pages/SB1149.aspx

• Map of completed projects: https://experience.arcgis.com/experience/79dc39d71460424b85f6a954b68f1348

Get grounded in energy fundamentals with our mini-episode series: Getting Grounded. Just what are heat pumps and what is a mini split? Get introduced to heat pumps -- an efficient way to heat and cool your home.

Guest: Stephanie Kruse, ODOE facilities engineer

Resources:

• Hub for Information and Incentive Programs in Oregon: https://incentives.oregon.gov/

• Home energy tips and heat pump resources: https://incentives.oregon.gov/homeowner

• Video: How heat pumps work (Energy Trust of Oregon): https://www.energytrust.org/residential/tips/understanding-heat-pumps-how-they-work-and-why-theyre-transforming-home-comfort-in-oregon/

Portland General Electric and Coos-Curry Electric Cooperative discuss how they are planning for an increasing number of electric vehicles plugging into their networks and incentives available for customers.

Guests: Coos-Curry Electric Cooperative Marketing and Member Services Manager Keith Buchhalter and Portland General Electric Transportation Electrification Manager Karla Hendrickson.

Grounded music by PaulYudin

Sound Effect by freesound_community from Pixabay

Resources:

• EV Dashboard: https://www.oregon.gov/energy/Data-and-Reports/Pages/Oregon-Electric-Vehicle-Dashboard.aspx

• Go Electric Oregon Incentive Finder: https://goelectric.oregon.gov/incentives-rebates

• ODOE’s Biennial Zero Emission Vehicle Report: https://www.oregon.gov/energy/energy-oregon/Pages/BIZEV.aspx

• Energy Strategy Electrification Pathway: https://energystrategy.oregon.gov/electrification

• Coos-Curry Electric Off Peak Charging Program: https://ccec.coop/ev-charging-program

• PGE Electric School Bus Fund: https://portlandgeneral.com/energy-choices/electric-vehicles-charging/funding-your-ev-or-charging-project/pge-electric-school-bus-fund

• PGE Ride and Drive Events: https://portlandgeneral.com/lets-go

• DEQ Clean Fuels Program: https://www.oregon.gov/deq/ghgp/cfp/Pages/default.aspx

ODOE’s 2026-2029 Strategic Plan is out now, and our guests walk us through the plan, sharing their hopes of how it will strengthen the agency’s efficiency and effectiveness as we work as a cohesive unit to address our greatest energy challenges.

Guests: ODOE Director Janine Benner and Associate Director for Strategic Engagement Ruchi Sadhir

Grounded music by PaulYudin

Sound Effect by freesound_community from Pixabay

Resources:

ODOE’s 2026-2029 Strategic Plan: https://www.oregon.gov/energy/about-us/Pages/Strategic-Plan.aspx

About ODOE: https://www.oregon.gov/energy/about-us/Pages/default.aspx

Oregon Energy Strategy: https://energystrategy.oregon.gov/

All around us, natural and working lands – from forests, to crops, to wetlands, and parks – are putting in work to benefit Oregonians.

Dig into natural and working lands and natural climate solutions on this episode of grounded.

Guests: ODOE’s Elizabeth Ruther, Senior Natural & Working Lands Policy Analyst, and Jason Sauer, Natural & Working Lands Analyst

Grounded music by PaulYudin

Sound Effect by freesound_community from Pixabay

Resources

Land-based Net Carbon Inventory: https://www.oregon.gov/energy/energy-oregon/Documents/2025-Land-Based-Net-Carbon-Inventory-Report.pdf

Study on workforce development and training needs for natural climate solutions: https://www.oregon.gov/energy/energy-oregon/Documents/2025-NCS-Workforce-Needs-Report.pdf

What are Natural Climate Solutions? What are Natural Climate Solutions?

DEQ's sector-based emissions inventory: https://www.oregon.gov/deq/ghgp/Pages/GHG-Inventory.aspx

DEQ's consumption-based emissions inventory: https://www.oregon.gov/deq/mm/Pages/Consumption-based-GHG.aspx

Natural and working lands fund report: https://www.oregonlegislature.gov/citizen_engagement/Reports/2025-Natural-Working-Lands-Annual-Fund-Report.pdf

Oregon Higher Education Coordinating Commission: https://www.oregon.gov/highered/Pages/default.aspx

Natural and Working Lands Advisory Committee: https://climate.oregon.gov/committee-meetings

The Olympic Pipeline brings 90 percent of our transportation fuels from Washington into Oregon. In November 2025, the pipeline was shut down to repair a leak, causing a fuel emergency declaration. In this episode, we’re reflecting on Oregon's response to the incident.

Guests: ODOE’s Energy Security Manager Traci Naile, and Mike Freese, of Romain and Freese representing the Oregon Fuels Association

Grounded music by PaulYudin

Sound Effect by freesound_community from Pixabay

Resources:

• Episode 52: Hoping for blue skies, planning for black skies: https://on.soundcloud.com/ia3ikp2SjkODtJOOzd

• Oregon Fuels Association: www.wpma.com/oregon

• Fueling Up in Oregon: Supply & Pricing: https://energyinfo.oregon.gov/blog/2026/3/23/fueling-up-in-oregon-supply-amp-pricing

• Olympic Pipeline partially restarts as Oregon remains under fuel emergency declaration: https://www.opb.org/article/2025/11/25/olympic-pipeline-oregon-fuel-emergency-gas-prices/

Fully electric and plug-in hybrid vehicles are powered by electricity, so they need to “fuel up” at charging stations. While as much as 80 percent of charging happens at home, public chargers allow those without access to home charging and those traveling farther distances to recharge their batteries.

On this episode, we discuss EV charger availability and reliability and get a first-person perspective of EVs in rural Oregon.

Guests: Jillian DiMedio, ODOE Senior Energy Policy Analyst; Steve Gutmann, co-founder of EVmath; and Robert Wallace, executive director Wy’East RC&D

Grounded music by PaulYudin

Sound Effect by freesound_community from Pixabay

Resources

• Biennial Zero Emission Vehicle Report : https://www.oregon.gov/energy/energy-oregon/Pages/BIZEV.aspx

• EVmath.org: https://www.evmath.org/

• Wy'East RC&D: https://www.wyeast-rcd.org/

• Oregon Electric Vehicle Dashboard: https://www.oregon.gov/energy/Data-and-Reports/Pages/Oregon-Electric-Vehicle-Dashboard.aspx

• ODOT’s National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure Program: https://www.oregon.gov/odot/climate/Pages/NEVI.aspx

• DEQ’s Zero-Emission Fueling Infrastructure Grant: https://www.oregon.gov/deq/aq/programs/Pages/OZEF.aspx

Get grounded in energy fundamentals with our mini-episode series: Getting Grounded. We're breaking down Oregon's energy sources. Up next: Geothermal

Guest: Rob Del Mar, ODOE senior policy analyst

Resources:

• Geothermal Energy in Oregon: https://www.oregon.gov/energy/energy-oregon/Pages/Geothermal.aspx

• Oregon Department of Geology and Mineral Industries’ interactive map of geothermal springs and wells in Oregon: https://gis.dogami.oregon.gov/maps/gtilo/

• Newberry Volcano Project: https://mazamaenergy.com/newberry/

• Neal Hot Springs: https://www.enbridge.com/about-us/renewable-energy/geothermal

• Oregon Institute of Technology's Geo-Heat Center: https://www.oit.edu/library/about/collections/archives/all-collections/geo-heat

Get grounded in energy fundamentals with our mini-episode series: Getting Grounded. We're breaking down Oregon's energy sources. Up next: Biomass.

Guest: Michael Freels, ODOE senior policy analyst

Resources:

• Oregon State University’s Oregon Wood Innovation Center: https://owic.oregonstate.edu/

• Origin of Charcoal Briquettes: Collection: https://scua.uoregon.edu/repositories/2/resources/9251

• Bioenergy in Oregon: State of Oregon: https://www.oregon.gov/energy/energy-oregon/pages/bioenergy.aspx

• Resource Review: Biomass (2020 Biennial Energy Report): https://www.oregon.gov/energy/Data-and-Reports/Documents/2020-BER-Technology-Resource-Reviews.pdf#page=31

• Oregon Department of Forestry: Oregon Department of Forestry: https://www.oregon.gov/odf/forestbenefits/pages/biomass.aspx

In counties around the state and at ODOE, we’re planning for events we hope don’t happen: emergencies disrupting energy and fuel supplies. Climate change, extreme weather, and cyber risks and straining our energy systems and furthering the need for energy resiliency.

In this episode, we dive into energy resiliency (one of the Oregon Energy Strategy’s five pathways) as it relates to ODOE’s role in fuel emergency response and energy security planning, and energy resiliency at the county level in the Columbia Gorge.

Guests: ODOE’s Energy Security Manager Traci Naile and Mid-Columbia Economic Development District’s Energy and Project Manager Lindsay McClure

Resources

• Fuel Action Plan: https://www.oregon.gov/energy/safety-resiliency/Pages/Petroleum.aspx

• Energy Security Plan: https://www.oregon.gov/energy/safety-resiliency/Pages/Energy-Security-Plan.aspx

• Western States Petroleum Association: https://www.wspa.org/

• Oregon Fuels Association: https://www.wpma.com/oregon

• Getting Grounded: Petroleum's long history: https://on.soundcloud.com/wo4C7vw8D9QPzWkF4C

• ODOE's County Energy Resilience Grant Program: https://www.oregon.gov/energy/safety-resiliency/Pages/County-Resilience.aspx

• ODOE's Community Renewable Energy Grant Program: https://www.oregon.gov/energy/Incentives/Pages/CREP.aspx

• Mid-Columbia Economic Development District: https://mcedd.org/

• Hood River County Energy Council: https://hoodrivercountyenergyplan.org/energy-plan/

Grounded music by PaulYudin

Sound Effect by freesound_community from Pixabay