Growing The Movement. People Power Solar Cooperative is building a movement toward grassroots-led and community-owned solar, a critical piece of a just transition to a sustainable economy. We believe that a just transition requires:
- Democracy and self-determination: Communities must democratically shape the energy sector and have long-term access to and control over energy, so that we can build wealth, health, and jobs for ourselves and future generations.
- Centering frontline communities: We must build power among – and center the needs of – low-income communities, communities of color, and frontline communities that have been disproportionately harmed by our fossil fuel economy.
While climate justice groups everywhere are advocating for energy democracy, very few community-owned solar projects exist in California or most of the United States. Our research and work with communities has revealed the substantial technical, financial, and legal barriers to community-owned solar. Now we’re building the skills, leadership, and people power necessary to overcome these barriers in our communities and start getting everyday people involved in solar development. Two key innovations allow us to work:
- Our cooperative structure makes it easier to navigate securities requirements that make other community solar projects so difficult to organize.
- We don’t rely on shared-solar policy. By focusing on the flow of money and not the flow of electrons, we create a platform for community investment and ownership that is agnostic of state community solar policy.