Energy infrastructure is an often-overlooked site of design, governance, and repair. The power plants, substations, transmission corridors, and industrial waterfronts that sustain life in New York City remain largely invisible to those who benefit from them, even as they profoundly shape neighborhoods, public health, and ecological futures. For decades, the burdens of energy production have been concentrated in the city's working-class communities of color, while decisions about energy investment, ownership, and governance have remained distant from public control. As the federal government has fully retreated from climate action and New York State has rolled back implementation of its landmark climate law, questions of power—both electrical and political—have become increasingly urgent.
But alongside these failures, New York also holds uncommon tools for transformation: the largest public power authority in the nation, municipal leadership positioned to advance public approaches to energy at scale, and robust grassroots organizing that has expanded in the void of government action.
As part of the Energies of Repair installation in the CFA Lab: Repair – Democracy and Urban Spaces exhibition, this symposium brings together these different actors and scales of agency and power into a single conversation, asking what it takes—across institutions, communities, and design fields—to transform energy systems from sites of extraction into instruments of repair.
Where should collective organizing power be directed in this moment? How can communities challenge narratives that frame renewable energy and environmental justice as “unaffordable,” while ignoring the social, economic, and environmental costs of the fossil fuel status quo? And what forms of public ownership, democratic governance, and community stewardship are needed to accelerate climate action while addressing long-standing inequities?
Speakers:
Daniel Chu, Senior Energy Planner, New York City Environmental Justice Alliance
Emily Gallagher, New York State Assembly Member
Annel Hernandez, Public Utility Advocate, Mayor’s Office of Climate & Environmental Justice (MOCEJ)
Dariella Rodriguez, Director of Community Development, The POINT CDC
About the Speakers:
Daniel Chu is a geographer and climate organizer. As the Senior Energy Planner for the New York City Environmental Justice Alliance, Daniel coordinates various campaigns designed to inform city, state, and federal policies for building energy democracy and achieving a just transition, such as his work to phase out New York’s peaker power plants or support for community-owned clean energy projects statewide. He is also a doctoral fellow in earth and environmental sciences at CUNY Graduate Center and a board member of BK ROT.
Emily Gallagher represents the North Brooklyn neighborhoods of Greenpoint and Williamsburg in the New York State Assembly. Elected in 2020, she was the first new member of the Assembly to represent the 50th district in nearly half a century. Since taking office, Emily has fought to address New York’s deep inequality and dire housing crisis while accelerating the state’s transition to renewable energy. In the 2023 session, she led the charge on two first-in-the-nation policies: the All-Electric Buildings Act to phase out fossil gas hookups in new construction, and the LLC Transparency Act to unmask anonymous shell companies operating with impunity in New York. This year, she passed the SUNNY Act to create a pathway to bring balcony solar to New York, enabling access to the solar economy for those who have been shut out from rooftop solar. She is one of the Assembly's most outspoken and effective climate champions.
Annel Hernandez is New York City’s Public Utility Advocate at the Mayor’s Office of Climate and Environmental Justice, where she leads the clean energy team. As Public Utility Advocate, Annel works to protect utility customers, fight for affordable rates, expand access to energy affordability programs, increase public participation in utility rate proceedings, and ensure the transition to clean energy delivers material benefits to the New Yorkers who need them most. Annel has dedicated her career in public service to advancing climate policy with a focus on equity, environmental justice and clean energy. Previously, Hernandez served as the Director of Climate and Environmental Policy for New York City Council Member Sandy Nurse and as Associate Director of the New York City Environmental Justice Alliance. She also held roles at the Mayor’s Office of Economic Opportunity and the Urban Climate Change Research Network at Columbia University’s Earth Institute. Hernandez teaches environmental justice and climate resiliency at Columbia University. She holds a bachelor’s degree in political science and Latino studies from Fordham University and a Master of Public Administration in Energy and Environment from Columbia University. A lifelong New Yorker, she lives in Bushwick, Brooklyn.
Dariella Rodriguez is a mother and organizer from New York City who has spent the majority of her career working in the South Bronx. She has collaborated with the community on initiatives tackling environmental justice issues, frequently in relation to food justice, education reform, and other topics. Her current position at THE POINT CDC is Director of Community Development, where she oversees the Resiliency work through community organizing and infrastructure projects, all the while supporting youth leadership development and a shared understanding of the underlying causes of our issues.
Center for Architecture; Energies of Repair
