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Forward WE Energies
Welcome to the Forward WE Energies Team! We educate and mobilize health professionals to advocate for comprehensive energy legislation in order to achieve safe, clean, and affordable energy in the WE Energies service territory and beyond. We grow our leadership capacity to mobilize people in local communities to fight utility proposals that harm community health. We envision a Wisconsin that is pollution-free, where people from all zip codes can live in healthy communities and experience equitable opportunities to thrive.
Our Work
Energy Justice
Hold WE Energies Accountable
Southeastern Wisconsin Advocacy
The Problem
WE Energies continues to power our communities with expensive, dirty energy.
Some Milwaukee households spend up to 20-26% of their income on energy bills.
Policies that maintain racial segregation and make it difficult to access payment assistance or efficiency upgrades mean that communities of color, low income, and rural communities often spend a greater share of their income on energy costs.
This financial burden can have serious health consequences.
Access to Affordable Energy is a Health Issue
High energy costs and shutoffs contribute to...
Hypothermia, heat illness,
and heat-related death
Exposure to extreme temperatures can cause severe injury and death.
Worsening of existing health conditions
People with cardiovascular, pulmonary, and respiratory diseases and arthritis tend to be more sensitive to extreme temperatures.
Loss of treatment
People with chronic conditions are more reliant on energy-dependent devices for treatment or maintenance of their condition.
Mental health issues
Fears over utility debts or shutoffs are associated with chronic stress and other long-term mental health issues.
Malnutrition
Low income households tend to spend less on food and consume less calories as their energy costs increase.
Health Inequities
African Americans in the U.S. are more likely to experience energy burden due to the housing stock available from racial residential segregation, which contributes to health inequities.
Who is Standing in the Way?
WE Energies CEOs and the politicians they pay for say they care about their customers and the environment – all while they hike up our rates, pollute our air and water, and deliberately target communities they think can’t fight back.
As local families struggle to pay their bills, their executives and shareholders rake in millions of dollars in profits every year.
Instead of investing in clean energy, WE Energies continues to build methane gas plants, releasing pollutants that worsen climate change impacts and health conditions like heart disease and asthma.
What Are We Doing?
Because we see the health impacts of fossil fuel pollution firsthand, healthcare and public health professionals are coming together to demand that our leaders hold
We Energies accountable and move beyond fossil fuels toward a cleaner, healthier, and more affordable energy future for our patients and communities.
Join Us!
Forward WE Energies Team
Are you a healthcare or public health professional interested in getting involved? We’ll help you find the level and type of commitment that works for your schedule and interests.
To learn more, register for our next meeting or contact Julia Alberth at julia@healthyclimatewi.org.
