Nathan Cleveland
CEP
RI Office of Energy Resources | Administrator of Energy Programs
Speaker
Track A: Implementing Energy Efficiency
Session A1: The State of Energy Policy & Funding in the US
June 25, 2025 | 2:00 pm - 2:30 pm
Partnership in Action: Rhode Island’s State + Utility Energy Efficiency Story
In 2016 the State of Rhode Island Office of Energy Resources (OER) and Rhode Island Energy (distribution utility) began a Strategic Energy Management Partnership (SEMP). The goal is to deliver comprehensive energy efficiency to the public sector. State, public school, and municipal buildings benefit from the combined technical, financial, procurement, and project management support. By supporting the full energy projects lifecycle, the SEMP bridges resource gaps, builds lasting partnerships, and educates key public sector actors through clean energy implementation. The partnership leverages resources from additional entities such as the RI Infrastructure Bank, School Building Authority, and US Department of Energy to enhance utility incentives and State funding.
Through an iterative, trial and error process, we have tailored processes to enable the entire energy efficiency lifecycle. This includes energy assessments, engineering support to develop/design projects, procurement support to enable execution, and funding to cover implementation costs. One example of this collaboration in action is a public schools initiative focused on LED lighting and high efficiency HVAC in RI’s environmental justice communities.
Lessons learned and case studies from the ongoing 8+ year collaboration demonstrate the value to all parties involved and the contribution to Rhode Island’s Clean Energy and Climate Goals.
Speaker Bio
Nathan Cleveland has over a decade of experience in the energy and sustainability fields, supporting the energy planning work and program development at academic institutions and municipal and state governments. Currently, Nathan is the Administrator of the Lead by Example Program at the Rhode Island Office of Energy Resources, leading energy efficiency programming and implementation for the public sector. In this role, Nathan develops programming and partnerships to support the implementation of clean energy projects and oversees a team that works collaboratively with numerous stakeholders to deliver tangible results. Nathan also manages the energy procurement for the State and its partners for both electricity and natural gas supply and creates detailed reports and data visualizations to demonstrate the success of the Lead by Example program.
Nathan is also an active member of his local Energy & Sustainability Committee, including an eight-year term as Chairperson. He has a Masters in Sustainability and Environmental Management from Harvard University and a Bachelors in Political Science & Government from Tufts University