1. Names, Company, Position and Titles:

Audrey Schulman, HEET Co-Founder & Co-Executive Director

Zeyneb Magavi, HEET Co-Executive Director

2. When did you both start to become passionate about geothermal?

Zeyneb: In 2007, I wanted to get combustion out of my home, and my research led me to the best technology to do that: the ground source heat pump. When the first estimates were out of my budget, I began to wonder if sharing an install between buildings could decrease up front costs through increased efficiency. Fast forward and I was working with Audrey on the challenges our gas utilities are facing in a decarbonizing world. I realized it was a beautiful fit—that’s how the idea of a utility-scale transition from gas to geothermal networks was born, and HEET has been advancing it ever since, first in Massachusetts and now nationally.

Audrey: The timing was perfect. In the previous several years, HEET had succeeded in bringing gas executives, environmental activists, and legislators together to mandate that the utilities fix the biggest gas leaks and to help research the best way to identify those “super emitters” so they can be fixed—since it turns out that just 7% of those leaks account for 50% of the gas distribution system’s methane emissions. We had also collaborated with scientists at Boston University and Harvard University to publish influential research on the composition of natural gas and the health impacts of gas stoves.

Of course, the next challenge was getting off gas entirely, and Zeyneb’s idea for networked geothermal—also called thermal energy networks and district energy—was the perfect solution. It allows gas utilities to continue delivering an essential public service and providing good jobs, and it gives homeowners, landlords, tenants and businesses access to affordable, non-combusting heating and cooling.

Zeyneb: That there are benefits for all involved—and the electric grid, too—is critical to the rapid scaling we are seeing all over the country. Even as Eversource Gas installs the first gas-to-geo ‘designed to scale’ network in the streets of Framingham, MA, there are installations and feasibility studies in progress in 12 other states, and another installation beginning in Lowell, MA. To support this expansion, HEET and Building Decarbonization Coalition are building a national network of advocates to work in synergy with workforce, academia, industry, and a national network of gas utilities, currently 26 and growing, who formed a coalition to explore networked geothermal. So the national landscape is shifting rapidly. Daily.

3. Share with us the beginning of your partnership as co-executive directors and its pivotal role in the remarkable achievements of HEET?

Audrey: I met Zeyneb years ago when our kids were little, but we connected on climate when she became an active member of Mothers Out Front. Her background in physics and sustainability made her an ideal partner in helping us study methods of detecting and measuring gas leaks, so we collaborated on a research project. HEET’s work was rapidly gaining traction and I needed leadership support, so it became clear to both of us that bringing her on board made sense.

Zeyneb: Audrey and I make a great team. Besides bringing complementary skills, we share an unwavering commitment to how we approach the work we do at HEET. The most important element—which I think is both highly unusual and the biggest driver of HEET’s success—is that we invite everyone to the table, and then we move at the speed of trust. Listening deeply. Actually caring. This is how we have come to work effectively with such a broad, diverse group of stakeholders.

Audrey: The amazing thing is we each came to this approach independently. Neither of us is adversarial; we seek collaboration wherever possible because we understand that all social change happens through relationships. So often people forget this. We think if we come up with a great idea, it will just happen. But it won’t unless people are listening and trust you, and that takes both intention and time. Zeyneb and I get that, and it has really strengthened our partnership.

4. What guidance would you offer to aspiring women entering the geothermal industry?

Audrey: When I helped found HEET 15 years ago, I had cut my home’s energy bill in half but that didn’t seem like enough anymore. I knew I couldn’t look on as a bystander while climate change impacted my sons’ future. So I started doing what I could—reading voraciously, getting my hands dirty, learning along the way, not giving up. And it worked. Absolutely do not be deterred because you are not “an expert.”

Zeyneb: That’s great advice—be persistent! Which of course works if you are an expert, too! This industry has a massive opportunity in front of it to change the world for the better. To succeed we need you. Please find the courage to persist right past any barriers you face in your training, education, or participation. Joining organizations whose mission is to support women in this industry, like Women in Geothermal and Society of Women Engineers, can help. And joining organizations like IGSHPA allows you to build your own network of experienced and passionate people. More than anything, please remember that the ground source heat pump industry needs every one of us to achieve the speed and scale needed to solve climate—we need exponential growth…

Audrey: Not explosive growth.

Zeyneb: No, this is non-combusting growth! And we need many committed, creative, intelligent, technically skilled, and passionate people to do the work. So we clearly need a lot more women!

5. Share three fun and interesting facts about yourselves?

Audrey: I’m the author of six novels, which have been translated into 12 languages and been reviewed by The New Yorker, The Economist and CNN. One of my best vacations was kayaking with whales in Vancouver. And I challenge anyone to have lower energy bills than I do—I’m an air-sealing and weatherization nut.

Zeyneb: My first job was for the company that built the first internet, where I was assigned to write code for underwater acoustics models for the U.S. Navy. Yes, that was more about torpedos than whales. Despite that job, plus my time as a varsity fencer at Brown University and a black belt in Uechi-Ryu karate, I am deeply pacifist.

Audrey: Still, don’t mess with her.