Building an Equitable Clean Energy Future in DeKalb County: A Climate Digest Interview with Stacey Isaac Berahzer

Chapters

00:00 Meet Stacey Isaac Berahzer 

00:35 How Stacey Found Her Way into Environmental Finance 

02:29 How the DeKalb County Clean Energy Plan Came Together 

05:36 IB Environmental’s Role in Developing the Plan 

08:10 Mapping “Pockets of Poverty” to Guide the Plan 

10:45 What the Team Learned, and Their Recommendations 

13:24 Challenges to Reaching 100% Clean Energy in DeKalb 

16:26 What Success Looks Like for This Work 

21:15 DeKalb’s 2030 Goal, and Whether It’s Realistic 

25:58 What’s Giving Stacey Isaac Berahzer Hope

When DeKalb County decided to pursue a 100% clean energy future, they didn’t just look for technical solutions, they made a deliberate choice to center community engagement and equity.

In this edition of the Georgia Climate Digest interview series, host Eriqah Vincent sits down with Stacey Isaac Berahzer of IB Environmental to talk about what it really takes to build a climate action plan that works for everyone. Stacey’s firm focuses on the intersection of environmental finance, policy, and equity, and played a key role in developing the DeKalb County 100% Clean Energy and Clean Transportation Transition Plan.

How Did the DeKalb County Clean Energy Plan Come Together?

DeKalb County issued a request for proposals that brought together Southface Institute, IB Environmental, Energetics, and Cherry Street Energy. Stacey describes a “divide and conquer” approach: Southface and IB Environmental focused on local engagement and education, Energetics led the greenhouse gas emissions inventory, and Cherry Street Energy assessed the county’s solar potential.

How Did the Team Use Data to Center Equity?

IB Environmental led the plan’s equity analysis, mapping what Stacey calls “pockets of poverty” across DeKalb County by comparing average energy bills to household income by census tract. “It’s one thing to feel like energy is unaffordable,” she says. “It’s another to show it with data.” Those maps helped guide where community workshops were held and where the county should focus future assistance outreach.

What Does Success Look Like Beyond Hitting Emissions Targets?

For Stacey, success means identifying households facing genuine financial hardship and connecting them to real assistance, expanding access to energy-efficiency upgrades that lower bills directly, and making sure rooftop solar isn’t only available to wealthier residents. “We want solar for all,” she says, describing the financing models her team is tracking to make that possible.

Is DeKalb’s 2030 Goal Realistic?

The plan, adopted on Earth Day 2025, sets a 2030 target for many of its clean energy goals. Stacey is candid about the challenges, from shifting federal funding to the sheer scale of DeKalb County, but points to engaged young people and what she calls “leapfrog technology,” like solar power reaching communities that never had grid electricity, as reasons for hope.

Whether you live in DeKalb County or are working on a similar plan elsewhere, this conversation offers a clear, practical look at how to build climate policy that centers the people it’s meant to help.

What You’ll Learn

• How Stacey’s path from environmental science to law school detoured into environmental finance.
• How Southface, IB Environmental, Energetics, and Cherry Street Energy divided the work on DeKalb’s plan.
• How IB Environmental’s “pockets of poverty” mapping guided community outreach and assistance programs.
• Why governance structures, like a Community Climate Champions cohort, matter as much as the plan itself.
• What success looks like beyond emissions targets, from energy burden relief to solar access.
• Why Stacey believes “leapfrog technology” and youth engagement will help Georgia meet its climate goals.

Continue reading in our companion blog for additional details on how the team behind DeKalb’s clean energy plan centered equity and community engagement in this important initiative.

Download the Interview Transcript

Prefer to read the conversation instead? Download the complete PDF transcript of this interview with Stacey Isaac Berahzer to explore her insights on equitable clean energy planning, community engagement, and financial sustainability.