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 delighted to share the first installation in our “Accelerating Renewables” blog series. Each installation will feature market leaders and topics associated with speeding up a fair and just shift 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 business are thriving in the renewable resource 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, offering customers across Maryland and the District of Columbia access to affordable solar energy, regardless of home type, and assisting hard-working families minimize monthly expenditures.
What inspired you to begin your business?
I was at a neighborhood meeting with 50 Black females organizers who were not invested in the community solar motion. 36% of Black households experience a high energy burden, suggesting they invest over 6% of their income on home energy bills. To be able to use an item that will conserve our community up to 60% on their energy costs is transformative.
Tell us about your company?
WeSolars mission is to bring under-resourced neighborhoods budget friendly access to regional community solar and to assist commercial properties with energy efficiency. WeSolar launched in Baltimore and will broaden to other cities in the future. Through WeSolar, electrical energy customers can acquire shared solar from a regional project without needing to set up any devices in their houses. In turn, residents save hundreds on their electrical energy expenses. In Maryland, legislators passed legislation that specifies 50 percent of its electrical power must come from sustainable energy sources by 2030.
What obstacles do you deal with? Why?
To a community that is currently dealing with so numerous pushing obstacles, encouraging them that there is another one simply as crucial is extremely hard. I keep in mind trying to describe community solar to my pals and the conversation rapidly pivoting to housing.
Please share with us a current company success story.
When I initially moved to Baltimore, the Community Solar Pilot Program was launched, and I desired to guarantee city residents were receiving the same quantity of investment as the county. Sustainable energy has historically been a middle-class problem since 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 required to connect with in order to make this partnership effective.
To find out more about WeSolar, check out wesolar.energy
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I was at a neighborhood meeting with 50 Black females organizers who were not invested in the neighborhood solar motion. To be able to provide an item that will conserve our neighborhood up to 60% on their energy costs is transformative.
WeSolars mission is to bring under-resourced communities affordable access to local community solar and to assist commercial homes with energy effectiveness. When I initially moved to Baltimore, the Community Solar Pilot Program was introduced, and I wanted to guarantee city citizens were getting the same quantity of investment as the county. Sustainable energy has traditionally been a middle-class issue because Black communities 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 collaboration successful.