Renewable Power Perspectives Q&A with Laura Zapata, Co-Founder of Clearloop

By Constance ThompsonSeptember 24, 2021

The American Council on Renewable Energy (ACORE) is delighted to share the next installment in our “Accelerating Renewables” blog series.
Each installment includes market leaders and subjects connected to accelerating a fair and just transition to an eco-friendly energy economy. In acknowledgment of National Hispanic Heritage Month, our September features highlight how three Hispanic-owned Accelerate member companies are prospering in the renewable energy sector.
Today, we are featuring Clearloop, an Accelerate member business established by three Tennesseans who want to make certain that the development and benefits of renewable resource reach all neighborhoods around our country equally, beginning with the communities that have a history of getting left behind. Click on this link to discover more about Clearloops effect.
The following is a Q&A with Clearloop Co-Founder Laura Zapata and Constance Thompson, ACOREs Vice President of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Programs
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What inspired you to begin your company?
Clearloop began as a concept that morphed into a business. In the early days– even prior to we had chosen on the name– we were testing out the theory that more business need to invest in cleaning up the electrical energy grid so those dollars can be invested improving the economies in Middle America where access to tidy energy is limited.

To read more about Clearloop, check out https://clearloop.us/.
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Inform us about Clearloop?
Clearloop is a cleantech start-up that partners with business of all sizes to assist them cut (or reclaim) their carbon footprint, tidy up the grid, and broaden access to clean energy by building new solar tasks in American neighborhoods otherwise getting left behind. Were pioneering putting a carbon value on the building of brand-new solar capacity thats determined in watts, not watt-hours, with a brand-new funding structure that permits a broader array of business to participate, while likewise being deliberate about the communities where were investing to accomplish a fair tidy energy future. We recently began on our first utility-connected solar task in Jackson, Tennessee. As we grow, Clearloop will be concentrating on Appalachia and the Mississippi Delta as we tackle both dirty grids and financially distressed neighborhoods with our solar tasks
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What challenges do you face? Why?
One of the most significant difficulties for us, as a relatively brand-new entrant in the clean energy and carbon markets, is making credibility with industry leaders who might be utilized to doing things a certain way. Clearloop is challenging some of the standard ways in which new solar advancements have actually been funded, and bringing attention to new locations and equity, to reinsert carbon emissions decreases into the business procurement discussion.

How can prospective partners do business with you?
Were proving that you dont require to be a Fortune 500 company with the capability to sign a power purchase contract to help construct brand new solar projects. Even huge business that have led the way in renewable energy procurement are now faced with the reality that the biggest portion of their carbon footprint is in Scope 3, their worth chain, where they might have little control over decrease strategies or where decreases might not be immediate.

Clearloop began as a concept that morphed into a company. In the early days– even before we had decided on the name– we were checking out the theory that more companies require to invest in cleaning up the electrical energy grid so those dollars can be spent enhancing the economies in Middle America where access to tidy energy is restricted. Clearloop is a cleantech start-up that partners with companies of all sizes to assist them cut (or recover) their carbon footprint, clean up the grid, and expand access to tidy energy by developing new solar tasks in American communities otherwise getting left behind. Were proving that you dont require to be a Fortune 500 business with the ability to sign a power purchase agreement to help construct brand name new solar jobs. Even big companies that have led the method in eco-friendly energy procurement are now faced with the truth that the biggest chunk of their carbon footprint is in Scope 3, their worth chain, where they might have little control over decrease techniques or where decreases might not be instant.