Renewable Power Perspectives Q&A with Kristal Hansley, Founder & CEO of WeSolar, Inc.

I was at a community meeting with 50 Black ladies organizers who were not invested in the neighborhood solar motion. To be able to offer an item that will save our community up to 60% on their energy expenses is transformative.
WeSolars mission is to bring under-resourced communities cost effective access to regional neighborhood solar and to assist business properties with energy effectiveness. When I first moved to Baltimore, the Community Solar Pilot Program was released, and I wanted to make sure city residents were receiving the very same quantity of financial investment as the county. Renewable energy has traditionally been a middle-class concern since Black neighborhoods have had to live in survival mode, however Reverend Mason and Reverend Dewitt brought me into the circle and linked me with the individuals I required to connect with in order to make this collaboration effective.

By Constance ThompsonAugust 27, 2021
The American Council on Renewable Energy (ACORE) is pleased to share the first installment in our “Accelerating Renewables” blog series. Each installment will include industry leaders and subjects associated with speeding up a fair and just transition to an eco-friendly energy economy. In recognition of National Black Business Month, our August blog is the first in a series highlighting how Black-owned member business are prospering in the eco-friendly energy sector.
Kristal Hansley is the Founder & & CEO of WeSolar, Inc and is the countrys very first Black female CEO in the community solar market. Under her management, WeSolar is growing rapidly, supplying customers across Maryland and the District of Columbia access to budget-friendly solar energy, no matter home type, and helping hard-working families lower month-to-month expenditures.
What inspired you to begin your business?
I was at a neighborhood conference with 50 Black females organizers who were not invested in the neighborhood solar motion. 36% of Black families experience a high energy problem, suggesting they spend over 6% of their earnings on house energy bills. To be able to provide an item that will conserve our neighborhood up to 60% on their energy bills is transformative.
Tell us about your business?
WeSolars objective is to bring under-resourced communities budget friendly access to local neighborhood solar and to help commercial homes with energy efficiency. WeSolar released in Baltimore and will broaden to other cities in the future. Through WeSolar, electrical energy customers can purchase shared solar from a local project without having to set up any devices in their homes. In turn, residents save hundreds on their electrical power bills. In Maryland, lawmakers passed legislation that specifies 50 percent of its electrical energy should come from eco-friendly energy sources by 2030.
What difficulties do you deal with? Why?
To a neighborhood that is currently dealing with so numerous pushing challenges, persuading them that there is another one just as essential is extremely difficult. I keep in mind attempting to describe community solar to my friends and the discussion quickly pivoting to housing. The reality of the matter is, institutional racism and oppression are larger than we understand, and it drowns our community. Where Black individuals are not being bought, we are being asked to prioritize constantly for our survival.
Please show us a recent business success story.
A very personal success story for me is cultivating a collaboration with Maryland United Baptist Missionary Convention, Inc. I grew up in a Baptist church in Brooklyn where my cousin was the pastor, and my mom was an organizer– community was sewn into my extremely being. When I first transferred to Baltimore, the Community Solar Pilot Program was introduced, and I wished to guarantee city homeowners were receiving the very same amount of financial investment as the county. It was the church that took me in, and the church that then supported my vision– bringing whatever full circle. Renewable resource has actually traditionally been a middle-class problem because Black communities have had to live in survival mode, however Reverend Mason and Reverend Dewitt brought me into the circle and linked me with individuals I needed to get in touch with in order to make this collaboration successful.
To get more information about WeSolar, check out wesolar.energy
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