Domestic Energy Access Stories

Southerners face some of the highest energy burdens across the country, with low-income households paying upwards of 10% of their income on electricity bills. This film project, made for the Duke Winter Forum: Power to the People, explores themes of energy injustice through three stories. In Rosewood, a community faces the negative externalities of energy production. In Old East Durham, local leaders make the connection between housing and energy poverty. Finally in rural Halifax and Northampton counties, Roanoke Electric Coop uses weatherization to decrease demand for electricity while decreasing members' monthly bills. Intended for educational use, the documentary does not engage with solutions or policy proscriptions; rather, it focuses on provoking critical thought and humanizing the themes of ‘access,’ ‘burden,’ and ‘poverty.’