Energy Corps Works to Accelerate the Global Shift from Energy Poverty to Energy Prosperity

PITTSBURGH--(BUSINESS WIRE)--A nonprofit backed by energy-sector veterans is engaging with a mission to tackle one of global development’s most persistent challenges: the lack of reliable, modern energy for billions of people. By unlocking modern energy systems, Energy Corps will expand opportunity, dignity, and economic growth worldwide.

Founded by Toby Rice and Dr. Scott Tinker, Energy Corps brings together deep energy expertise with a global development lens. The organization identifies and tests pathways that enable modern energy to scale, and addresses the policy, financing, and demand-side barriers to energy development.

“Billions of people are still being left behind without access to clean cooking and reliable electricity — and that is one of the greatest sustainability challenges of our time,” said Toby Rice. “America’s energy industry has a proven track record of delivering affordable, reliable, and lower-emission solutions in the developed world. Now it’s time to focus that same innovation and commitment on the billions who stand to benefit most.”

Energy Corps builds on the vision of Toby and Aileen Rice, who supported the startup. “Energy access isn’t just about turning on a light,” said Aileen Rice. “It’s about what people can do once energy is reliable: run a business, study at night, operate a clinic, or build a future for their families. Energy is opportunity.”

From Personal Experience to Systems-Level Action

The vision for Energy Corps grew out of the Rice family’s nearly two decades working in the U.S. energy sector, where they saw firsthand how access to reliable energy transformed families, communities and livelihoods. That experience took on new urgency in 2020, when Aileen Rice began studying the global consequences of energy poverty.

According to the World Health Organization, more than 3 million people die each year from indoor air pollution caused by cooking with wood, charcoal, or dung, which is an often-overlooked crisis with devastating health and economic costs.

“As a mother, learning that millions of families face this risk every day was impossible to ignore,” Aileen said. “But the answer isn’t charity alone. It’s building energy systems that actually work at scale, in ways that communities can sustain.”

That realization led to the creation of Energy Corps: an organization designed not only to support projects on the ground, but to learn alongside partners what it takes to expand modern energy access at scale.

Three Catalytic Pathways to Modern Energy at Scale

Energy Corps focuses on three interlocking pathways that are essential for lasting impact:

1. Unlocking policy and regulatory bottlenecks that prevent energy systems from scaling safely, affordably, and reliably.
2. Attracting large-scale finance by helping bridge philanthropic capital, development finance, and private investment.
3. Creating virtuous demand cycles, where energy access drives income, access to modern services, and economic activity that sustain energy systems over time.

“Energy Corps is a learning organization,” said Toby Rice, CEO of Energy Corps. “We work with local partners, development experts, and industry to test real-world solutions. We share what we learn about what works, what doesn’t, and how modern energy systems can grow in durable ways.”

How Energy Corps Works

Energy Corps operates as a systems and learning partner, working alongside trusted local organizations, NGOs, development institutions, government, and industry. The organization is energy-agnostic, supporting solutions that fit local needs—whether solar, nuclear, natural gas, hydro, or emerging technologies.

Guiding this work is Energy Corps’ long-term 50-50-50 moonshot: the ambition that access to roughly 50 megawatt-hours of energy per person could help enable $50,000 in global GDP per capita within 50 years. The goal serves as Energy Corps’ north star, while in the near-term the organization focuses on disciplined testing, evidence-building, and collaboration.

Current grantees include:

• Bettering Human Lives Foundation (Zambia) – Expanding access to LPG as a clean cooking alternative.
• IEA Ghana – Exploring pathways for safe, competitive nuclear power in West Africa.
• Innovation: Africa – Installing solar-powered water systems in rural communities.
• Gigawatt Impact (Burundi) – Supporting women-led enterprises through solar hubs.
• EED Research (Kenya) - Developing research-based pathways for achieving 50-50-50.
• Switch Energy Alliance (Global) – Advancing energy literacy through public education and storytelling.

Dr. Scott Tinker, Chairman of Switch Energy Alliance, serves as Chairman of Energy Corps. “Energy alone will not end poverty,” Tinker said. “But poverty cannot be overcome without energy. Reliable, modern energy is the foundation for healthier communities, stronger economies, and human flourishing.”

“Governments are asking for partners who can help them move faster, not just with ideas, but with execution and capital,” said Tisha Schuller, Head of Energy Corps. “Energy Corps exists to meet this moment. We partner with governments, focus on delivery, and mobilize private-sector capacity to deliver economically durable energy.”

Join the Movement

Energy Corps invites policymakers, development institutions, energy companies, philanthropists, and local leaders to collaborate in advancing practical pathways to energy prosperity.

“This isn’t about one technology or one organization,” Aileen Rice said. “It’s about learning together how to unlock opportunity at scale, and for the long term.”

For more information, visit www.energycorps.com.

About Energy Corps

Energy Corps is a U.S.-based nonprofit organization accelerating global access to affordable, reliable energy by addressing system-level barriers to scale. Guided by its Point, Pledge, Prove framework and long-term 50-50-50 ambition, Energy Corps works with partners worldwide to test, learn, and share what enables modern energy to drive opportunity and prosperity. Energy Corps is grateful to its funders. Founding funds are provided by Aileen and Toby Rice, Boardwalk Pipeline, RF Catalytic Capital, a charitable spinoff of The Rockefeller Foundation, Spotlight Energy, and the Meredith and Mike Howard Family Foundation.