High heating bills? Home efficiency group expanding to area towns

“It’s all about being efficient and saving money,” says Doug Hylan, a boatbuilder and one of the founders of the Brooklin Climate Response Committee

Volunteer Lars Selberg, right, and Island Institute Fellow Grace Carrier speak to a homeowner as they arrive to conduct a home energy coaching inspection. Photo courtesy of the Brooklin Climate Response Committee.

Feb. 10, 2026

By Steele Hays

Just over three years ago, and with support from the Brooklin Select Board, a small group of volunteers founded the Brooklin Climate Response Committee to help local residents make energy improvements leading to “healthier, more comfortable and more economical homes and businesses.” 

Since then, the all-volunteer group has completed 55 free “energy coaching” projects for local residents, spending several hours inspecting each of their homes, looking for ways to improve energy efficiency, make homes less drafty and more airtight, reduce energy use and save money on fuel and power. The group says its goal is to find local solutions to address the effects of climate change. 

Now, the committee plans to use the knowledge they’ve gained to expand their energy coaching program to all nine towns on the Blue Hill Peninsula and on Deer Isle.  They also want to train additional volunteers as home energy coaches. 

“It’s all about being efficient and saving money,” said Doug Hylan, a boatbuilder and one the committee’s founders.

Hylan said he was motivated by the idea of thinking globally, but acting locally.

“I just felt this sense of despair that we’re not doing enough to address climate change. I felt that the time was right to do something local,” Hylan said.

Corrinne Collette, also a committee member and a retired archivist, felt a similar drive to do something positive about climate change.

“I just thought about what I could do as an individual and at least lead by example,” Collette said. “We can live in comfort and still use less energy. The technology is there. Why not do it?”

When Collette and her husband built their retirement home in 2019, they decided to build it off the grid–with electricity provided by solar panels and battery power storage, and with heat from solar energy and a wood stove.

“It’s very nice to have zero utility bills,” she said. 

Hylan and Collette recognize that attitudes about climate change and its causes are highly polarized and want to steer clear of making judgements about anyone’s views on the subject. Whatever one’s beliefs on the issue, virtually everyone is interested in having a more energy-efficient, comfortable home–and in saving money, they said.  

As part of their efforts to expand the geographical area they serve, the committee has set up an email to handle inquiries from anyone interested in exploring an energy coaching session for their home.

Anyone who signs up for a coaching session will receive a joint visit from two or three of the committee volunteers who will inspect their home. Then, within two or three weeks, the committee will send a written report with observations and recommendations on how to improve the home’s efficiency, as well as names of potential providers for various services and information on rebates and tax incentives to make any upgrades more affordable.

Some climate change-related federal programs have been eliminated by the current federal administration, such as rebates on electric vehicles, but there are still many energy efficiency incentive programs that remain in place, including those offered by Efficiency Maine, the state-run program.  

Efficiency Maine offers rebates on heat pump water heaters, which are more energy efficient than older technologies, Hylan said. The level of rebates vary according to household income, but at least two of the households assisted by the committee were able to qualify for free heat pump water heaters. In addition, and again based on income, Efficiency Maine will pay for up to 80 percent of the cost of insulation, Hylan said. Learn more at www.efficiencymaine.com.

The committee has posted a wide range of information about the home energy coaching program as well as incentive programs on the Brooklin town website, under the “Directory” section. Look for “Climate Response.” The committee has also set up a YouTube channel with a range of informative videos.

In today’s politically polarized atmosphere, Hylan believes that it’s an advantage to have the free energy coaching sessions done by local people. One client testimonial featured on the committee’s webpage speaks to this point: "It meant a lot to me that the knowledgeable people who came to my home to advise me on ways to make it warmer and more energy-efficient were also my neighbors–members of my own community. I felt very comfortable, and I knew I could trust them.”