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

I was at a community meeting with 50 Black females organizers who were not invested in the neighborhood solar movement. To be able to provide a product that will save our neighborhood up to 60% on their energy expenses is transformative.
WeSolars mission is to bring under-resourced communities budget friendly access to regional neighborhood solar and to assist industrial properties with energy efficiency. When I initially moved to Baltimore, the Community Solar Pilot Program was launched, and I wanted to make sure city homeowners were getting the exact same amount of financial investment as the county. Eco-friendly energy has actually historically been a middle-class concern due to the fact that Black communities have had to live in survival mode, but 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 very first installation in our “Accelerating Renewables” blog series. Each installment will feature market leaders and subjects connected to accelerating a fair and just transition to a renewable resource economy. In acknowledgment of National Black Business Month, our August blog is the very first in a series highlighting how Black-owned member companies are growing in the renewable resource 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, providing consumers throughout Maryland and the District of Columbia access to affordable solar power, despite home type, and assisting hard-working households minimize monthly costs.
What inspired you to begin your business?
I was at a neighborhood meeting with 50 Black women organizers who were not invested in the community solar motion. 36% of Black households experience a high energy concern, implying they spend over 6% of their earnings on house energy expenses. To be able to offer a product that will conserve our community up to 60% on their energy expenses is transformative.
Tell us about your business?
WeSolars mission is to bring under-resourced communities budget-friendly access to regional community solar and to assist industrial homes with energy performance. 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 task without needing to set up any equipment in their homes. In turn, locals conserve hundreds on their electrical power bills. In Maryland, lawmakers passed legislation that states 50 percent of its electrical energy must originate from renewable resource sources by 2030.
What obstacles do you face? Why?
To a neighborhood that is already facing so numerous pressing challenges, encouraging them that there is another one just as crucial is extremely hard. I keep in mind attempting to explain neighborhood solar to my pals and the discussion quickly pivoting to real estate. The reality of the matter is, institutional racism and oppression are bigger than we understand, and it drowns our neighborhood. Where Black individuals are not being purchased, we are being asked to prioritize continuously for our survival.
Please share with us a recent business success story.
A very individual success story for me is cultivating a collaboration with Maryland United Baptist Missionary Convention, Inc. I matured in a Baptist church in Brooklyn where my cousin was the pastor, and my mom was an organizer– community was stitched into my really being. When I first moved to Baltimore, the Community Solar Pilot Program was introduced, 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 complete circle. Renewable resource has traditionally been a middle-class issue due to the fact that Black neighborhoods have needed to reside in survival mode, but Reverend Mason and Reverend Dewitt brought me into the circle and linked me with the individuals I required to get in touch with in order to make this collaboration effective.
To find out more about WeSolar, see wesolar.energy
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