By joining AECP, you are helping to advance the weatherization industry in Virginia.
Our Vision: All Virginians, regardless of income or circumstance, live in a home that is safe, healthy, efficient, and affordable to maintain.
Our Mission: Advance the weatherization industry in Virginia and our members’ shared missions of catalyzing energy affordability through weatherization, home repair services, and innovative energy solutions.
Since 1992, the Association of Energy Conservation Professionals (AECP) has worked to advance energy affordability through weatherization and home repair services. We provide, promote, and advocate for energy conservation through the federal Weatherization Assistance Program (WAP), and income-qualifying programs like the Housing Innovations in Energy Efficiency (HIEE) Weatherization Deferral and Repair (WDR) program, and utility-sponsored weatherization programs.
Over the past 30 years, AECP has helped bring an estimated $450M in additional weatherization and home repair funding to Virginia’s WAP network, serving ~58,000 more households that DOE WAP alone would allow.
AECP’s core members are the 14 WAP providers serving every locality of Virginia. We help our members connect with opportunities to advance their missions, and we would like to expand our membership to include private weatherization and trade contractors, weatherization funders, advocacy partners, community-based organizations, and other organizations aligned with our mission of advancing the weatherization industry in Virginia.
By joining AECP, new members receive the following benefits:
- Access to the Virginia WAP provider network
- Quarterly member-only updates
- No-cost and reduced rates to AECP’s annual events
- Your organization’s name and/or logo on AECP’s website and other materials
- Networking opportunities with other weatherization leaders
- Advocacy to promote a more resilient and future-proof weatherization industry
- And much more
Expanded Membership Tiers
$500 / Year
*Advocate level memberships are open to small nonprofit organizations, SWaM and/or DBE-certified vendors, and businesses with fewer than ten employees. This membership tier allows organizations to pay what they can, starting at $100 per year, and up to $500 per year.
*This is the only tier that is limited by size and allows flexible pricing
Additional benefits
- Opportunity to participate in a volunteer steering committee
$1,000 / Year
Additional benefits
- Opportunity to participate in a volunteer steering committee
- Logo on website and event program(s)
- Social media feature
$2,500 / Year
Additional benefits
- Opportunity to participate in a volunteer steering committee
- Logo on website and event program(s)
- Social media feature
- Newsletter feature
- Advisory Council participation
- Individualized email introductions to WAP agencies
- One (1) complimentary registration to AECP’s Peer Exchange
$5,000 / Year
Additional benefits
- Opportunity to participate in a volunteer steering committee
- Logo on website and event program(s)
- Social media feature
- Newsletter feature
- Advisory Council participation
- Individualized email introductions to WAP agencies
- Two (2) complimentary registrations to AECP’s Peer Exchange
- Invitation to introduce your organization at a Board meeting
- Event feature and acknowledgements
Two Organizations, One Mission
If you’ve been around AECP for a while, you know we’re actually two organizations working side by side: the Association of Energy Conservation Professionals (AECP) and the Association of Energy Conservation Professionals Educational Service (AECPES). Same mission, same people, different legal boxes.
AECP is our 501(c)(6) trade association. It was built to represent Virginia’s weatherization and energy efficiency industry before the General Assembly and state agencies, and to give the industry a collective voice on policy.
AECPES is our 501(c)(3) member-based educational nonprofit. It exists to deliver training, technical resources, and public education that help contractors, community-based organizations, advocates, and the low-income and disadvantaged Virginians we all serve increase access to weatherization, energy efficiency, electrification, and other distributed energy resources.
Beginning July 1, 2026, our common Board of Directors voted to run our membership program through AECPES rather than AECP. That means membership dues now directly fund education, training, and technical assistance work, the day-to-day programming most members actually use and value. AECP isn’t going anywhere; it remains in place and in good standing so the industry has a dedicated advocacy vehicle ready to activate if and when Virginia’s policy landscape calls for it. For now, dues-funded programming lives at AECPES.
Nothing about your day-to-day relationship with us changes. Same team, same trainings, same support. Just a cleaner structure behind the scenes.
Dues paid to AECPES, a 501(c)(3), may be deductible as a charitable contribution only to the extent they exceed the value of any benefits you receive in return (trainings, events, materials, etc.). We’re not your tax advisor, so please check with yours on how this applies to you. We’ll include the standard IRS disclosure on your dues receipt either way.
AECP and AECPES, collectively referred to as AECP, share a common Board of Directors, Executive Director, and member base. Our shared Board of Directors is reserved for Virginia WAP subgrantees; however, Expanded Members can make recommendations to AECP’s Board of Directors through AECP’s Advisory Council, guidance committees, and annual events.
Advisory Council
The direction of AECP is the responsibility of Virginia WAP subgrantees, but AECP’s Board wants to receive feedback from AECP’s Expanded Members. AECP’s Advisory Council enables Ally and Leader membership levels to make recommendations to the Board of Directors. The Advisory Council will be chaired by AECP’s Executive Director, who will coordinate and facilitate conversations with members of the council. Advisory Council members will be invited to meet once per quarter, before each quarterly Board meeting, to provide input on the direction and operations of AECP. In addition to a one-hour council meeting, advisory members can expect to spend about one hour each quarter maintaining communications with other council members.
Committees
It takes a village to steer a rapidly evolving and critical industry. AECP’s committees enable all members to advance Virginia’s WAP industry, support AECP, and engage with other mission-aligned organizations, including Virginia’s WAP subgrantees. In addition to a one-hour committee meeting each quarter, committee members can expect to spend about one hour each quarter maintaining communications with committee members.
Worth noting: all committees are governed by AECPES, our 501(c)(3), except for the Policy Committee, which is governed by AECP, our 501(c)(6). The Policy Committee will be engaged only when the Board of Directors votes on whether to activate our 501(c)(6) arm.
Events
Events create important opportunities for members to build relationships, exchange ideas, and network with industry peers. AECP currently hosts two annual events, an Annual Member Meeting and the Peer Exchange. Events committee members can expect to provide feedback on proposed agenda items, review venue options, help identify speakers and panelists, and support the promotion of events.
Member Services
As AECP seeks to broaden membership to support all aspects of the weatherization community, the member services committee will serve a critical role in recruiting, messaging, and identifying potential sectors of interest. Committee members can expect to provide introductions to potential members, assess and refine the member tiers and benefits over time, and help produce collateral materials for outreach.
Policy
AECP’s advocacy efforts have resulted in $450M additional dollars and ~58,000 more homes served by the weatherization network. Advocacy is a cornerstone of our work. The policy committee will work with staff to make recommendations to the Board on potential legislation to support or oppose, recommend adjustments to proposed legislation, keep apprised of relevant regulatory filings and updates to the building code, and track changes in funding or processes at the federal and state levels.
Programs & Education
The Programs and Education Committee provides strategic direction and quality oversight for AECP’s educational programs and community engagement initiatives. These programs are the operational expression of our mission and the primary basis for grant funding and donor support. The Committee ensures programs are well-designed, effectively delivered, properly evaluated, and aligned with both AECP’s mission and the needs of low-income and energy-burdened communities in Virginia.
