Charged Up

“ENERGY EFFICIENCY SAVES CUSTOMERS MONEY, and a real driver for efficiency is to reduce your carbon footprint,” says choi, vice president of integrated planning and environmental affairs at Southern California Edison (SCE). The 17-year electric utility veteran is responsible for developing Sce’s energy and environmental strategies as well as maintaining strong relationships with key en- vironmental stakeholders and advocating environmental initiatives in Sce’s service territories. “many of our en- ergy policies are targeted at reducing the environmental impact of energy by utilizing renewable resources and building stricter codes around consumption,” she says. Since 2013 SCE has been procuring 21 percent of its energy from geothermal, wind, solar and biomass sources— delivering more renewable energy to its 50,000-square- mile territory than any other investor-owned utility in the nation—and Choi is working to bring that to 33 percent by 2020, as mandated by the California Renewables Portfolio Standard. “Whether we try to build consensus around the cap-and-trade market design, conduct joint experiments with the U.S. Department of Energy on battery storage, or promote the electrification of vehicles through customer engagement—we want to help progress California in hav- ing a cleaner environment, cleaner energy and cleaner technology,” says choi. “That’s one of the most rewarding aspects of my job.” With so many actors and priorities on the scene, bal- ancing energy production and environmental conserva- tion can be a challenging task—one Choi says she enjoys. “energy and environment are inextricably related on so many different levels,” she says. “i love working on these issues because they’re as complex as they are important.”

“Electricity: It’s a product that’s so essential to a good quality of life,” says the southern California utility VP.