Collaboration between Community-Based Organizations and State Energy Agencies: Findings and Lessons from the Solar with Justice Project

Community-based organizations (CBOs) play an essential role in helping low-to-moderate-income (LMI) communities access the benefits of solar energy by bridging the gap between regulators, policymakers, and the needs of the community. Programs developed in partnership with CBOs are more likely to be responsive to community needs and be able to overcome the distrust that some residents feel towards utilities, energy companies, and the solar industry. Additionally, CBOs are uniquely positioned to know the best way to engage and communicate with local residents. 

CESA’s Solar with Justice: Connecting States and Communities project aims to bring together state energy agencies and CBOs to create opportunities for dialogue and collaboration. In August, the Clean Energy States Alliance (CESA), together with the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), released a series of reports based on the findings of a nationwide survey of CBOs. The survey, which included dozens of questions, yielded rich, nuanced information about the landscape of CBOs, their attitudes and experiences. 

The project has also produced a series of six case studies related to state energy agency collaboration with CBO, as well as other publications. In this webinar, CESA Executive Director Warren Leon, MIT lead researcher Janelle Knox-Hayes, and Project Manager Bayo Ware on the Renewables Team at the Energy Trust of Oregon discuss the project’s findings and lessons for how to structure effective collaboration going forward.

This webinar is based upon work supported by the U.S. Department of Energy’s Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE) under the Solar Energy Technologies Office (SETO) Award Number DE-EE0009360.