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

I was at a neighborhood conference with 50 Black females organizers who were not invested in the neighborhood solar motion. To be able to use a product that will conserve our community up to 60% on their energy costs is transformative.
WeSolars mission is to bring under-resourced neighborhoods inexpensive access to regional community solar and to assist business properties with energy efficiency. When I first moved to Baltimore, the Community Solar Pilot Program was introduced, and I wanted to ensure city homeowners were getting the very same quantity of financial investment as the county. Renewable energy has actually historically been a middle-class concern due to the fact that Black communities have had to live in survival mode, however Reverend Mason and Reverend Dewitt brought me into the circle and connected me with the individuals I needed to connect with in order to make this collaboration successful.

By Constance ThompsonAugust 27, 2021
The American Council on Renewable Energy (ACORE) is pleased to share the first installation in our “Accelerating Renewables” blog site series. Each installment will include industry leaders and subjects connected to speeding up an equitable and just shift to a renewable resource economy. In acknowledgment of National Black Business Month, our August blog site is the first in a series highlighting how Black-owned member companies are flourishing in the renewable energy sector.
Kristal Hansley is the Founder & & CEO of WeSolar, Inc and is the countrys very first Black woman CEO in the community solar industry. Under her management, WeSolar is growing quickly, providing consumers across Maryland and the District of Columbia access to budget-friendly solar power, no matter house type, and helping hard-working families reduce month-to-month expenses.
What inspired you to begin your business?
The stark reality that most of families who were getting eco-friendly energy incentives were greater income. I keep in mind learning this and thinking there had to be a way to address this space. I observed there was a problem. I had my own ideas on how to solve it, and I wished to have company over my own choices. I was at a neighborhood conference with 50 Black women organizers who were not invested in the community solar motion. It felt like a lightbulb had actually turned on for me once I started to discuss how critical and immediate it was for us to be a part of the solar movement. I began revealing how higher-income communities and individuals in the suburban areas were making the most of eco-friendly tax rewards and had received a lots of support. The reality is, energy use impacts Black household budgets greatly. 36% of Black households experience a high energy concern, indicating they invest over 6% of their income on house energy costs. Thats a massive percentage. To be able to offer an item that will conserve our neighborhood up to 60% on their energy expenses is transformative.
Tell us about your company?
WeSolars mission is to bring under-resourced communities cost effective access to regional community solar and to assist industrial homes with energy performance. In Maryland, legislators passed legislation that states 50 percent of its electricity must come from renewable energy sources by 2030.
What challenges do you deal with? Why?
To a community that is currently facing so numerous pressing challenges, encouraging them that there is another one just as essential is really challenging. I keep in mind attempting to discuss neighborhood solar to my buddies and the conversation rapidly rotating to real estate. The reality of the matter is, institutional bigotry and injustice are larger than we understand, and it drowns our community. Where Black people are not being bought, we are being asked to focus on continuously for our survival.
Please share with us a current company success story.
A very individual success story for me is cultivating a partnership with Maryland United Baptist Missionary Convention, Inc. I matured in a Baptist church in Brooklyn where my cousin was the pastor, and my mommy was an organizer– neighborhood was sewn into my very being. When I initially relocated to Baltimore, the Community Solar Pilot Program was released, and I wanted to guarantee city citizens were getting the same quantity of financial investment as the county. It was the church that took me in, and the church that then supported my vision– bringing whatever cycle. Renewable energy has actually traditionally been a middle-class concern since Black communities have needed to live in survival mode, but Reverend Mason and Reverend Dewitt brought me into the circle and connected me with individuals I needed to get in touch with in order to make this partnership effective.
For more information about WeSolar, check out wesolar.energy
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