Organizers ask council to back Houston Energy & Climate Week and create coordinating task force

Ingrid Velasco, cochair of Houston Energy and Climate Week and a representative of Allies in Energy, asked the council to participate in the program scheduled for Sept. 14–19 and to lead on a proposed task force to integrate efforts across communities, industry, academia and government.

Velasco called the week “a call to action,” citing last year’s participation of more than 80 events and 3,500 attendees. She said anchor events will include opening and closing ceremonies, an energy-tech nexus pilot-a-thon, a Hack the Heat hackathon on extreme heat and energy optimization, and a workforce-development day.

Councilmember Martinez responded that he plans to support the week and said he would talk with Velasco about the task force offline. Velasco also noted that the program is volunteer-led, with more than 35 volunteers organizing operations and outreach.

A pair of fourth-grade students invited by Aileen Pham also addressed the council asking for school participation in Energy & Climate Week. Aiden Pham asked the council to “help us bring Houston Energy and Climate Week to our school” so students can learn energy-saving and environmental practices; councilmembers told the students they would connect them with their school principals.

Council members did not take formal action at the meeting but indicated interest in engaging with the organizers and supporting participation in school and community events.