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 community solar motion. To be able to provide a product that will conserve our community up to 60% on their energy expenses is transformative.
WeSolars mission is to bring under-resourced neighborhoods affordable access to regional neighborhood solar and to assist business residential or commercial properties with energy effectiveness. When I first moved to Baltimore, the Community Solar Pilot Program was launched, and I wanted to make sure city residents were receiving the exact same quantity of investment as the county. Renewable energy has actually traditionally been a middle-class problem because Black neighborhoods have had to live in survival mode, but Reverend Mason and Reverend Dewitt brought me into the circle and linked me with the individuals I required to link with in order to make this partnership effective.

By Constance ThompsonAugust 27, 2021
The American Council on Renewable Energy (ACORE) is happy to share the very first installation in our “Accelerating Renewables” blog series. Each installment will include industry leaders and subjects related to speeding up a fair and simply shift 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 companies are flourishing in the sustainable energy sector.
Kristal Hansley is the Founder & & CEO of WeSolar, Inc and is the nations first Black lady CEO in the community solar market. Under her leadership, WeSolar is growing rapidly, supplying customers throughout Maryland and the District of Columbia access to inexpensive solar energy, regardless of house type, and helping hard-working families decrease regular monthly expenses.
What inspired you to start your business?
I was at a community conference with 50 Black ladies organizers who were not invested in the neighborhood solar motion. 36% of Black homes experience a high energy burden, implying they spend over 6% of their income on house energy expenses. To be able to offer an item that will conserve our neighborhood up to 60% on their energy bills is transformative.
Tell us about your company?
WeSolars objective is to bring under-resourced neighborhoods economical access to local community solar and to assist commercial residential or commercial properties with energy performance. In Maryland, legislators passed legislation that specifies 50 percent of its electrical energy must come from sustainable energy sources by 2030.
What obstacles do you face? Why?
To a community that is currently facing so many pressing obstacles, encouraging them that there is another one simply as crucial is very tough. I keep in mind attempting to describe community solar to my buddies and the discussion rapidly pivoting to housing.
Please show us a current business success story.
A very personal success story for me is cultivating a partnership with Maryland United Baptist Missionary Convention, Inc. I grew up in a Baptist church in Brooklyn where my cousin was the pastor, and my mama was an organizer– community was sewn into my really being. When I first transferred to Baltimore, the Community Solar Pilot Program was introduced, and I wished to guarantee city residents were receiving the very 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 concern due to the fact that Black communities have actually needed to live in survival mode, however Reverend Mason and Reverend Dewitt brought me into the circle and connected me with the people I required to link with in order to make this collaboration effective.
To find out more about WeSolar, visit wesolar.energy
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