Electrify America Invests in Six California Organizations to Drive Brand-Neutral Zero Emission Vehicle Awareness and Education in Low-Income and Disadvantaged Communities
RESTON, Va., Oct. 13, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Electrify America is investing $3 million to provide education and awareness programs for low-income and disadvantaged communities throughout California on the benefits of driving zero emission vehicles (ZEVs) and available cash incentives.
Today's announcement brings Electrify America's total investment in California community-based programs to $5.7 million over the past two years, as part of the company's ongoing efforts to promote ZEV adoption throughout the state. The investment will provide support for six California-based organizations as they raise awareness on the benefits of driving ZEVs, while working to get more drivers behind the wheel of electric vehicles.
Investment in California community-based organizations is just one component of the company's broader commitment to low-income and disadvantaged communities. In 2019 Electrify America invested a total of $82.4 million in these California communities by providing education, access, charging infrastructure and services to promote ZEV driving, including $10 million in education and marketing.
"It's our goal to expand awareness of clean and sustainable transportation options that are accessible and affordable to Californians," said Will Berry, social responsibility manager, Electrify America. "Low-income and disadvantaged communities have access to an incredibly complex set of incentives and resources, and we are proud to support trusted community groups that have a proven track record of providing the assistance necessary to help people adopt zero emission vehicles."
More than 100 non-profit, private and public entities from across California were invited to submit proposals to support brand-neutral ZEV education and awareness in disadvantaged and low-income communities. The six recipients of Electrify America's investment are:
-- Breathe Southern California
-- Central California Asthma Collaborative
-- Drive Clean Bay Area
-- Ecology Action
-- Liberty Hill Foundation
-- Valley Clean Air Now
The organizations' programs will highlight how ZEVs today can meet many different consumer needs and provide awareness regarding the economics of driving a zero-emission vehicle. Considerable evidence demonstrates that there is a significant gap between the perceived and actual affordability of ZEVs in California, presenting a meaningful opportunity for effective, targeted educational efforts.
Additional information on the selected California-based organizations and the campaigns that Electrify America will support includes:
-- Breathe Southern California (Breathe SoCal): Breathe SoCal (formerly
BREATHE LA) is a non-profit, non-partisan organization that promotes
clean air and healthy lungs through education, research, technology and
advocacy. Breathe SoCal will collaborate with Plug In America (PIA),
together offering programs to show the powerful benefits of driving
electric by providing ZEV Ride and Drive events among low-income and
disadvantaged populations in greater Los Angeles County, San Bernardino
and Riverside County areas. Breathe SoCal and PIA will implement a
three-part strategy including identification of the ZEV target audience,
virtual and direct educational contact through featured events and
digital reach/messaging reinforcement. https://breathesocal.org/.
-- Central California Asthma Collaborative (CCAC): CCAC's mission is to
provide education and direct services, build regional capacity and
advocate for sensible policies that improve health and address
inequities by reducing environmental impacts and emphasizing the
prevention and management of chronic disease. CCAC will leverage its
existing ZEV outreach assets to increase engagement with low-income and
disadvantaged residents across the San Joaquin Valley, including
coordination of the Clean Vehicle Empowerment Collaborative (CVEC), a
group of eight community-based organizations who serve as trusted
messengers in disadvantaged Valley communities. This grant will also
support the development of an EV Navigator program, providing residents
one-on-one assistance with ZEV pricing, financing and submission of
stackable incentive applications. http://cencalasthma.org.
-- Drive Clean Bay Area (DCBA): The DCBA campaign launched the ZEV Families
Program in 2019 in collaboration with Acterra: Action for a Healthy
Planet, Charge Across Town and Cool the Earth to connect low income
families in the Bay Area to the clean transportation movement. DCBA
focuses on engaging local schools, nonprofits and businesses to educate
their stakeholders to drive electric. The ZEV Families Program leverages
1) a family/community approach rather than single buyer, 2) a STEM
focus, 3) school and educational events and Ride and Drives, 4)
multi-platform social media, and 5) a data-driven approach.
https://drivecleanbayarea.org.
-- Ecology Action: Ecology Action helps people act now to reduce emissions
at scale to ensure a thriving people and planet. They are committed to
transportation justice and have helped advance sustainable
transportation in DAC communities for nearly two decades. Ecology Action
leads the collaborative Central Coast ZEV Equity Initiative designed to
engage and inform low-income and disadvantaged residents that ZEVs can
meet their driving needs at an affordable price. With four community
partners they will provide ZEV Ride and Drives, ZEV Showcase events and
individualized ZEV purchase guidance by using bilingual EV Ambassadors
virtually and in person when it is safe to do so, from Santa Cruz to
Ventura Counties.
https://ecoact.org/about-us/community-engagement/electric-vehicles.
-- Liberty Hill Foundation (LHF): LHF represents all parts of the social
justice ecosystem of Los Angeles, and continues their 45-year efforts in
the Los Angeles Air Basin to create greater equity, environmental
sustainability and economic opportunity. LHF will focus on connecting
low-income and disadvantaged households across L.A. County with diverse
grassroots groups through its emPOWER program - a partnership between
LHF and nine community-based organizations operating across L.A. County
in areas on the frontlines of industrial pollution. The program
leverages the extensive network of CBO partners across social media
platforms, as well as through direct outreach leveraging local community
members, volunteers and leaders. https://www.libertyhill.org.
-- Valley Clean Air Now (VCAN): Valley Clean Air Now (VCAN): VCAN is a
501(c)(3) public charity committed to quantifiably reducing air
emissions in California's San Joaquin Valley, the region with the worst
air quality in the United States. VCAN and partner Charge Across Town
will continue their comprehensive campaigns that offer San Joaquin
Valley low-income and disadvantaged community groups an opportunity to
drive ZEVs and to provide hands-on help with qualifying for ZEV
incentives through Community Clean Car Clinics and Tune In & Tune Up
events. Recently, VCAN has partnered with Community Food Distribution
hosts to use their communication channels to promote personalized ZEV
purchase customer support and document submission. This extended support
includes coordination with ZEV vehicle dealerships throughout the
qualification and sales process. https://valleycan.org.
In addition to ZEV education and awareness, Electrify America is providing integral DC fast charging infrastructure to help spur the adoption of electric vehicles throughout the state, and the nation. To date, Electrify America has built more than 130 public DC fast-charging station locations throughout California and more than 480 across the United States, with plans to deploy approximately 800 total charging stations with about 3,500 DC fast chargers by December 2021.
About Electrify America
Electrify America LLC, the largest open DC fast charging network in the U.S., is investing $2 billion over 10 years in Zero Emission Vehicle (ZEV) infrastructure, education and access. The investment will enable millions of Americans to discover the benefits of electric driving and support the build-out of a nationwide network of workplace, community and highway chargers that are convenient and reliable. Electrify America expects to install or have under development approximately 800 total charging stations with about 3,500 DC fast chargers by December 2021. During this period, the company will be expanding to 29 metros and 45 states, including two cross-country routes, delivering on its commitment to support increased ZEV adoption with a network that is comprehensive, technologically advanced and customer friendly. Electrify America's Electrify Home® offers home charging solutions for consumers with flexible installation options. For more information, visit electrifyamerica.com and media.electrifyamerica.com.
Electrify America uses definitions for low-income and disadvantaged communities established by the State of California, which are published and mapped by CARB on its "Disadvantaged and Low-income Communities Investments" webpage: https://www.arb.ca.gov/cc/capandtrade/auctionproceeds/communityinvestments.htm
Total low-income and disadvantaged California investment figures highlighted in 2019 Annual Report to California Air Resources Board (p. 43): https://newspress-electrifyamerica.s3.amazonaws.com/documents%2Foriginal%2F415-2019ElectrifyAmericaCaliforniaAnnualReport.pdf
View original content to download multimedia:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/electrify-america-invests-in-six-california-organizations-to-drive-brand-neutral-zero-emission-vehicle-awareness-and-education-in-low-income-and-disadvantaged-communities-301151324.html
SOURCE Electrify America, LLC
