In this week’s episode, host Kristin Hayes is joined by podcast-host-turned-guest Daniel Raimi, a fellow at Resources for the Future (RFF) and director of RFF’s Communities in the Energy Transition initiative, to discuss Raimi’s research on energy communities and his work establishing a highly collaborative ongoing project: the Resilient Energy Economies initiative. Though all communities depend on energy, “energy communities” are communities whose economic livelihoods are dependent on fossil fuels. Raimi recounts how his early career experiences inspired him to study the complex dynamics of fossil fuel–dependent communities amid a shifting energy sector. The oft-overlooked economic complications that arise in energy communities have been motivating federal, state, and local efforts to preserve and protect financial stability for residents after energy companies leave town. Whether in Wyoming, Pennsylvania, Texas, or a Tribal nation, Raimi maintains that engaging with the people who actually are living in these fossil fuel–dependent local economies enables a holistic understanding of the mammoth impact of the fossil fuel industry in the development of the United States and in the communities where the industry is central to their life and livelihoods.

References and recommendations:

Resilient Energy Economies initiative; https://www.resilientenergyeconomies.org/

“Building More Resilient Energy Economies,” a webinar series hosted by Resources for the Future; https://www.rff.org/topics/communities-in-the-energy-transition/webinar-series-building-more-resilient-energy-economies/

“Vigil” by George Saunders; https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/564991/vigil-by-george-saunders/

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