As a professional and an advocate, from The Energy Crisis of the 1970s up to today’s Climate Crisis, Fred’s career trajectory has found him to be a leader and connector, in the clean-energy and efficient-lighting fields.
Fred’s innovative work for NESEA peaked during the 1980s and again in the 2010s, under the skilled leadership of Alex Wilson, Larry Sherwood, and Jennifer Marrapese.
Fred’s environmental advocacy began when he started an Ecology Club in high school on Long Island. Graduating from Tufts University 1976, his thesis Energy Flow Analysis of a Development Style Residential Ecosystem applied concepts pioneered by H.T. Odum. He attended College of the Atlantic as a visiting senior, at the time of its first graduating class.
In 1978, Fred’s first job was as retrofitter, then energy auditor, with Energyworks, the leader in new “comprehensive” energy-conservation work in homes. As operations manager, responsible for all retrofit operations, 12 staff, 500 customers. Fred founded Urban Pioneers, working with leading new energy firms, including Solar Wave, Henry Vandermark’s solar hot water firm.
In 1981, Fred began serving on the Board of Urban Solar Energy Association in Boston, a NESEA Chapter; becoming its second President during a period of rapid growth. Marc Draisen and Haskell Werlin were active members. Fred was part of VanGuard, the Clamshell Alliance affinity group devoted to education about clean energy, serving with Ambrose Spencer and George Mokray.
1983-1989. Fred served on NESEA’s Board of Directors.
1989-1992. Fred chaired the new Energy Management Council, NESEA’s arm established to bring efficiency to the C&I sectors. We produced Energy Opportunities: Technologies and Utility Programs for Commercial Buildings in Springfield, attended by over 350 energy professionals from across the country.
The Fred Davis Corporation, is a leading wholesale supplier of efficient lighting products, and is active in multi-family, weatherization, and municipal markets nationwide. Over the years, FDC helped introduce such major innovations as compact fluorescents, electronic ballasts, LED exit signs; in recent years supplying 50,000 LED streetlight fixtures for 40 municipalities in Massachusetts and Rhode Island, reducing energy consumption by 63-90%.
Fred has introduced and trained many who went on to be leaders in the energy lighting field, and has spoken many times on the topic of energy-efficient lighting worldwide, at venues from Stockholm to Sacramento.
Fred often was the energy efficiency bridge connecting the lighting field with the building field, and often served that function within the realm of NESEA.
1987. Fred organized and chaired a unique NESEA Conference: Lighting Energy Solutions: A National Conference on Energy-Efficient Lighting. It was the first such conference in the country, bringing together 275 professionals from around the world to discuss the state-of-the-art in energy-efficient lighting.
1989. With Steve Nadel (ACEEE) and David Goldstein (NRDC), Fred helped Massachusetts establish minimum efficiency standards for lamps (light bulbs); this work became the basis for the original Federal legislation.
1990. Fred performed a lighting audit of EPA headquarters; detailing opportunities for reducing energy consumption by 50% with a 25%/yr ROI. The work helped establish EPA's GreenLights Program, tremendously influential in promoting energy efficiency in lighting.
Fred has always advocated for responsible change that will maximize energy reduction. Throughout the LED revolution, he emphasized Don’t Be Myth-LED. During that confusing boom-time, his guidance helped keep the expectations of building-energy professionals realistic.
Fred writes the respected e-newsletter, The Lightning Volt.
In the current decade, Fred has returned to NESEA; advancing lighting topics for BuildingEnergy Boston conference sessions; he’s served on the Content Committee for the past two years.
Fred has expressed alarm about the tremendous new consumption of energy to come from legal indoor cannabis cultivation; in consultation with his old colleague Evan Mills who initiated research in 2011. Super-intense light levels inside commercial grow facilities means extremely energy-intensive buildings, even with efficient lighting. Due to Fred’s advocacy, BuildingEnergy Boston 17 included the first session in the eastern US on this important subject.
In the past five years, Fred helped form The Jewish Climate Action Network, building a network of over 60 synagogues interested in significantly reducing carbon footprint.
With help from fellow NESEA colleague Mira Lieman-Sifry (who also happens to be Fred’s cousin!), Fred has been proud to mentor for the BE the Future campaign, sponsoring emerging professionals to attend BuildingEnergy.
Fred and his wife Lucinda live in Medfield, Massachusetts, and are very proud of their grown sons Leon, and Avi, and Avi’s wife Agathe.
