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This case study describes the National Energy Transition Strategy (NETS) for Saint Lucia, highlighting how a diversified portfolio of renewable energy and efficiency measures can reduce costs and emissions compared to diesel-reliant systems.

The report details the development of the National Energy Transition Strategy (NETS) for Saint Lucia, a collaborative effort between the Government of Saint Lucia (GoSL) and the utility LUCELEC, facilitated by RMI-CWR and the Clinton Climate Initiative. The strategy uses an Integrated Resource Plan (IRP) to identify the most cost-effective energy portfolio to reduce diesel reliance and carbon emissions over a 20-year horizon while maintaining grid reliability.

This case study describes EarthSpark International's implementation of a solar-powered microgrid in Les Anglais, Haiti, to provide reliable 24-hour electricity. It details the technical, logistical, and regulatory challenges overcome during the project, the development of the SparkMeter billing system, and the resulting economic benefits for local residents and businesses.

This briefing by RMI discusses the economic potential of demand flexibility, where household and industrial devices interact with the electric grid based on real-time price signals to reduce costs and peak demand.

This briefing by the Rocky Mountain Institute (RMI) proposes an integrative business model for developing net zero energy (NZE) or ultralow energy districts. The model aims to make NZE developments life-cycle cost neutral or better compared to business-as-usual (BAU) scenarios by utilizing an Integrated Energy Services Provider (IESP) to manage energy systems, financing, and performance requirements, thereby reducing upfront costs for parcel developers and lowering energy bills for tenants.

This guide from the Rocky Mountain Institute (RMI) outlines the growing opportunities for professionals in the field of sustainable finance across the public sector, private sector, and non-governmental organizations (NGOs). It highlights the diverse backgrounds of practitioners and provides advice for those seeking to transition into the field.

This briefing by the Rocky Mountain Institute (RMI) outlines the challenges and opportunities for expanding sustainable electricity access in sub-Saharan Africa. It advocates for an integrated approach that combines on-grid and off-grid resources to meet growing energy demands while mitigating future carbon emissions.

This RMI report evaluates time-based and demand charge electricity rates for mass-market customers. It finds that well-designed time-based rates (especially those with high peak/off-peak price ratios and active enabling technology) can significantly reduce peak load and total energy use without harming customer acceptance. In contrast, the report highlights a critical lack of empirical evidence for mass-market demand charges, noting that while they may aid utility cost recovery, their impact on customer behavior remains largely speculative.

This briefing by RMI describes a shift from traditional air temperature-centric building design to a targeted approach based on six variables of thermal comfort. Using the Rocky Mountain Institute's Innovation Center as a case study, the document explains how integrating these variables through the Predictive Mean Vote (PMV) metric and Integrated Project Delivery (IPD) can reduce energy use and support net-zero goals, while detailing the technical and contractual strategies needed to manage the associated risks of passive design.

This case study analyzes the $6.8 billion merger between Exelon and Pepco Holdings, which created the largest utility in the United States. The document uses the contentious approval process in the District of Columbia to identify five broader trends in the U.S. power sector: increased utility consolidation to hedge against volatile wholesale markets, disputes over microgrid ownership, the criticality of rate design equity, the rise of mobilized customer constituencies, and the proliferation of state-level power sector transformation proceedings.

This briefing by RMI discusses how energy efficiency upgrades, specifically attic insulation, can increase home resale value and provide additional benefits in terms of operational cost savings, health, and comfort. It references data from Remodeling magazine and the National Association of Realtors to demonstrate that certain energy projects offer higher returns on investment than typical home remodeling projects.

This case study describes the Boulder Valley School District's (BVSD) strategy to achieve net-zero energy and an 80 percent reduction in greenhouse gases by 2050 through a combination of deep retrofits, retrocommissioning, and new construction funded by a 2014 voter-approved bond.

The Community Energy Resource Guide, published by the Rocky Mountain Institute (RMI) in December 2015, provides a comprehensive roadmap for U.S. communities to develop energy action plans. It outlines a collaborative planning process, methods for analyzing energy landscapes, and specific tactics across the buildings, electricity, transportation, and industry sectors to accelerate the adoption of renewable energy and energy efficiency.

This briefing by RMI argues that concerns regarding the economic limitations of wind and solar growth—specifically the 'merit order effect' where variable renewables depress wholesale prices—are based on static models that ignore supply-side evolution, demand flexibility, and storage technologies.

This case study describes the construction of the RMI Innovation Center, highlighting the use of Integrative Project Delivery (IPD) to achieve high energy efficiency and cost control. The building serves as a living laboratory to demonstrate mainstream-ready efficiency technologies.

This report by the Rocky Mountain Institute (RMI) and Carbon War Room profiles 10 case studies of islands and remote communities transitioning from oil-dependent electricity systems to renewable microgrids. It identifies the drivers of change, technical and administrative challenges, and lessons learned to provide a roadmap for other isolated communities seeking to reduce costs and oil dependence through wind, solar, hydro, and energy storage.

This report by the Rocky Mountain Institute (RMI), prepared for Hunter Douglas, evaluates the energy savings potential of insulating honeycomb window shades in U.S. residences. Using EnergyPlus simulations across eight ASHRAE climate zones, the study finds that these shades can significantly reduce heating and cooling energy consumption, improve thermal comfort, and lower peak electricity demand, with existing homes seeing greater benefits than new homes.

This RMI report advocates for interoperable transit data (ITD) as the foundation for 'Mobility as a Service' (MaaS), a system designed to replace personally owned vehicles with on-demand, multimodal transport. It identifies barriers such as fragmented payment systems, inconsistent data licensing, and regulatory differences between public and private providers. The report proposes solutions including public-private partnerships, the development of new data standards, and pilot projects to demonstrate the economic and environmental benefits of reducing single-occupancy vehicle trips.

This report by the Rocky Mountain Institute (RMI) analyzes the economic value of battery energy storage in the U.S. electricity grid, arguing that 'behind-the-meter' (customer-sited) deployment offers the highest potential value because it can provide the widest array of services. The authors identify thirteen fundamental services across three stakeholder groups—ISO/RTOs, utilities, and customers—and demonstrate through four case studies that 'stacking' multiple services (using a battery for several different purposes over its lifetime) is essential for achieving positive net economic benefits under current cost structures.

This insight brief by the Rocky Mountain Institute (RMI) provides a systemic framework for understanding sustainable finance, specifically focusing on the global energy transition to a low-carbon future. It decomposes financial transactions into five core elements and identifies three primary categories of barriers—risk/return, information, and scale—that impede the flow of capital into sustainability initiatives. The document proposes a matrix of 26 broad strategies, utilizing both policy and non-policy approaches, and applies this framework to case studies on U.S. residential solar and electric vehicles (EVs).