Irvin Rivero: Making Electric Vehicles More Equitable

Irvin Rivero is the Beneficial Electrification Manager at Acterra, whose work is engaging and educating local community members about the benefits of electric vehicles to accelerate the use of clean energy, reduce carbon emissions, and lower air pollution caused by conventional combustion vehicles. Through multilingual Acterra events and workshops, Irivin educates community members about clean energy incentives and shares financial resources and opportunities offered by local government and energy providers to increase the adoption of electric vehicles. Upgrading appliances, buildings, and vehicles to those that operate on clean energy instead of fossil fuels is a meaningful way to invest in climate resilience and reduce emissions. Irvin shares, "At Acterra, we focus on local climate solutions. If we can change a community by reducing carbon emissions, it's part of the solution for the whole planet." When speaking about the "doom" we may feel about the climate crisis, something that helps Irvin feel more hopeful is the power of collective action to address climate change, which starts at the individual and community level before building momentum to deliver a much bigger impact.

One of the most important things you can do regarding climate change is talk about it.

• In recent years, electric vehicle sales globally have increased significantly. According to the Environmental Defense Fund, in 2023, more than 1.4 million EVs were sold in the United States alone. Because EVs are a cleaner and more energy-efficient alternative to combustion vehicles, which burn fossil fuels such as gasoline or diesel, they are an high-impact climate solution. However, there remains a cost barrier for many when it comes to owning an EV leading to ownership disparities. Irvin's work is helping to address these inequities regarding electric vehicle ownership. He explains, "The myth… is that electric vehicles are for the rich…There is a big inequity…But they really are coming out with affordable electric vehicles." Through education, Irvin shares the environmental and economic benefits of electric vehicles with lower-income community members, including that they are "cheaper to fuel up, cheaper to maintain…over the lifetime of the car, and there's a lot of incentives right now for low-income individuals." Does your family or someone you know own an electric vehicle? What can you do to help Irvin spread the message that EV’s can be affordable? What local programs exist in your community that support the adoption of EV’s?
• Irvin has a strong love for nature, partly developed through childhood experiences, but also through attending a science camp in elementary school. He was inspired by his high school-aged camp counselor, who was passionate about the outdoors and nature. Irvin shares, "My cabin leader was really cool; I wanted to be just like him…he liked a lot of nature and taught us a lot." This experience impacted Irvin so much that he decided to be a high school cabin leader at the same nature camp when he got older. Knowing the impact he could have as a role model, Irvin would tell campers, "This love for nature is going to take you far; it's going to make you care about a lot of things." Who is someone that you have looked up to in your life? How have they inspired you to care about things you might not have considered?
• In 2020, fires sparked by lightning strikes burned through more than 97% of Big Basin Redwoods Park, driven in part by warmer, drier conditions caused by climate change. Camping there just a week before the fires, Irvin felt compelled to dedicate a college project to study how the redwood trees were affected. He worked with his fire ecology professor to measure the scorch marks on trees and the impact of the fires. Through this project, Irvin describes “falling in love with the redwoods and wanting to protect them even more.” What is a natural landscape that has special meaning for you? What are the climate impacts or projections this landscape faces now or in the future? How have you considered protecting and caring for it?
• One barrier that Irvin has had to overcome is a fear of public speaking. Through classes and practice, Irvin has reduced anxiety and built confidence in presenting in front of others in both English and Spanish. Learning how to cope with his fear of public speaking has allowed Irvin to connect more deeply with community members through their native language, which helps facilitate local action on climate. “The Spanish community has been left out a lot,” Irvin says. “They don’t get the same resources, but now I try to make an impact in those communities.” Is your community typically involved in climate change conversations and decision-making? What are some of the social, economic, and political factors that might contribute to this? How might language play a role in who participates in climate action?

Learn about the solutions in this story.

• Sectors: Transportation
• Climate Solutions Cluster: Shift to Alternatives, Electrify Vehicles
• For more on all of Project Drawdown’s climate solutions, visit drawdown.org/solutions
• Learn more about Irvin’s work at Acterra

Explore Climate Solutions 101, the world's first major educational effort focused solely on climate solutions. This video series combines Project Drawdown’s trusted resources with the expertise of inspiring, scientifically knowledgeable voices from around the world: drawdown.org/climate-solutions-101.

Check out the Drawdown Roadmap, a science-based strategy for accelerating climate solutions that ensures efforts to stop climate change by governments, businesses, investors, philanthropists, community organizations, and others are as impactful as possible.

Visit the Yale Program on Climate Change Communication, a resource that shares research, communications strategy, and opinion polling on climate communications.

• Subscribe to the Project Drawdown newsletter to receive biweekly insights and inspiration to guide your own climate solutions journey. 
• Drawdown Ecochallenge, presented by Ecochallenge.org, is a fun and social way to take measurable action on the top climate solutions. Take the challenge, and see how a few weeks of action add up to a lifetime of change for you and the planet. If you want to take action on climate solutions like Irvin, start a challenge today. 
• The Drawdown Labs Job Function Action Guides are practical resources that highlight specific, high-impact climate actions employees in common corporate professions can take at work. 
• ChangeX connects people with proven ideas for strengthening communities with the resources needed to implement those changes. Explore countless ways to improve your community and help the world reach drawdown.
• Climate Generation's Green Careers for a Changing Climate Instructional Supplement (for Grades 6-8) contains resources to help young people learn about Green STEM Careers—paths that use STEM skills to help reduce the impacts of climate change. Throughout this instructional supplement, students use Project Drawdown resources to make important connections between climate solutions and different careers.
• Solutions Journalism Network highlights the importance of reporting stories of climate solutions in the media to create a more equitable and sustainable world. Visit their Teaching Climate Solutions resource to find curated collections and the latest examples of climate solutions journalism.
• SubjectToClimate (StC) is a nonprofit online connector for K-12 leaders of all subjects to find materials on climate change at no cost. Explore StC’s educator-generated database to connect to Project Drawdown-based climate education resources.