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 installation will feature industry leaders and subjects related to speeding up a fair and just transition to a sustainable energy economy. In recognition of National Black Business Month, our August blog is the very first in a series highlighting how Black-owned member business are flourishing in the eco-friendly energy sector.
Kristal Hansley is the Founder & & CEO of WeSolar, Inc and is the countrys first Black female CEO in the neighborhood solar industry. Under her management, WeSolar is growing quickly, offering customers throughout Maryland and the District of Columbia access to inexpensive solar energy, despite house type, and assisting hard-working families lower month-to-month expenses.
What inspired you to begin your business?
The plain truth that the majority of homes who were receiving renewable resource incentives were higher earnings. I remember discovering this and thinking there had to be a way to address this space. I discovered there was a problem. I had my own ideas on how to resolve it, and I wished to have company over my own decisions. I was at a community conference with 50 Black women organizers who were not bought the neighborhood solar motion. As soon as I started to describe how crucial and immediate it was for us to be a part of the solar motion, it seemed like a lightbulb had actually turned on for me. I started showing how higher-income neighborhoods and people in the suburbs were making the most of renewable tax incentives and had gotten a lots of assistance. The reality is, energy use impacts Black household budgets considerably. 36% of Black families experience a high energy burden, indicating they invest over 6% of their income on home energy costs. Thats a massive percentage. To be able to use a product that will save our neighborhood up to 60% on their energy bills is transformative.
Inform us about your business?
WeSolars objective is to bring under-resourced communities budget-friendly access to local neighborhood solar and to assist commercial properties with energy performance. WeSolar launched in Baltimore and will broaden to other cities in the future. Through WeSolar, electrical power consumers can purchase shared solar from a local project without needing to install any devices in their houses. In turn, homeowners save hundreds on their electricity expenses. In Maryland, legislators passed legislation that mentions 50 percent of its electrical energy need to originate from renewable resource sources by 2030.
What challenges do you deal with? Why?
To a community that is currently dealing with a lot of pressing difficulties, convincing them that there is another one just as essential is extremely challenging. I remember trying to explain neighborhood solar to my good friends and the conversation quickly rotating to housing. The reality of the matter is, institutional racism and injustice are bigger than we understand, and it drowns our community. Where Black individuals are not being invested in, we are being asked to focus on continuously for our survival.
Please share with us a current company success story.
When I initially moved to Baltimore, the Community Solar Pilot Program was released, and I desired to make sure city homeowners were receiving the exact same quantity of investment as the county. Renewable energy has actually traditionally 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 people I required to connect with in order to make this partnership successful.
To find out more about WeSolar, visit wesolar.energy
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I was at a community conference 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 community up to 60% on their energy costs is transformative.
WeSolars objective is to bring under-resourced communities inexpensive access to regional community solar and to assist business residential or commercial properties with energy effectiveness. When I first moved to Baltimore, the Community Solar Pilot Program was released, and I desired to ensure city locals were receiving the very same quantity of financial investment as the county. Sustainable energy has actually historically been a middle-class concern 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 connected me with the people I required to link with in order to make this collaboration effective.