Climate and Energy Program Manager

The Climate and Energy Program Manager for Carrboro, NC, will oversee local environmental initiatives focused on energy efficiency, renewable energy, and electrification. Responsibilities include managing energy audits, developing policies for sustainability, advising on grants, and maintaining performance metrics. The role involves community engagement and collaboration with various departments to implement the Town’s Climate Action Plans under the supervision of the Chief Sustainability Officer.
Performs difficult professional and intermediate administrative work investigating, reviewing and evaluating local environmental conditions and characteristics; does related work as required. Work is performed under the general supervision of the Chief Sustainability Officer.

Physical Requirements
This is a combination of sedentary work and light physical work requiring the exertion of up to 20 pounds of force occasionally to lift and/or move objects; work requires reaching, fingering, grasping, and repetitive motions; vocal communication is required for expressing or exchanging ideas by means of the spoken word; hearing is required to perceive information at normal spoken word levels; visual acuity is required for preparing and analyzing written or computer data, visual inspection involving small defects and/or small parts, operation of machines, determining the accuracy and thoroughness of work, and observing general surroundings and activities; the worker is not subject to adverse environmental conditions.
• Assists with the implementation of the Town’s Climate Action Plans, with an emphasis on energy and electrification, race and equity, and robust data collection and analysis.
• Municipal Energy Conservation, Fleet Electrification and Renewable Energy Initiatives – Manage vendors performing Energy Audits of municipal facilities. Develop strategy for deploying capital dollars to greatest-impact energy conservation and solar projects. Work closely with the Public Works team to ensure feasibility, implementation, and ongoing maintenance. Work with multiple departments to update and create policies, such as a Green Building Policy or Fleet Vehicle Replacement Policy, to further operationalize and institutionalize sustainable management practices and policies across Town operations.
• Community Energy Efficiency, Renewable Energy and Beneficial Electrification Initiatives – Oversee the Town’s community energy efficiency, renewable energy and beneficial electrification initiatives. Design programs, initiatives, and outreach tools to support the adoption of energy efficiency, weatherization, heat pumps, EVs, and solar for residences and businesses.
• Technical Assistance – Advise grant submissions to support the Town’s climate action initiatives; give guidance to the Town’s Capital Improvements Plan projects relevant to energy and transportation emissions; perform audits and quality control on work completed by consultants and contractors.
• Data-driven Decision-making–Maintain databases and update leadership on performance metrics for monthly, quarterly, annual, and by request data, including greenhouse gas inventories, building energy use, renewable energy generation, EV charging usage, fleet fossil fuel use, and cost savings. Perform research, planning, and technical analyses for complex projects; develop data sets that measure progress of existing programs and help identify new sustainability strategies. Prepare reports for presentation to advisory boards, elected officials, other governmental agencies and the public.
• Community Engagement - Develop and coordinate communications and outreach events that comply with the Town’s Equitable Engagement Plan and Language Access Plan. May represent the Town in local and regional efforts, including supporting community events and public engagement activities and stakeholder meetings. Comfort working one-on-one with residents to develop energy efficiency and electrification plans and apply for rebates.
• May potentially oversee interns or train permanent and temporary employees.
• Performs related tasks as required.

Any combination of education and experience equivalent to bachelor’s degree from an accredited college or university in any technical field, including but not limited to: Engineering, Building Science, Architecture, Planning or Sustainability and

At least five (5) years professional work experience in facility and/or home energy use and associated systems and technologies (ex. HVAC, controls, lighting, envelope) and energy conservation/energy efficiency.

Work experience in project management, community engagement, quantitative and qualitative analytical skills, and local government preferred.
• Additional experience may be considered in lieu of education*

One or more of the following:
• LEED accreditation (any level)
• RESNET Home Energy Rater (HERS)
• ASHRAE certification
• Building Energy Assessment Professional (BEAP)
• Building Energy Modeling Professional (BEMP)
• Certified HVAC Designer (CHD)
• High-Performance Building Design Professional (HBDP)
• Building Commissioning Professional (BCxP)
• Operations & Performance Management Professional (OPMP)
• Certified Energy Manager (CEM)
• Project Management Professional (PMP)
• Certified Decarbonization Professional (CDP)

Project management principles and practices; energy-saving technologies and trends; Behavior change strategies; computers and software applications used in business settings (ex. Microsoft Excel, PowerPoint, Office); Simple budget preparation practices; Analytical skills, including data visualization; effective communication to diverse audiences; bilingual skills (Spanish/English) preferred.

Ability to establish and maintain effective working relationships with government officials, associates and the general public; problem solve and demonstrate decision-making; be highly organized and detail-oriented; set priorities, coordinate multiple projects, work independently and meet deadlines; coordinate and independently perform technical research; study, analyze and present results.