Organizations like Solar United Neighbors and Solstice support local communities in adopting solar energy primarily through education, advocacy, and facilitating access to community solar projects.
Solar United Neighbors
Solar United Neighbors is a national nonprofit that represents solar owners and supporters. Their support for local communities includes:
- Helping individuals go solar by providing resources and guidance on solar adoption.
- Advocating for true community solar programs that offer fair economic benefits and customer-friendly terms, ensuring participants can lower their electric bills and have flexibility in subscription and ownership options.
- Expanding access to community solar by fighting for legislation and policies that enable community solar programs in multiple states such as D.C., Maryland, Arizona, Indiana, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Virginia, and West Virginia.
- Ensuring equity in solar participation so that low-income households and local residents can benefit from community solar opportunities, preventing exclusion by utility-run programs.
- Providing a community solar directory to help people find local community solar projects that they can join to receive credits on their electric bills without needing to install panels on their own roofs.
- Educating consumers about how community solar works and how to get good deals on these projects.
Community Solar Concept
Both organizations promote the concept of community solar, which allows people to buy or lease a share of a solar array located somewhere in their utility service area. Participants receive electric bill credits proportional to the energy their share produces, enabling people who cannot install solar panels at their home to still benefit from solar energy.
In summary, Solar United Neighbors supports local communities by advocating for equitable and beneficial community solar policies, educating consumers about solar options, providing tools to connect residents with projects, and ensuring solar energy access is expanded inclusively. Solstice, while not detailed in the search results, typically functions similarly by facilitating community solar subscriptions and driving local solar adoption through streamlined access and education. This model benefits those who cannot install solar on their property and promotes wider adoption of clean energy.
Original article by NenPower, If reposted, please credit the source: https://nenpower.com/blog/how-do-organizations-like-solar-united-neighbors-and-solstice-support-local-communities-in-adopting-solar-energy/
