So Long, Farewell, Auf Wiedersehen, Goodbye

By Mary English 

Soon after I started working in the building performance industry, I remember when I first realized I was looking at buildings differently. It was while driving down a middle-class neighborhood of mid-century ranch homes in the middle of winter after some modest snowfall.  

I wasn’t looking at any aesthetics like paint color. I was looking at the roofs.  A few of them were still covered with the white stuff. Most were melted off completely or in patches. The latter meant that these houses were quickly losing heat—i.e. energy—while their snow-covered counterparts would have good insulation and air sealing in the attic to keep the heat in. Therefore, it didn’t escape into the attic and melt the snow. 

This is just one anecdote. Ever since I changed my career to building performance, my eyes wander to everything most people are oblivious to: the heating and cooling equipment, exposed ductwork, thermostat locations… the list goes on.  

Understanding energy flow has become an obsession and labor of love for me personally over the years. And I’ve been lucky to be paid to do something I love: help others understand how energy flow impacts all our lives in relation to our built environment.  

When I started this position and helped reimagine Metropolitan Energy Center’s (MEC) Building Performance (BP) Department roughly four and half years ago, I never dreamed that we would be as influential as we were over this tenure. In brief, we provided resources for critical research into the intersection of health and energy efficiency, training for our region’s building code officials and contractors, and important information on healthy homes so our city’s residents were empowered with crucial information on resources for home dwellers. 

A year ago, MEC was hip deep on several exciting endeavors funded by the U.S. Department of Energy to provide a jobs training and placement program for specialty energy vocational jobs and apprenticeships, a resource center for resilient communities with the Kansas City Public Library, and a service to provide low or no-cost energy assessments for commercial buildings with an emphasis on affordable housing in our city—just to name three. 

Today, I am announcing with a heavy heart that because MEC has had to pause operations for many of these projects, I am leaving the organization. Several other positions held by fine people who are great at their jobs are now vacant—a reduction that benefits no one.  

Like many other organizations working with federal funds, MEC has suffered losses, with funds being rendered stagnant or clawed back by our government for reasons I have yet to fathom. What is clear is that this environment is increasingly challenging for organizations like ours and, ultimately, for the communities we serve. 

As our system of distributing public funds gets dismantled, and organizations like ours are competing over smaller pools of funds and resources, we must instead unite to pool those resources. Competition is the rule of the jungle. Collaboration, alternatively, is the way of a free civilization. 

So for those working in this system of public service, I ask you to consider the following as a way forward to prevail against fear and inaction: 

• Science must prevail as the guide out of this mess. It’s the only universal language, spoken in all corners of the globe by those who seek it. And science tells us that we still have time to act to battle climate change, but that the window is closing fast. 

• Speak up, especially if you sit in any seat of power. Silence has led to ruin in times past and can again.   

• Recognize that those of us still on the same side of the “looking glass” need to join forces on all fronts. No more friendly fire, so to speak, as we take action together. 

• And by action, I mean large scale collaborative force. As goes the effort to regroup and reorganize, so goes the struggle to save our planet from runaway global heating. (It’s great that we recycle, and all, but just and fair universal policies that give all Americans a chance at the pursuit of life, liberty and justice must be the goal). 

I don’t know what is on the other side of these historic times, but I do know that the only thing we all can control for now are our own actions. Perhaps all of this will end like a bad dream with funds being restored, and we can bring back those resources to our important work for public good. Adrien Townsend, Jacob Moore and the support team carry on and are working hard to help MEC forge that path.  

In the meantime, I will use some of my own good energy to help my fellow Earth-dwellers in any capacity where needed. As a great man once said: “I have decided to stick with love. Hate is too great a burden to bear.” (-MLK Jr.)