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Elevate Annual Impact Report

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2022

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Looking Forward

Elevate CEO Anne Evens

Anne Evens,
CEO, Elevate

This year I’ve been happy to see the pendulum starting to swing, with government and philanthropy moving forward on the equitable climate action that we’ve been working towards. This climate investment means that Elevate has been able to step up even more to implement our programs and bring real results to the people we work with. Our own growth at Elevate reflects this – we added 52 people to our team in 2022, the most we’ve ever grown in one year!

Momentum like this doesn’t mean we’ve reached the end of our fight. It’s important to celebrate each win and use the momentum to fuel our progress towards our goal of clean and affordable power and water for everyone who needs it. I thank each of you for your support as we continue to grow together.

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By 2024 Elevate will have improved the lives of over a million people and made the properties they use healthier and more efficient. In the process we will have saved 250,000 metric tons of CO2 and reinvested over $100M back into the communities where we live, work, and play.

We will be innovative partners in an equitable transition to more resilient cities, communities, and households. We will support a transition that delivers environmental justice, increases health, and builds equity and intergenerational wealth while combating climate change and preparing for its effects.

Elevate's Impact to Date

  • 830,411 people assisted
  • 250,000 metric tons of CO2 reduced
  • $98 million reinvested into communities

Our Impact
Statement

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Build

Elevate will build a diverse and inclusive work environment powered by integrated systems which enable our customers, partners, and teams to do their most ambitious and effective work.

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Elevate will deliver people-centered programs which simultaneously reduce household costs, increase resident health, and improve building performance.

Deliver

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Transform

Elevate will transform the communities we work in with policies and innovations that promote equitable and just solutions to climate change.

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Wisconsin

State capital building of Madison, Wisconsin

Highlights

  • 11

    contractors completed our first contractor accelerator in Madison with Latino Academy of Workforce Development.

  • 1

    building energy action plan was developed with WHPC, Wisconsin's largest affordable housing owner.

  • 4

    families received solar energy from our first rooftop solar project in Madison.

  • 5

    building electrification projects were completed in Wisconsin this year.

DaMontae January

DaMontae January, Madison Community Cooperative – Madison, Wisconsin

DaMontae is the membership coordinator at Madison Community Cooperative (MCC), a nonprofit housing cooperative that provides affordable and inclusive housing to the Madison community.

As part of its goal of carbon-free housing, MCC began working with Elevate to upgrade its historic Zoe Bayliss house with energy-saving improvements. The building is a former sorority house built in 1928 and today is home to 24 cooperative units. DaMontae worked with Elevate to coordinate the completion of an electrification project at the house that added air conditioning and improved indoor air quality for its members.

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The work done at the Zoe Bayliss house is expected to reduce energy use by 49%

Large multi-family building with solar panels in Madison, Wisconsin
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It's important to do these kind of projects if you want your buildings to be around for the next 20 or 30 years. You have to start thinking, how can we not just renovate and remodel the building, but make it more sustainable for the future?”

DaMontae January

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Illinois

Skyline of Chicago at night

Highlights

  • 35

    healthy home upgrades were completed with CommunityHealth for patients diagnosed with asthma or COPD.

  • 15

    families in Peoria, Illinois received home health and energy efficiency upgrades through the Edwards Efficiency Project.

  • 1

    working group developed decarbonization recommendations for the City of Chicago to guide its building retrofit plan.

  • 2

    green financing services were developed for contractors and property owners to make clean energy upgrades.

Katherine Parks

Katherine Parks, Homeowner – Chicago, Illinois

Katherine Parks has lived in the Austin neighborhood of Chicago for 10 years. She’s a self-described “homebody” who loves gardening and spending time with her grandkids.

Over the years, Katherine had trouble keeping her house warm in the winter and cool in the summer. She decided to work with Elevate to install a heat pump, which heats her home and adds central air conditioning. She also completed weatherization to keep her home efficient and her bills low.

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Katherine also operates a child care service based out of her home

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It will help me lower the cost of my utility bills and keep my home nice and warm and efficient during the wintertime. And I didn’t have AC, so I’m really happy that I’ll be getting that.

Katherine Parks

Marling Licardie

Marling Licardie, Kids Village Day Care – Chicago, Illinois

Marling Licardie takes care of 10 children at Kids Village Day Care, her home-based child care center in Chicago. Marling has been caring for neighborhood children there for 15 years.

To meet Illinois’s requirement for child care centers, Marling decided to test her water for lead for free through LeadCare Illinois. After learning more about how to protect children from lead, she worked with Elevate to participate in the lead abatement program to remove lead paint in her windows and doors.

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Our lead abatement program protected 85 children in 2022

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I’ve told other day care providers, find a program like this where you can get help testing and changing things in the home to remove the lead.”

Marling Licardie

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Pacific Northwest

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Highlights

  • We began working with Energy Trust of Oregon as a diversity, equity, and inclusion workforce consultant.

  • Nine contractors completed the accelerator program that we designed with Burch Energy Services and TRC Companies.

  • We’re working with Oregon Housing & Community Services to incorporate affordable housing into their multi-family efficiency program.

  • We received a grant from Washington State University to design a retrofit and electrification program for affordable housing in the Puget Sound area.

Shawn Yadon

Shawn Yadon, Yadon Mechanical – Portland, Oregon

Shawn Yadon is one of nine contractors that graduated from the Contractor Development Pathway, which Elevate implemented for Energy Trust of Oregon in 2022.

Shawn has been in the contracting business for 17 years and heard about the program through the National Association of Minority Contractors. Having been interested in energy efficiency for a while, he decided to apply. Through the program, Shawn made new connections in the industry and used the program funding to develop a website for his business.

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The Contractor Development Pathway in Oregon provides hands-on training and back-end business support

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“Networking was probably the most important part for me. I know that even if I've never touched a certain heating system before, I can go out there on site, call this person I know, and I can get the download and know exactly what to do.”

Shawn Yadon

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Michigan

Skyline of Detroit, Michigan

Highlights

  • 279

    kW of solar power for nonprofit partners to build resilience in Detroit.

  • 160

    virtual assessments were completed for an electrification project in Ann Arbor.

  • 7

    homes experiencing flooding and sewer backup in Detroit received stormwater and safety upgrades.

  • 1

    climate action plan was developed for Traverse City Power & Light.

Donna Givens Davidson

Donna Givens Davidson, Eastside Community Network – Detroit, Michigan

Donna Givens Davidson is the executive director at the Eastside Community Network (ECN), an organization that supports sustainable neighborhood growth on Detroit’s Eastside.

Through ECN’s leadership, a project was developed with Elevate and the City of Detroit to build a network of hubs to provide Eastside residents with essential services during emergencies, recovery, and everyday life. Donna and ECN worked with Elevate to add solar and battery storage along with the equitable internet and green infrastructure that ECN is planning at their Stoudamire Wellness Hub.

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ECN's solar system and battery storage can provide 72 hours of power in an emergency

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When Detroit had flooding this year, we used the Stoudamire Center as a space to distribute resources and provide support. We want people to connect with us and this space year-round, so that during times of emergency they know they have somewhere they can go.”

Donna Givens

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Missouri

Skyline of Kansas City, Missouri

Highlights

  • 1

    building owner concierge program launched with our partner Bridging the Gap.

  • 1

    full-time Elevate employee started in Missouri, our first ever in the state!

  • 4

    contractors graduated from the Rising Trades Contractor Accelerator in Kansas City.

  • 275

    real estate professionals joined our classes about high-performing homes.

Thank You!

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Thank you for learning more about Elevate and our impact in 2022! View our financials and a list of our funders and board of directors below. Sign up for our newsletter and join us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram to learn more and to stay in touch in 2023.

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Abigail Corso
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2021 Financials

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Total Revenue $38.2 million; Grants 43% Contracts 57% Total Revenue $38.2 million; Grants 43% Contracts 57%
Total Expense $35.2 million; Program Expense 84% General and Administrative 15% Fundraising 1% Total Expense $35.2 million; Program Expense 84% General and Administrative 15% Fundraising 1%

*Grant includes $1.5m in donor restricted funds

Board of Directors

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  • Anne Evens
  • Bob Weissbourd
  • Dave Shryock
  • Denise G. Fairchild
  • Edgar Ramirez
  • Jennifer Tescher
  • John Cleveland
  • Kimberly Lewis
  • Leah Turnbull
  • Margaret O’Dell
  • Scott Bernstein
  • Sharonda Williams-Tack
  • Susan Page Estes

Funders

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  • Allstate Insurance Company
  • American Council for an Energy Efficient Economy
  • Associated Bank
  • Bank of America
  • Chicago Beyond
  • Chicago Community Trust
  • Citi Foundation
  • City of Ann Arbor, MI
  • City of Chicago, IL
  • City of Evanston, IL
  • City of Grand Rapids, MI
  • City of Middleton, WI
  • Cook County, IL
  • Crown Family Philanthropies
  • Dr. Scholl Foundation
  • DTE Foundation
  • Energy Foundation
  • Ernst & Young
  • General Motors Climate Equity Fund
  • Google.org
  • Illinois Environmental Council
  • Illinois Science and Energy Innovation Foundation
  • Joyce Foundation
  • The JPB Foundation
  • Kresge Foundation
  • Mayer and Morris Kaplan Family Foundation
  • McKnight Foundation
  • National Renewable Energy Laboratory
  • Natural Resources Defense Council
  • Polk Bros. Foundation
  • Pritzker Foundation
  • Pritzker Traubert Foundation
  • Sally Mead Hands Foundation
  • Slipstream
  • The Builders Initiative
  • TRC Solutions
  • US Department of Energy
  • U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development
  • US Environmental Protection Agency
  • Wells Fargo Foundation
  • Yellow Chair Foundation
  • ZG Foundation