Episode 14: Turning Buildings into Teslas - Glenn Schatz, Blocpower
In this week’s episode (and Season 1 Finale!!), you’ll hear from Glenn Schatz, Chief Revenue Officer at Blocpower! We dig into his background in the Navy, his first encounter with CEO Donnel back in 2014 and how their paths have crossed again to decarbonize every city in the US. You can also, as always, tune in through our Substack or Apple Podcasts. Hope you enjoy!
‘Turning Buildings into Teslas’… Blocpower’s new slogan, coined by their CEO, Donnel Baird sounds cool, but what does it mean!?
You might not guess it, but over ⅔ of New York City’s CO2 emissions come from the Built Environment - consisting mostly of man-made infrastructure, such as buildings.
When I learned that, I was surprised at first. I thought transportation, all those cars backed up in midtown traffic, would be a much higher percentage of all emissions.. But transportation makes up only about 30% …
And I guess that makes sense. Think about all the skyscraper leaking heat out of their glass structures … and also think about the low-income communities who have seen divestment from housing in their neighborhoods for centuries leading to outdated infrastructure, energy inefficiencies, and many other challenges not having to do with climate change...
How do we transition built spaces away from carbon-intensive fuels. AND, an often forgotten variable, how do we do this in a way that actually centers community voices in the planning, strategy, and execution of this transition.
Glenn Schatz, Blocpower’s Chief Revenue Officer was born in Taipei, Taiwan - his mom Taiwanese and dad from Brooklyn. After moving to and growing up in the US, he has spent 2 decades in the Navy (and is still a part of the reserve team!) and has always had a passion for climate.
He first came across Donnel and Blocpower in 2014 during his time at the US Department of Energy in the office looking at building energy efficiency technology. Blocpower had a different model back then but their stories have evolved and overlapped since then - and now Glenn has been brought on to lead their growth!
It was an honor being able to connect with in person to learn more about his story and the work happening at Blocpower today - when Brym first started crystalizing into reality, Blocpower was one of the first examples I found and said ‘yup - that’s our North Star’. In our first ever 1-pager describing our work, Blocpower is even mentioned briefly…
Definitely a meaningful full-circle moment to share more about why their work is such a guiding force and why it should be for you too.
The Trophy Shelf at Blocpower is Full
Blocpower has been awarded many accolades for their work.
Investors include:
They raised a $75 Million Series A round from some of the most well known funders in the space, allowing them to bring their message across Brooklyn and to different parts of the country.
This all sounds shiny and great - especially for capitalists who are excited about growth, profit, and scale.
But they’re accomplishing all of this for the right reasons. Through their model, they are systemically challenging the status quo from a political, economic, and social perspective, delivering change on a community level all across the country… an embodiment of ‘Think Globally, Act Locally.’
So What’s the Model
The model is simple at first glance, but the underlying nuances are what differentiates Blocpower from any other organization I’ve ever come across.
On the surface:
‘Turn Buildings into Teslas’ … Blocpower has software that can look at any building and assess: where can we improve heating and cooling efficiencies - the main contributors to carbon emissions from buildings. They are providing this assessment for every building in the country for free.
Their Workforce (more details below) then completes a renovation project that replaces old oil and gas heating/cooling systems with electric heat pumps.
Increased energy efficiency leads to cost savings on monthly utility bills - these go back to the community and also generate revenue for Blocpower!
Underneath the Surface:
When they sign a contract to retrofit a building or community, Blocpower constructs what they call ‘Community Advisory Boards (CABs)’ made up of neighborhood advocates, religious and community leaders, workers and residents to help lead and contribute to the project.
These building retrofits aren’t free, and the hefty upfront costs are usually an inhibitor to low-middle income households adopting renewable energy in homes … In order to finance these construction projects, Blocpower helps communities raise the required money - they go fundraise from Goldman Sachs, Microsoft and others to step in and offer capital so that the communities can leverage their technology and services at $0 upfront. The cost-savings from switching away from oil and gas pay back Blocpower, their investors, along with delivering savings to the building.
Their Co-Founder and CEO, Donnel Baird grew up in Brooklyn and his background is in community organizing. I’ve listened to him speak on a ton of panels and interviews and the classic story that stuck with me is that his family used to turn on the gas stove to heat the apartment in New York winters…. With the windows open to escape carbon monoxide poisoning. Not only is this unsustainable from a climate perspective, but more importantly, it’s dangerous, unhealthy, and a reality for many families that Blocpower is working with.
Environmental Justice - More than a buzzword
While they’re a for-profit company, one of the many reasons for Blocpower’s success is that, in many ways, they prioritize community impact over profit. Plus, their impact lies beyond just decarbonizing buildings - they hit the intersection of public health, community empowerment and even employment.
A couple examples …
NYC Broadband Internet
Many communities take fast wifi for granted. We use it every day for work, to connect with our friends, to check the weather. But this is not a guaranteed right. Blocpower has also invested to establish community wifi in neighborhoods or buildings without access to this resource. According to Glenn, Donnel, and others, this is a huge piece of leveling the playing field and offering resources to underserved communities…. And it’s prioritized even though it might not be necessarily the most profitable business metric.
Clean Energy Workforce Development Training Program - Civilian Climate Corps
Mayor Eric Adams has given Blocpower a $40-50 million contract to train construction workers from the 5 most ‘Gun Violence Impacted Communities’ in New York City. These individuals have been identified by the NYPD and District Attorney’s Office to be most likely to be involved in a future incident of gun violence. Some are war veterans, survivors of domestic violence, former foster children, and formerly incarcerated individuals, all offered a door into the green buildings revolution.
Momentum is Growing
Many countries, states, and cities are making commitments to achieve net-zero by 2030 or 2050 or somewhere in between (hopefully). And decarbonizing the built environment is a HUGE component of doing this, especially in urban communities.
The first city to stick their neck out, Ithaca, NY, has committed to decarbonize every building - 0 fossil fuels - by 2030 through Blocpower.
Menlo Park, CA followed suit this year, with the goal of electrifying 15 buildings in 2022, 100 in 2023, then 1,000 or more every year after that…
The City/State leadership in Ithaca and Menlo Park are hoping that the examples in their municipalities can build a path for others. Across (just!) the US, there are $4 trillion worth of projects to do…. so there’s a long way to go. More people need to invest in their model, more communities need to make the commitment, and we’ll get there.
Community Ownership and Neighborhoods of the Future
If you have some time to fill with a Youtube video, take a look at this panel. And if you don’t have time to hear the full hour, zoom in on time stamps 18:00, 26:00 and 36:00. A few of the many reasons why I love what Blocpower is bringing to the table…
Maybe with more organizations following Blocpower’s lead, low and middle income communities will become more involved in the green transition and as a result see more of the benefits as well. Glenn and Donnel have made the amazing point…
If we had been investing in solar factories or other types of green energy to create good jobs in West Virginia, we’d have a Climate Infrastructure Bill passed through the US Congress right now because Senator Joe Manchin would be in support.
It’s the right thing to do, but that’s oftentimes not enough to make change in our political or economic world… so they’re making the economic case as well. They are also showing that there is room to challenge priorities in our current version of capitalism and still raise hundreds of millions of dollars to support your project.
And there are ways to get involved!
The cool thing is that they invite all types of fundraising to support their work. Individuals can invest as little as $100 through equity crowdfunding campaigns - specifically on Raisegreen’s Marketplace - and see a return on your investment. A quick shout out to Raisegreen… they are a great way for community members to get involved in projects near them. Blocpower is not fundraising now, but may again in the future. If you’re in the US, look for a project you’re interested in and support!!
END OF SEASON 1!
Thank you so much for being a part of this journey so far!!! If you haven’t seen it, please check out our end of season update, stay tuned for more info and enjoy your Summers until then :)
