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

By Constance ThompsonAugust 27, 2021
The American Council on Renewable Energy (ACORE) is happy to share the first installment in our “Accelerating Renewables” blog site series. Each installment will include industry leaders and subjects connected to accelerating a fair and just shift to a renewable energy 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 sustainable energy sector.
Kristal Hansley is the Founder & & CEO of WeSolar, Inc and is the countrys very first Black lady CEO in the community solar industry. Under her leadership, WeSolar is growing quickly, offering consumers across Maryland and the District of Columbia access to affordable solar energy, no matter house type, and assisting hard-working families decrease regular monthly costs.
What inspired you to start your business?
The stark reality that most of families who were receiving renewable resource rewards were greater income. I keep in mind learning this and thinking there needed to be a way to address this gap. I discovered there was an issue. I had my own concepts on how to solve it, and I desired to have agency over my own decisions. I was at a neighborhood meeting with 50 Black women organizers who were not bought the community solar movement. Once I started to discuss how vital and immediate it was for us to be a part of the solar movement, it felt like a lightbulb had actually switched on for me. I began showing how higher-income neighborhoods and individuals in the residential areas were making the most of eco-friendly tax rewards and had gotten a ton of support. The reality is, energy use impacts Black household budget plans considerably. 36% of Black families experience a high energy concern, indicating they spend over 6% of their income on house energy bills. Thats an enormous portion. To be able to offer a product that will save our community up to 60% on their energy costs is transformative.
Tell us about your business?
WeSolars mission is to bring under-resourced communities cost effective access to regional community solar and to assist commercial residential or commercial properties with energy effectiveness. In Maryland, legislators passed legislation that specifies 50 percent of its electrical energy must come from eco-friendly energy sources by 2030.
What obstacles do you face? Why?
To a community that is currently facing numerous pushing challenges, encouraging them that there is another one just as important is very hard. I keep in mind attempting to explain community solar to my pals and the conversation quickly rotating to real estate. The truth of the matter is, institutional bigotry and oppression are bigger than we understand, and it drowns our neighborhood. Where Black individuals are not being purchased, we are being asked to focus on constantly for our survival.
Please share with us a recent company success story.
An extremely individual 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 mother was an organizer– community was sewn into my extremely being. When I first transferred to Baltimore, the Community Solar Pilot Program was released, and I wished to make sure city citizens were receiving the exact 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 complete circle. Renewable energy has actually traditionally been a middle-class problem due to the fact that Black communities have actually had to reside in survival mode, but Reverend Mason and Reverend Dewitt brought me into the circle and linked me with individuals I required to get in touch with in order to make this partnership effective.
To read more about WeSolar, check out wesolar.energy
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I was at a community conference with 50 Black women organizers who were not invested in the neighborhood solar movement. To be able to offer a product that will conserve our neighborhood up to 60% on their energy bills is transformative.
WeSolars mission is to bring under-resourced communities affordable access to local neighborhood solar and to assist industrial homes with energy effectiveness. When I first moved to Baltimore, the Community Solar Pilot Program was launched, and I wanted to guarantee city locals were receiving the same quantity of investment as the county. Renewable energy has traditionally been a middle-class problem due to the fact that Black neighborhoods have actually had to live in survival mode, but Reverend Mason and Reverend Dewitt brought me into the circle and linked me with the people I required to link with in order to make this partnership effective.