We are thrilled to announce the launch of Neighbor to Neighbor: A Rebuilding Together Pittsburgh Podcast! This podcast is a new way for us to share stories from the heart of our community, exploring the partnerships and innovations that help us build a safer, healthier Pittsburgh for everyone.
For our very first episode, we’re telling a story that starts right here at home.
Episode 1: Building Better, Together: The E3 and RTP Story
What happens when you combine a passion for helping homeowners with the precision of a particle physicist? You get a powerful partnership that makes homes not just safer, but healthier and more affordable for decades to come.
In our debut episode, we sit down with Dr. Lucyna “Lucy” de Barbaro, the founder and director of Energy Efficiency Empowerment (E3). Lucy shares her incredible journey from studying physics at the Fermi National Lab to focusing her expertise on a critical issue here in Pittsburgh: the energy burden placed on families living in our region’s older, often inefficient housing stock.
As Lucy explains, her work is driven by a simple question: How can we make a real, measurable difference?
“My conviction that we ought to do work to prevent the worst of climate change and my background as a physicist, I think, motivate me to go for projects that make a difference and have a sizable impact.”
A Partnership Born at Rebuilding Together
One of the most exciting parts of this story is that it began right here. Lucy’s work evaluating RTP projects was the “impetus” for creating E3. She saw that while homes were being made safe, there was a huge opportunity to go deeper—to tackle the hidden costs of energy waste that burden low-income families long after the repairs are done.
This episode explores how our two organizations have created a perfect partnership:
- Rebuilding Together Pittsburgh brings our deep commitment to our neighbors, focusing on the homeowner with the “absolutely heartwarming approach” and care that Lucy admired.
- Energy Efficiency Empowerment (E3) brings the technical expertise, measurement tools (like infrared cameras and blower doors), and crucial gap funding to upgrade homes with high-performance windows, proper insulation, and efficient heat pump water heaters.
Together, we ensure a home isn’t just repaired for today, but is affordable, healthy, and sustainable for the future. As we discuss in the episode, this collaboration was essential for our recent Rehab for Resale project in Braddock, transforming a house that was “porous like a sieve” into a safe and efficient home for a new low-income buyer.
A Call to Action for Our Fellow Nonprofits
This episode has a special message for other leaders in the housing sector. Lucy makes a powerful case for why every nonprofit should make energy performance a non-negotiable part of every rehab project. It’s not just about the environment; it’s about financial stability and equity for the families we all serve.
“I would love for each project to be evaluated… Thinking across organizations about how we move our city on a more sustainable path… We ought to rally together around this issue. Especially now that we can also help build equity and help lower-income folks to be part of that movement toward cleaner energy use and lower emissions. They should not be left behind.”
Listen Now and Get Involved
Ready to be inspired? You can listen to the full conversation with Dr. Lucy de Barbaro now!
Are you a leader at another nonprofit interested in making a deeper impact on your projects? Lucy invites you to connect with E3 directly.
- Energy Efficiency and Empowerment Email: info@eeepgh.org
Thank you for tuning in to Neighbor to Neighbor. Together, we can build a better Pittsburgh!
