小猪视频

11/21/2025

Media contacts: Brooke Coupal, communications, economic impact and research development specialist, Brooke_Coupal@uml.edu, and Nancy Cicco, assistant director of media relations, Nancy_Cicco@uml.edu

LOWELL, Mass. 鈥� The Clean Energy and Environment Legacy Transition (CELT) Municipal Fellowship Program checked all the boxes for Amy Bickford.

The program aligned with her career goals, kept her close to her hometown of Billerica, Mass., and, most importantly, provided her with the opportunity to make a difference in her community.听

Over the past six months, Bickford and eight other local college students worked alongside local governments and planners across the state on clean energy projects as part of the CELT Municipal Fellowship Program. The Healey-Driscoll Administration, in collaboration with 小猪视频 and Boston University, launched the CELT initiative to advance clean energy solutions, support municipal decarbonization and expand geothermal workforce development. The 小猪视频 Rist Institute for Sustainability and Energy led the establishment of CELT Fellowship Programs, providing students with paid opportunities to build a more sustainable future by working with state and local governments.

鈥淐ELT connects students鈥� passion for sustainability with the real needs of Massachusetts communities,鈥� said Ruairi O鈥橫ahony, CELT director and 小猪视频 associate vice chancellor for sustainability and enterprise development. 鈥淥ur municipal fellows are driving real progress toward local decarbonization goals while gaining hands-on experience that prepares them to lead the clean energy transition.鈥�

Joanne Bissetta, director of the Green Communities Division within the Massachusetts Department of Energy Resources, applauded the work of the fellows as they shared their experiences with municipal leaders on Friday in the heart of the (LINC), a mixed-use development fostering a vibrant innovation ecosystem.

鈥淭he projects you鈥檝e done have positively impacted the residents of your community,鈥� Bissetta said to the fellows during the event. 鈥淩egardless of what鈥檚 going on in the wider world, having a local impact where people live and work, I鈥檝e personally found really meaningful, and I hope you鈥檝e seen that in the projects you鈥檝e done.鈥�

Image by Brooke Coupal

An environmental science and policy major at Framingham State University, Bickford spent her fellowship with the Northern Middlesex Council of Governments (NMCOG), a regional planning agency serving the Greater Lowell region. She worked on several projects, including an energy siting study that estimates the power needed to support 19,000 new housing units in Greater Lowell over the next decade as part of efforts to address the housing crisis.

鈥淏y helping individual municipalities get the ball rolling on their clean energy initiatives, I knew that I鈥檇 be contributing to positive changes in communities that need it most,鈥� Bickford said. 鈥淭his fellowship has been so rewarding.鈥�

Municipal fellow Elias Rodriguez, a mechanical engineering major at 小猪视频, valued the knowledge he gained by working with the town of Athol鈥檚 Department of Planning and Development on projects focused on decarbonization.

鈥淚 want to focus my career on designing and innovating carbon-neutral energy generation systems like photovoltaic cells, fusion energy and their supporting systems,鈥� he said. 鈥淟earning about how those systems get funded and what it takes for them to be truly adoptable and equitable has been insightful.鈥澛�

For Ashanti Mclean, an environmental studies and sustainability major at UMass Boston, working with the town of Needham helped her realize what she wants to do after graduating.

鈥淭hrough this fellowship, I鈥檝e discovered a strong interest in urban planning and have learned so much about how work happens at the municipal level 鈥� something I knew very little about before,鈥� she said. 鈥淚 feel more confident about my career direction, and I鈥檓 grateful for the opportunity and exposure this fellowship has given me.鈥�

While the municipal fellows gained career-connected experiences that translated into real-world impact, the municipalities including Arlington, Ashfield, Athol, Berlin, Needham, Salem and Springfield, as well as NMCOG, gained vital support.

"Our partnership with the 小猪视频 CELT Municipal Fellowship Program has been a tremendous asset to NMCOG,鈥� said NMCOG Deputy Director Kelly Lynema. 鈥淎my Bickford, our fellow, brought remarkable energy, fresh ideas and strong research skills to every project she worked on. Her contributions not only advanced our work in clean energy and access to outdoor resources but also enriched our team鈥檚 capacity to think creatively and approach regional challenges with new perspectives. We are grateful for the opportunity to participate in the program and look forward to continuing this collaboration.鈥�

"The work that our CELT municipal fellow, Elias Rodriguez, has provided the Town of Athol has been invaluable,鈥� said Eric R. Smith, Athol鈥檚 director of planning and community development. 鈥淓lias helped us generate a better understanding of the costs and benefits of electric vehicles as well as helping us plan for more municipal solar installations in the future. The Town of Athol thanks the CELT Municipal Fellowship program for his assistance, which enabled the town to advance efforts that would otherwise have been challenging given current staff capacity."

鈥淲e have had a wonderful experience working with our CELT municipal fellow, Ashanti, this year,鈥� said Needham Sustainability Manager Gabby Queenan. 鈥淎shanti鈥檚 work has supported research topics that were prioritized by the Needham Climate Action Committee and Climate Action Roadmap. It was wonderful to have Ashanti join our office to boost our capacity for understanding the policy options for these climate topics.鈥�

Local college students interested in applying to be part of the next Municipal Fellowship cohort can see more information on the Municipal Fellowship webpage.听Applications are also being accepted for the next Office of Energy Transformation Fellowship cohort.