• Electric public utility commissions in the United States and U.S. territories 
• Electric cooperatives and municipal utilities 
• Puerto Rican essential energy organizations 
• Tribal utilities 
• Inter-tribal councils and other tribal organizations
• Grid operators

The fellowship is open to recent bachelor’s degree, master’s degree, and doctoral graduates and early career professionals. Fellowship candidates must demonstrate an interest in areas such as renewable energy, energy efficiency, and/or sustainable transportation technology and policy; electric grid resilience and modernization; Puerto Rico grid recovery and modernization; and Tribal energy resilience. Fellows serve one-year terms and have the option to renew for a second year. Fellows receive a competitive stipend with health benefits and an education allowance to support their professional development. 

For Host Institutions, program criteria include alignment with the mission and priorities of EERE and GDO, potential for impact, a needs assessment, and the commitment to mentorship.

Merit Review Criteria

• Degree to which the proposed project is in line with EERE’s mission and priorities and/or GDO’s mission and priorities.
• Degree to which there is strong potential for impact from a completed project.
• Degree to which the host demonstrates willingness to make the time commitment to be a good mentor.

Program Policy Factors

1. Applications may be selected for variety across EERE programmatic arenas (energy efficiency, renewable power, and sustainable transportation) and GDO programmatic arenas (essential grid services, grid resilience formula grant implementation, grid resilience metric development, and tribe energy resilience planning practices).
2. Applications may be selected to ensure diversity of Host Institutions (range of types, geography and resource needs).
3. Applications may be selected for optimal distribution of appointments within and across varying types of Host Institutions (e.g., PUCs, utilities, grid operators).
4. Applications may be selected that expand DOE’s funding and support to new competitors and recipients that have not been supported in the past.

For candidates, program criteria include motivation and their academic or professional qualifications.

Merit Review Criteria

• Degree to which the candidate has the training and qualifications required to undertake the type of project in which they’ve indicated interest.
• Degree to which the candidate’s application is clearly articulated, with appropriate levels of technical sophistication.
• Degree to which the candidate is highly motivated and takes initiative.

Program Policy Factors

1. Applications may be selected to ensure diversity of the overall Innovator Fellows cohort (geographic diversity, demographic diversity, and a diversity of colleges and universities).
2. Applications may be selected that best reflect and support local communities in their host institution’s jurisdiction or service territory.

What is a Host Institution? What is a Host Institution mentor?

• Eligible Host Institutions for this cohort include electric public utility commissions in the United States and U.S. territories, electric cooperatives and municipal utilities, Puerto Rican essential energy organizations, grid operators, Tribal utilities, and Inter-Tribal councils and other Tribal organizations. 
• This fellowship program is seeking Host Institutions with projects that require innovative approaches to advance the clean energy transition, to host participants in the Clean Energy Innovator Fellowship program, for up to two years.
• The staff member of the host institution that would guide the Innovator Fellow’s progress on the proposed project is considered the mentor and is expected to play a mentoring role. The mentor is also the point of contact for the Host Institution through the selection process, including interviews.

What is a Puerto Rican essential energy organization?

• Eligible organizations for Puerto Rico are the electric utility regulator, utility, grid operators, and electric cooperatives.

How many Innovator Fellows can be placed at my Host Institution? 

• Eligible host institutions in the United States and U.S. territories (other than Puerto Rico) may host up to two Innovator Fellows so long as fellow project topics are not from the same group of topics (see Project Topics section below). For example, a host can have one fellow supporting a Group A topic and another fellow supporting a Group B topic, but not two fellows supporting a Group A topic and a different Group A topic. 
• Eligible host institutions in Puerto Rico may host up to three Innovator Fellows. 
• Host institutions interested in hosting more than one fellow must submit a separate application for each. Applications should identify a unique project and mentor for each fellow.  

What is Topic B for, and what type of projects qualify? 

• Topic B is designed to provide fellowships at PUCs focused on accelerating opportunities for distributed energy resources (DERs) to participate in grid operations, enhance grid resilience, and improve the cost-effectiveness of DER support for grid functions. In this context DERs can include inverter-based resources, electric vehicles (EVs), demand response, energy storage, or other grid enhancing technologies. Some sample projects acceptable for Topic B proposals include, among others: 
  • Innovative proposals to support distribution grid operations; 
  • Advanced rate design for DERs, including EV charging; 
  • Performance based regulation to enable DERs; 
  • Enabling non-wires alternatives for services beyond peak-shaving; and 
  • Microgrid support for local distribution systems during normal operations. 

Will I have any say in what Innovator Fellow is placed at my Host Institution?

• Yes. The matching process is based on mutual agreement. At the conclusion of Host Institution candidate interviews, the host will select the fellowship candidate. 

Are non-profits, universities, private associations, or privately-owned businesses eligible to apply as Host Institutions of the 2023 cohort?

• Non-profits, universities, or privately owned businesses are ineligible to apply as Host Institutions of this cohort.

Are investor-owned utilities (IOUs) eligible to apply as Host Institutions of the 2023 cohort?

• Investor-owned utilities are ineligible to apply as Host Institutions of this cohort.

What if we are an eligible host institution that has independently identified a strong fellow candidate?

• You may apply to the program with a mutually agreed host-fellow pair already arranged. Both the host and candidate would need to apply separately and indicate the mutual agreement on your respective applications.

What is a cohort? 

• A cohort is the group of all Innovator Fellows selected under one application window.
• The 2023 cohort of Innovator Fellows will be comprised of those successfully receiving placements following their applications to the program solicitation that closes June 12, 2023.

If I secure a fellowship through this program, can I participate remotely from Host Institution?

• An appointment in principle involves a full-time commitment to on-site participation at the Host Institution throughout the appointment period. Prior experience has clearly shown that in-person collaboration makes for a higher quality fellowship experience for both parties.
• Given that many Host Institutions have moved to hybrid in-office arrangements in the wake of the COVID pandemic, the expectation is that an Innovator Fellow would follow their Host Institution’s policies for days in the office versus remote participation from home.
• Full-time remote participation in the fellowship will be considered on a case-by-case basis only, upon request from the Host Institution.

How are Innovator Fellow stipends determined?

• Stipends are determined by highest degree level received and years of relevant professional experience. 

Will I have any say in where I’m appointed to?

• Yes. The matching process is based on mutual agreement. If a project or geography is not a fit for a given candidate, then the candidate should not select it in their application.

Can I apply as a candidate even though I haven’t finished my relevant degree?

• Any degrees in progress must be completed prior to the start of the fellowship. 

The application requires a reference. Who should the reference come from?

• The person providing your reference should be in a position to speak to your ability to contribute to the program. This may be a professional reference or an academic reference, as you choose.
• Note that candidates are asked to provide the name and contact information for their reference person in their application; candidates may submit their application independently of the reference being complete.

Is there a language requirement for Innovator Fellows at Puerto Rican Host Institutions? 

• Spanish language proficiency is recommended, but not required, for Innovator Fellows seeking Puerto Rico placements. 

What is the time commitment once appointed as a fellow?

• An appointment involves a full-time commitment during the Host Institution’s business hours, and throughout the appointment period. 

Does this fellowship program accept applications from non-U.S. citizens?

• The candidate must be a U.S. Citizen or Legal Permanent Resident (LPR) at the time of application. Evidence of this status must be submitted to ORISE at the time an appointment offer is accepted.

Is there an opportunity to extend the fellowship for a second year?

• Yes. The fellowship appointment is for one year, renewable for a second if all parties agree to continue.

• Distributed energy resource adoption and integration
• Electrification (e.g., buildings, vehicles and transportation, charging infrastructure)
• Grid planning and modernization
• Equity and energy justice
• Regulation (e.g., rate design, interconnection)
• Resilience

• Regulatory and economic structures that allow distributed technologies to provide essential grid services while ensuring asset owner/operators receive fair compensation for these services. 
  • Distributed energy technologies include but are not limited to inverter-based resources, microgrids, electric vehicle supply equipment, and distributed energy resources. 
  • Essential grid services include but are not limited to frequency regulation, voltage support, and operating reserves. 
• In their project summary, host institutions should identify specific grid services or distribution-level operations for which economic or regulatory support is necessary.  
• DOE’s Grid Deployment Office will support fellows and help facilitate the collaborative development of best practices.   
   

• Grid resilience and energy planning

• Grid resilience formula grant implementation (i.e., BIL Sec. 40101(d))
• Grid resilience investment prioritization and valuation
• Grid resilience metrics development
• Community engagement and equity in the context of grid resilience planning
• Development of tribal energy expertise and energy sector workforce
• Tribe energy resilience planning practices and decision-making