Massachusetts Interfaith Power & Light

This data was last updated on 23 April 2021.

Address: P.O. Box 590564, Newton Centre, MA 02459
Phone: 617-244-0755
Email: MIPandL@MIPandL.org
Website: http://www.mipandl.org
Mission: Massachusetts Interfaith Power & Light assists faith communities, their members, and the public to decrease their carbon dioxide emissions & energy costs; educate people on why climate change is a matter of morality and justice; and advocate for policies that will lead to a sustainable future.

History: According to the MIP&L website, "In 1994, Episcopal Power and Light was founded by the Reverend Sally Bingham and Steve MacAusland (who is the Co-Founder of MIP&L) as a religious response to global warming. Episcopal Power and Light had its earliest success in California where more than sixty churches switched from traditional power sources to clean and renewable electricity. Rev. Sally Bingham and Steve MacAusland then began to reach out to other denominations in other states, helping them to start 'Interfaith Power and Lights'. They planted the seeds for this 'IPL movement.' Each IPL is its own entity; they are not formally connected with each other, and each has its own approach as well as leadership."

Description: According to the organization's website, Massachusetts Interfaith Power & Light is "a non-profit initiative to offer Massachusetts congregations of every religious tradition a comprehensive means of reducing energy consumption, lowering operating costs, and promoting non-polluting, renewable energy in houses of worship and related buildings." The website explains, "Per capita, per hour of use, houses of worship are often among the biggest wasters of energy, and the United States has more houses of worship than any other country." For this reason, Massachusetts Interfaith Power & Light encourages houses of worship to set an example for their congregants by seeking to bring their structures in line with energy-efficient standards.

Demographics: The organization consists of over 200 current and former houses of worship, according to the member list on the group's website.

Services: MIP&L offers a variety of services to its member congregations, including applications for energy-saving programs, like GreenerWatts New England, the opportunity to purchase ReGen, a renewable energy product, and an oil-building aggregatation group, to reduce the price of heating oil for houses of worship. Also, members of MIP&L congregations can receive free home energy audits through MIP&L, to help them identify areas where they could reduce energy use.