Original maps from eight U.S. cities show how numerous dollar stores have become in urban America and reveal a striking pattern between dollar store locations and neighborhood income and race. We discuss each local context, presenting evidence for why these patterns have emerged and how some cities are beginning to check the spread of dollar chains. … Read More
Roughly 5 gigawatts of new power generation capacity came online during the third quarter of 2018, as illustrated in a new quarterly update from ILSR’s Energy Democracy Initiative. Our updated chart of new power plant capacity illustrates how growth in natural gas capacity slowed, while new distributed solar and wind saw steady growth.… Read More
National dollar store chains, including Dollar General and Dollar Tree, have seen huge growth over the past decade. These stores are also feeding more Americans than Whole Foods is. New research from ILSR’s Community-Scaled Economy Initiative documents the rapid rise of dollar stores and their damaging effects on the local economies of cities and small towns. Explore our two-page fact sheet to learn more about dollar store impacts and strategies to take action.… Read More
A large amount of new power generation capacity was added during the second quarter of 2018, but not in the form renewable or distributed generation advocates might hope, according to the latest update from ILSR’s Energy Democracy Initiative. Our updated chart of new power plant capacity illustrates how growth in renewable energy is overshadowed by an increase in natural gas capacity and how distributed solar in particular stacks up.… Read More
How efficient are buildings in your community? That depends a lot on the building code, which states (and sometimes cities) can use to set minimum standards for energy efficiency. See a chart comparing building energy codes and what cities can do to save their residents and businesses money on heating and cooling their buildings.… Read More
Today, California claims a whopping 750,000 unique solar projects — an order of magnitude more than the number that existed in the state a decade ago. We illustrate this impressive, rapid expansion of solar projects throughout California over time in a cool, new animated map.… Read More
Bottom line: in nearly 40 states, renewable electricity is less expensive than the existing power supply. … Read More
Using the latest available national data on new power generation through the first quarter of 2018, this recent analysis from ILSR’s Energy Democracy Initiative illustrates how renewable energy and small-scale, distributed solar stack up against utility-scale and fossil fuel power plants in supplying the new electricity capacity for the nation.… Read More
Earlier this spring, ILSR released its 2018 Community Power State Scorecard, revealing the best and worst states for local clean energy across the country. Did many states improve on their 2017 score? In this new comparison of state rankings, we take a closer look at which states have taken the lead, which are improving, and which have a lot more to do when it comes to creating a policy landscape that enables distributed energy.… Read More
