Spark the Switch: Overcoming Barriers to Heat Pump Adoption and Electrification
Date: November 19, 2:00pm-3:30pm ET (11am-12:30pm PT)
Slides: View here
Description:
Despite their energy efficiency and environmental benefits, residential heat pumps are not yet being widely adopted in the United States. Understanding and addressing psychological, social, and economic barriers is crucial to accelerating their adoption and promoting electrification.
This webinar will bring together three leading behavioral researchers to explore the heat pump adoption journey—from initial consideration to post-installation support—highlighting key barriers that hinder widespread adoption. Attendees will gain practical strategies to overcome these barriers, including methods to effectively engage middle actors such as contractors and installers in the decision-making process. The session will also explore innovative approaches to enhance education and satisfaction post-installation, aiming to foster greater uptake of heat pump technology in residential settings.
The webinar will conclude with an interactive discussion on the next steps for social science research to accelerate heat pump adoption and electrification, giving participants and speakers alike an opportunity to provide input that can help guide future funding and program efforts.
Speakers:
- Speaker 3: Hale Forster, Limetree
- Speaker 1: Ellen Steiner, Opinion Dynamics
- Speaker 2: Kristin Heinemeier, Frontier Energy
- Moderator: Beth Karlin, See Change Institute
Dr. Hale Forster, Director of Behavioral Science, Limetree
As director of behavioral science at Limetree, Hale works with organizations to help their customers align short-term actions with long-term goals. She identifies and deploys the right behavioral science tools for each project, from customer surveys to journey mapping to communications audits. Hale has 14 years of experience applying behavioral science to support positive behavior change and technology adoption. Marrying academic knowledge with industry and applied research expertise, she has worked with dozens of clients in sectors from energy to healthcare. Hale received her PhD in psychology from Columbia University, where she studied judgment and decision-making with a focus on residential energy use and technology adoption. She is the past president of the Society for Environmental, Conservation, and Population Psychology.
Dr. Ellen Steiner, Vice President, Opinion Dynamics
Dr. Ellen Steiner is a vice president at Opinion Dynamics. Ellen is a passionate researcher who embraces analytic challenges and is committed to ensuring the useful application of results and insights to inform systems thinking and strategy development. She has more than 20 years of experience in research and evaluation, with 10 years specifically committed to energy research. Although her PhD is in quantitative research, Ellen’s passion is mixed methods research and her specialties include electrification, decarbonization, ZNE, HVAC, heat pumps customer engagement, market research, qualitative research, voice of customer research, program evaluation, policy analysis, and mixed-method research designs. Ellen has researched heat pump technology dating back to 2011 and has provided policy guidance, commission testimony, market research, and market, process, and impact evaluations. She provides guidance to energy clients to understand findings in the context of their specific regulatory, economic, and organizational landscape. Ellen’s background in social sciences and her applied business experience support her effective communication and application of results and insights to inform cutting-edge program evaluation and customer experience initiatives.
Dr. Kristin Heinemeier, Engineering Manager, Frontier Energy, Inc.
Kristin is an engineering manager with Frontier Energy, Inc., with almost 40 years of experience in buildings energy research. She has applied behavioral and HVAC technology research and stakeholder engagement to energy efficiency technologies, programs, policies, and best practices. She is the technical manager of a $30 million market transformation program across California to get the most out of residential HVAC providers, and the principal investigator of a pilot workforce development program in a growing but disadvantaged region of Southern California. Kristin has a PhD in building science and is a licensed mechanical engineer. She has been honored as ASHRAE Fellow and recipient of ASHRAE’s Distinguished Service Award.
Beth Karlin, Founder and CEO, See Change Institute
Dr. Beth Karlin is the founder and CEO of See Change Institute, an applied research firm devoted to studying and shaping behavior for the greater good. She is currently working on projects to train energy managers on behavior, understand and influence electrification, and support community energy programs. Beth has published her work in venues ranging from Psychological Bulletin to Peace Studies and is a sought-after speaker and trainer on Storytelling, Smart Homes, and the Social Science of Sustainability (and she loves alliteration). She is a past president of the American Psychological Association’s environmental psychology division, associate editor for Energy Efficiency Journal, and a member of the National Academies of Science Environmental Health Matters Initiative. Before receiving her PhD in social ecology from UC Irvine, Beth spent nearly a decade working in K-12 education, holding positions as a teacher, counselor, and school administrator. She believes that the role of a researcher is not only to better understand the world but also to improve it and hopes that her work is able to serve both purposes.