Clean Transportation for All | Electrifying Rural Communities

How can electrification benefit rural communities? 

Range anxiety, lack of charging infrastructure, affordability and variety are among the barriers to adoption for rural communities. Utilities have the opportunity to lead the way and drive the change to bridging the gap for access to clean vehicle technologies in these communities. 

Utilities with rural customers can support the adoption of EVs, through projects and funding such as charging station grants, financial incentives, and by hosting ride and drive events for customers to test out the technology. 

Our speakers will discuss past and current programs to electrify transportation in rural communities. Forth’s Program Manager, Kelly Yearick will be joined by Dick Wanderscheid, Director Renewable Energy Special Projects, Renewable Energy Group at Bonneville Environmental Foundation and Eva DeCesaro, Sr. Program Manager, Electric Transportation at Pacific Power. 

Speakers

Kelly Yearick, Program Manager, Forth 

Kelly Yearick is a Program Manager at Forth where she facilitates utility engagement and consumer outreach to promote electric vehicle adoption.  She also manages programs related to Forth’s role as the Backstop Aggregator for the Oregon Clean Fuels Program to design and implement transportation electrification projects with utilities across Oregon.  Kelly holds a Master’s in Environmental Management and Sustainability from Portland State University, a B.S. from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, and sits on the board of Solar Oregon.

Dick Wanderscheid, Director of Renewable Energy Special Projects, Renewable Energy Group at Bonneville Environmental Foundation

After overseeing BEF’s nationwide investment in small-scale renewable energy projects for 8 years Dick transitioned to his current position in 2019. He now focuses on Vehicle Electrification, Resilience planning and implementation, Irrigation modernization and other special projects. Prior to joining BEF in 2010, Dick was the Municipal Electric Utility Director for the City of Ashland, Oregon. While in Ashland he oversaw Ashland’s award-winning water and energy efficiency programs and developed one of the first net metering laws in the Northwest. He also implemented two solar PV projects (one a community solar project) with BEF in 2000 and 2007. Dick has degrees from Oregon State University and Southern Oregon University.

Eva DeCesaro, Sr. Program Manager, Electric Transportation at Pacific Power. 

Eva is the Senior Electric Transportation Project Manager at Pacific Power where she implements innovative transportation electrification programs across California, Oregon, and Washington. To pave the way for more electric cars on the road she focuses on customer outreach and education. She also administers the Electric Vehicle Charging Grants, which fund customer-driven charging infrastructure projects. The program is designed to enable a wide range of partnerships and projects, gather data, test innovative technologies, and serve under-represented communities.