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 very first installment in our “Accelerating Renewables” blog series. Each installment will feature market leaders and subjects related to accelerating a fair and just shift to a renewable resource 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 growing in the eco-friendly energy sector.
Kristal Hansley is the Founder & & CEO of WeSolar, Inc and is the countrys first Black lady CEO in the community solar industry. Under her management, WeSolar is growing quickly, providing consumers across Maryland and the District of Columbia access to inexpensive solar power, no matter home type, and assisting hard-working families lower monthly expenditures.
What inspired you to start your business?
I was at a community conference with 50 Black women organizers who were not invested in the neighborhood solar motion. 36% of Black households experience a high energy burden, implying they spend over 6% of their earnings on house energy costs. To be able to offer a product that will conserve our neighborhood up to 60% on their energy costs is transformative.
Inform us about your business?
WeSolars mission is to bring under-resourced neighborhoods cost effective access to local neighborhood solar and to assist commercial residential or commercial properties with energy performance. WeSolar introduced in Baltimore and will expand to other cities in the future. Through WeSolar, electrical power customers can purchase shared solar from a regional task without needing to set up any equipment in their homes. In turn, residents save hundreds on their electrical energy costs. In Maryland, lawmakers passed legislation that specifies 50 percent of its electrical power must come from renewable resource sources by 2030.
What difficulties do you face? Why?
To a neighborhood that is already facing many pushing challenges, convincing them that there is another one just as essential is very hard. I keep in mind trying to explain community solar to my good friends and the conversation rapidly rotating to housing. The truth of the matter is, institutional bigotry and oppression are larger than we know, and it drowns our community. Where Black people are not being purchased, we are being asked to focus on constantly for our survival.
Please show us a current company success story.
When I initially moved to Baltimore, the Community Solar Pilot Program was introduced, and I desired to make sure city locals were getting the same amount of investment as the county. Renewable energy has actually traditionally been a middle-class issue 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 linked me with the people I needed to connect with in order to make this partnership successful.
To discover more about WeSolar, see wesolar.energy
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I was at a community meeting with 50 Black women organizers who were not invested in the neighborhood solar movement. To be able to offer an item 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 help industrial homes with energy performance. When I initially moved to Baltimore, the Community Solar Pilot Program was introduced, and I wanted to make sure city residents were receiving the exact same quantity of financial investment as the county. Sustainable energy has actually traditionally been a middle-class concern because Black neighborhoods have actually had to live in survival mode, however 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 collaboration effective.