Executive Director Association of Alaska Housing Authorities Anchorage, Alaska
Housing and infrastructure should not be considered entirely separate categories of societal need. How we build homes affects what we spend on infrastructure and vice versa. Alaska faces a shortfall of natural gas, its principal local energy source for power and heating, as soon as 2027 that will force utilities to import LNG at a significant premium. This session, presented by an affordable housing advocate with a background in building science, will debunk the 'low-hanging fruit' fallacy that limits energy efficiency discourse and explore the true value of building performance from an energy security, disaster recovery, and holistic infrastructure planning perspective. The session will conclude with an invitation to attend a regional BPA conference expected to occur in Alaska in September 2026.
Learning Objectives:
By attending this session, attendees will:
Explain why energy efficiency and demand flexibility should be treated as a procurable energy resource of choice by utilities, and how alignment of policy, capital and opportunity with affordable and market-rate housing developers can reduce overall costs
Understand the difference energy-efficient buildings, beneficial electrification, and distributed energy resources can make in closing Alaska's gap in energy supply and affordability, and apply that to similar areas
Describe the concept of a 'virtual power plant' and how it could be used to address energy security objectives in Alaska and elsewhere
