Who is INTENT?

INTENT represents a coalition of 70+ state, Tribal, utility, and academic partners dedicated to mobilizing a multi-sector, multi-cultural regional collaboration aimed at redefining grid operations, enhancing customer resilience, and delivering equitable economic benefits. INTENT’s regional partners are in power systems research, utility and energy innovations, and technology supply, and INTENT members are highly experienced and committed to addressing and solving decarbonization barriers.

Together, we will develop innovative products, services, and a skilled workforce that will propel the Inland Northwest to become a global leader in clean energy systems. Members of our partner organizations participate in INTENT’s working groups to develop and refine strategies.

INTENT Core Partners

Working Groups

Run by delegates from partner organizations, INTENT's Working Groups come together to represent the holistic vision for energy development in the Inland Northwest.

Use-inspired research

Advancing industry-informed fundamental and applied research from idea to demonstration, to production at scale, through a network of 12+ laboratories.

Investment

Boosting the scaling of curated ideas, optimizing incubation and spin-outs, and evaluating funding methods to bolster investor confidence across funding stages; Creating investment strategies for INTENT's long-term sustainability.

Equity and Justice

Promoting meaningful inclusion of all communities in energy innovation and transformation and ensuring equitable distribution of benefits.

Workforce

Cultivating and sustaining workforce capabilities in support of regional clean energy innovation with learning pathways spanning from early education to upskilling and reskilling.

Industry

Informing and inspiring research, workforce, and investment by defining requirements to meet existential decarbonization goals.

A History of Collaboration

Our regional partners have working relationships that predate INTENT's formation by decades. We are industry led and informed, focused on leveraging existing assets and unique natural resources. Acting as a convenor, INTENT will play to each partners' strengths to break down barriers to advancing research and innovation.

The region is already an energy technology cluster, boasting an extensive manufacturing capability, with about 240 top-tier providers. The region's technological expertise will support the growth of the regional innovation engine and elevate its position through a decentralized, participative approach.

In 1974, Spokane, WA, hosted the 'International Exposition on the Environment' with the motto “progress without pollution,” reflecting INTENT's vision for a clean, economically viable, community-based energy future.

This material is based upon work supported by INTENT funded by the National Science Foundation Award No 2304058

INTENT

This material is based upon work supported by the National Science Foundation under Cooperative Agreement No. 2304058. Any opinions, findings and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this material are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Science Foundation.