2025 Energy Summit Schedule
Agenda sponsored by 
Wednesday, October 29, 2025
12-5pm / Weatherization Training (Invitation Only)
Location: Coral Ballroom Salon E
1-2pm / Xtream Center Building Tour
3-4pm / Visual Arts Building Tour
5-5:30pm / IAEE Annual Meeting All are welcome.
Location: Coral Ballroom Salon D
5:30-7pm / Kick-Off Reception sponsored by Resource Innovation
Meet exhibitors and network with colleagues. Exhibitor Map
Location: Hallway and Patio
7-9:30pm / Summit After-Hours Icebreaker
Thursday, October 30, 2025 (*** indicates GBCI approved for 1 hr)
7:30am - 8am / Check in & Continental Breakfast
8:00am - 8:15am / Welcome from Iowa Association for Energy Efficiency
8:15am - 8:45am / TBA
8:45 - 9:30am / Keynote: Pier Lafarge, Co-Founder, CEO, Sparkfund
Local Energy, Lasting Impact: Powering Growth with DERs
Iowa is at the forefront of a pivotal moment in the energy transition, where distributed capacity, demand flexibility, and energy efficiency are no longer “nice to haves” but essential to meeting surging demand, ensuring reliability, and keeping costs low for communities and businesses alike. In this keynote, Sparkfund CEO Pier LaFarge explores how Iowa can lead by embedding Distributed Energy Resources (DERs) into the core of its grid strategy through Distributed Capacity Procurement (DCP). A utility-led model, DCP scales incrementally and equitably, so DERs can serve as clean, fast, and cost-effective infrastructure. Attendees will walk away with a renewed vision for how Iowa can unlock the full potential of local energy solutions to power economic growth and community resilience.
9:30 - 9:45am / Morning Break Exhibitor Map
PDH certificates will be available for all sessions.
10 - 11am / Session 1
From LEDs to Clean Air: How Energy Smart New Orleans Sparked Viral Engagement with a Health-Focused Offer
Presenters: Amber Lindh-Porcaro, Franklin Energy; Kathryn Piacentino, Franklin Energy
Location: Oakdale Room V and IV
When Entergy New Orleans sunset its LED rebate program, it faced a challenge: how to maintain energy savings and customer engagement with a new offering. The solution? A strategic pivot to health and wellness. In 2024, ENO launched a free air purifier giveaway through its Energy Smart Marketplace, offering ENERGY STAR® certified tabletop air purifiers valued at $99.99 each. Through a mix of community outreach, segmented email campaigns, direct mail, and organic social media buzz, the program distributed nearly 4,000 units in just three months—achieving over 910,000 kWh in savings and reaching 81% of the annual goal by September.
This case study highlights how integrating health co-benefits, strategic timing, and community engagement can drive exponential program growth—even with higher per-unit costs. It also demonstrates how utilities in the Southeast and all across the country can leverage customer values and digital virality to expand reach, reduce marketing spend, and connect energy efficiency with broader public health outcomes.
The session will include a short presentation, followed by an interactive quiz to test participants’ knowledge of air purifiers (with one lucky winner receiving a free Simply Conserve® Air Purifier!), concluding with a brainstorming session on how other utility programs can use this model. Participants will also leave with a printed copy of the case study and ideas for driving savings for their programs with new products.
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Location: Oakdale Room III
Cutting Through the Noise: Capitalizing on the Energy Transition in Iowa
Presenter: Wesley Whited, DNV
Location: Oakdale Room I and II
This presentation, "Cutting Through the Noise: Capitalizing on the Energy Transition in Iowa," provides a pragmatic and data-driven exploration of the accelerating global shift towards a decarbonized, electrified, and efficient energy future. While macro signals may seem mixed, global capital investment trends clearly indicate a decisive pivot towards renewable energy, with economic fundamentals now driving this irreversible transition. We will demonstrate how this global super-cycle is manifesting locally in Iowa, highlighting the state's leadership in wind energy and the burgeoning electrification trends across sectors, including the significant power demands and opportunities presented by hyperscale data centers.
The session will delve into the "Energy Trilemma" – the challenge of balancing reliability, affordability, and sustainability – and introduce Virtual Power Plants (VPPs) as a transformative solution to manage the intermittency of renewable energy sources and integrate diverse energy resources. Attendees will gain insight into how commercial and industrial buildings are evolving from passive energy consumers to active, flexible grid assets through the use of advanced controls and strategic electrification. Finally, we will offer a clear, actionable roadmap for organizations to strategically invest in energy efficiency, building automation, and phased electrification, enabling them to reduce costs, enhance operational resilience, and actively participate in Iowa's evolving energy landscape. This presentation aims to empower leaders with the understanding and concrete steps necessary to navigate uncertainty and capitalize on the immense opportunities of this global energy super-cycle.
Teamwork Makes the Dream Work: The Student Build Program of Johnson County
Presenters: Sarah Gardner, City of Iowa City, Climate Division; GT Karr, Sueppel's Building & Remodeling; Jennie Wunderlich, Studio H20/PSC Distribution; Simon Andrew, The Housing Fellowship
Location: Coral Ballroom Room B
In 2023, the Student Build Program of Johnson County (studentbuildprogram.org) was launched to address the need in Iowa City for affordable, energy efficient homes while also training the next generation of building trades professionals. The program has resulted in two homes, each built over the course of a school year by students who are mentored throughout the project by local trades professionals. The first home achieved a LEED Platinum certification, while the second home scored a HERS rating of 39 -- making it roughly 35% more energy efficient than homes built to current Iowa code and the best HERS rated home in the 2025 Iowa City Parade of Homes. When completed, the homes become part of the portfolio of The Housing Fellowship, which provides affordable homes to residents of the Iowa City metropolitan area. A third home will begin construction at the start of the 2025-2026 school year. This project is the result of a unique collaboration between the City of Iowa City, the Housing Fellowship, the Iowa City Homebuilders Association, and the Iowa City Community School District. Learn more about the mission and vision -- and nuts and bolts -- of this program to equip tomorrow's builders with the skills to construct high performing energy efficient homes.
11:05am - 12:05pm / Session 2
Building a highly energy efficient, environmental development
Presenters: Steve Schmidt, Apex Construction Co.; Martha Norbeck, C-Wise Architects; Del Holland, Prairie Hill Iowa City Cohousing
Location: Oakdale Room V and IV
A panel presentation describing the construction of a highly energy efficient and environmental infill condo development that is an intentional cohousing/ecovillage community of 50 people in 37 units in Iowa City.
TOPICS
DESCRIPTION OF PRAIRIE HILL DEVELOPMENT
• Condo development with 37 units, on 8 acre infill site, 1 mile from downtown IC
• Homeowners hold mortgage, pay taxes, may sell; pay dues to cover insurance, trash hauling, etc.
• Intentional cohousing/ecovillage community – people who choose to live together cooperatively in harmony with the land
• No paid developer – group members did the development, arranged financing, hired & supervised architects & general contractor
• Homes typically have two bedrooms; one bath; combined kitchen, dining room, living room
• Resilient sustainable community – volunteers do lawn care (including growing prairie grass); extensive vegetable and flower gardening, tree planting and care; snow shoveling, building projects (garden shed, trash/recycling, storage sheds, pergola, etc.); workshop space and tools are available; decisions are made by committees using consensus
• Resources & tools widely shared: laundry (so everyone doesn’t need a washer/dryer); lawn and shop equipment; rides to airport; child, pet, and plant care, etc.
• Small home sizes (550 – 1400 sq. ft., most are 800 – 950) to cut costs and environmental impact — with access to large Common House with guest rooms, large kitchen (eat together weekly), laundry, children’s room, space for meetings and parties
• Electric vehicles: half a dozen cars charged from solar panels
FEATURES
• Multi-family: 4 plexes, duplexes, or townhomes in one building – for efficiency
• Only 18 garages & 8 carports for 37 units/households
• Steep site – four plexes & 2 story duplexes have first floor dug into hillside on west or north side; housing is concentrated in one area to preserve natural space for gardens, orchards, recreation. Benefits and challenges.
• Built on slab – no basements
• Super insulated construction details: R values, methods, materials, challenges
• Energy: all electric, no fossil fuels in buildings, solar panels on many units & common house, no battery storage yet.
• Heat pumps with some baseboard & stand-alone backup heat & cooling
• LEAD Gold certification for most units
• Land use: storm water, prairie grass, Biocell, detention basin
RESULTS
• LEAD Gold certification
• Data on solar production
• Report on heat pump performance, use of backup sources
• Report on sharing of space, tools, labor, resources, time
Real Options for Efficient Buildings in Iowa
Presenter: Anna English, Willdan
Location: Oakdale Room III
In a state known for its culture of self-reliance and common sense, energy efficiency in building design is often overlooked despite many obvious benefits. Designing for efficiency is a proven method that can help businesses control costs without reducing performance.
In this session, we will discuss the importance of energy efficiency as an economic variable. Looking at real examples of commercial buildings in Iowa, we will discuss some effective options to save energy and control costs while working within budget constraints. Knowing what strategies have been shown to work well in Iowa is an advantage for the building designer, owner, and operator.
Energy efficiency may be one of the most practical options for saving future dollars because it allows you to directly influence operating costs. With a little knowledge and creativity, it can also be one of the most achievable.
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Location: Oakdale Room I and II
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Location: Coral Ballroom Room B
12:05 - 1pm / Lunch
Sponsored by Alliant Energy
1 - 2pm / Plenary Session
2pm - 2:30pm / Afternoon Break Exhibitor Map
Afternoon Break sponsored by 
2:30pm - 3:30 / Session 3
The Opportunity to Improve Residential HVAC Quality Installations with Smart Diagnostic Tools and Connected Commissioning
Presenters: Justin Margolies, Slipstream; Jacob Boeschen, Cedar Falls Utilities
Location: Oakdale Room V and IV
The Department of Energy (DOE) has documented research spanning several decades that indicates 70–90% of air conditioners and heat pumps in homes contain at least one performance-compromising fault due to improper installation or maintenance. Program measurement and verification (M&V) of quality installation can also be challenging. Past industry experience has revealed checklist-based commissioning guidelines to be unreliable and ineffective and M&V site visits are expensive.
Smart diagnostic HVAC tools combine a set of real-time measurements from digital sensors, gauges, and probes with a mobile diagnostic application to support technicians with real time fault diagnosis and verification of core operating parameters. Connected commissioning refers to a process that uses data from smart diagnostic HVAC tools to verify core operating parameters, such as airflow and refrigerant charge, and generate a system performance validation report that can be digitally shared with the building occupant, the installation team, or a program.
Presenters will provide an overview of the diversity of connected diagnostic tools and applications for connected commissioning residential heat pumps and air-conditioners. The presentation will include results from a Minnesota contractor field study as well as lessons learned from Cedar Falls Utilities’ incentive program. Attendees will understand key contractor barriers and opportunities and how the power of connected commissioning can be leveraged to improve contractor training and workforce development efforts and quality install verification.
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Location: Oakdale Room III
Sizing Cold-Climate Heat Pumps: A Data-Driven Approach for Smarter Retrofits
Presenters: Dustin Schneider, Resource Innovations
Location: Oakdale Room I and II
Accurately sizing air-source cold-climate heat pumps (CCHPs) is essential to ensure reliable performance, occupant comfort, efficiency, and longevity — particularly in the demanding climate of the upper Midwest. However, many residential HVAC retrofits are not based on a rigorous engineering process. Contractors often size replacement systems based on the existing equipment, a rule of thumb, or a Manual J calculation. These approaches can result in oversized or undersized systems, leading to unnecessary costs, reduced performance, or compromised comfort.
In this session, we introduce two data-driven sizing methods that improve accuracy by leveraging historical household energy use and weather data to determine the home’s actual design load. One method is based on monthly bill analysis, while the other uses trended data from smart thermostats. Both approaches offer practical tools for more precise system design and reduce the risks associated with mis-sizing. We will present an overview of each method, share links to open-source versions of the tools used, and discuss areas needed for future improvements. Additionally, we’ll discuss best practices for modeling the energy costs associated with replacing an existing system with a cold-climate heat pump. Our goal is to help close the gap in current residential retrofit practices and support data-informed system design in the HVAC industry.
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Location: Coral Ballroom Room B