About
Steve Cowell
Our Founder
As a nation, we face serious energy-related issues that must be addressed. I have been working toward that end since 1979 with energy efficiency and clean energy plans and programs.
I am very proud of my work creating and leading the Conservation Services Group (CSG) that improved energy efficiency in over 3.2 million households.
CSG later evolved into E4TheFuture, which was designed with a 10-year end date. As that deadline approached, it became clear that my greatest contribution toward our energy solutions going forward would be putting my decades of experience to use as an industry consultant.
As the founder of Cowell Consulting, I help to facilitate more coordinated efforts and greater impact between policymakers, advocacy organizations and implementing companies in our space.
Please contact me at steve@cowellconsulting.org, and let’s work together to build our best clean energy economy.
Our Mission
Cowell Consulting’s mission is to help policymakers, advocacy organizations, and implementing companies address the key drivers of our current energy challenges and deliver greater efficiency and impact in the national energy marketplace.
Cowell Career Highlights
Co-founder Conservation Services Group (CSG) | 1984-2015
“Led by Steve Cowell, who co-founded the organization, CSG served a range of clients from utilities and public agencies to municipalities and communities. CSG’s philosophy is one of partnership with its clients. Since our inception, we have helped our clients receive recognition and win awards from leading national and international organizations. CSG has been honored with many prestigious leadership awards.” (Excerpt from the E4TheFuture archive website)
In the 1980s, CSG field staff visited neighborhoods, observing New England homes after winter storms and distributing energy-efficient light bulbs as an implementation organization for state government and utility programs. “Nature’s thermal camera” revealed the evidence: a snow-free roof indicated that a house lacked insulation. Initially known as the Community Energy Partnership (CEP) before adopting the name Conservation Services Group (CSG), CEP began an energy audit program for Boston Edison in 1985 (now Eversource Energy).
CSG conducted home energy assessments for utilities and energy efficiency organizations nationwide, saving more than 3,473,700 MBTUs on behalf of our clients in 2013 alone. We helped more than 3.2 million households improve energy savings at home.
Cowell Consulting will work to assist our industry to reach millions more as we help build a clean energy economy.
Conservation Services Group has always been synonymous with energy efficiency and clean energy technologies. Since 1984, we’ve been promoting the benefits of energy efficiency for our clients, homeowners, and for the common good.
Director of E4TheFuture | 2015-2022
This was the same non-profit as CSG but with a new name and strategy. The new strategy was to use additional new funds to promote policies and programs to accelerate moving the industry.
E4TheFuture provided grants to national and regional organizations as well as developed innovative strategies such as improved valuation of resources, EV car sharing for low-income communities, and legislative strategies at the state and national levels.
Founded Cowell Consulting | 2022
Leaving E4TheFuture with a great team to continue the work, I had the vision of developing new strategies, plans, and efforts to move forward with our developing goals for energy, climate, and equity. I named this effort Cowell Consulting as a platform for an experienced solutions provider to offer assistance and support across the industry.
I have also been selected to assume the role of director of the Northeast Energy Efficiency Council (NEEC), which I helped form 30 years ago, and have developed some key consulting arrangements with several local and national organizations.
Director of NEEC
My goal is to expand NEEC to facilitate supporting collaboration across the many organizations in our industry and policy initiatives.
The mission is to achieve the challenging collaboration between multiple organizations better and to address the complex set of goals and policies that we are facing, as illustrated in the graphic to the right.
Organizational Partnerships
