Data Scientist
Position Overview: Solstice Initiative is a nonprofit that empowers traditionally excluded communities towards a just and inclusive clean energy transition. As the fossil fuel industry continues to exacerbate the climate crisis, frontline communities bear the brunt of its effects while spending a disproportionate share of household income on their utility bills. Solstice works at the nexus of clean energy and social justice to provide all households, regardless of race, ethnicity, income, homeownership status or other factors access to clean energy through community-driven projects, research and innovation, clean energy education, and advocacy for inclusive clean energy policies
Solstice Initiative is seeking an experienced Data Scientist to join our team and continue the development of our EnergyScore product and assist in Solstice’s research to expand access to clean energy in the United States. EnergyScore, an alternative to traditional credit scores, is a machine learning-based algorithm that improves access to clean energy products for low-to-moderate-income households. By predicting the probability of utility payment delinquency using several consumer datasets, Solstice can ensure better accuracy in consumer underwriting for clean energy while making the industry more inclusive.
The Data Scientist will work with Solstice’s C-Corporation arm, Solstice Power Technologies, to improve and commercialize our EnergyScore, a machine-learning based algorithm used to qualify consumers for residential clean energy products in lieu of FICO scores. In addition to working on our EnergyScore product, the Data Scientist will contribute to data analyses for other research and innovation projects that aim to expand access to clean energy in the U.S.
The Solstice team works with a start-up mentality where everyone equally contributes to our vision and strategy and prioritizes equity and inclusion in our internal and external work above all. The right candidate is passionate about environmental justice and social equity, is comfortable with project management, has an understanding of data science for sociotechnical systems, and at least a basic knowledge of machine learning. To be successful, you will need strong software skills, technical aptitude, communication skills and a collaborative work style. Candidates that may require additional accommodations for this role are welcomed and encouraged to apply.
Requirements
Responsibilities:
- Be the primary owner for EnergyScore’s machine learning technology, including all previous work to-date and future improvements to the model
- Conduct research and analyses as to bias and fairness related to the EnergyScore product, including literature review and experimentation; implement findings to improve EnergyScore
- Partner with software development team to develop the EnergyScore model as a commercialized software product
- Develop plan for continuous improvement of EnergyScore model’s accuracy, inclusivity and fairness.
- Analyze and report on outcomes and performance of EnergyScore model
- Work alongside research team to analyze data sets for federally funded research projects related to equity in the solar energy sector, including multifactor regression analyses
- Communicate research findings to external audiences including funders and industry thought leaders
- Publish papers or attend conferences to disseminate knowledge of Solstice’s research