All Posts

Three Questions about Xcel Energy’s Landmark Low-Carbon Announcement

Three Questions about Xcel Energy's Landmark Low-Carbon Announcement

John Farrell

December 5, 2018

I join with clean energy advocates across the country in celebrating Xcel Energy's announcement yesterday that it will reduce carbon emissions in its electricity generation by 80% from 2005 to 2030, and to zero by 2050. However, I have three questions about whether the company's actions will match the words.READ MORE


ILSR Submits Critique of Xcel Energy’s Value of Solar Calculation to Minnesota Regulators

ILSR Submits Critique of Xcel Energy’s Value of Solar Calculation to Minnesota Regulators

Marie Donahue

December 3, 2018

In November, ILSR submitted joint comments with Community Power and Cooperative Energy Futures to the Minnesota Public Utilities Commision expressing concerns about Xcel Energy’s 2019 Value of Solar calculation. The comments outline issues with the company’s assumptions and ways to improve them.READ MORE


Why Minnesota’s Community Solar Program is the Best

Why Minnesota's Community Solar Program is the Best

John Farrell

November 26, 2018

Minnesota's community solar program hit a record 460 megawatts of operational capacity in November 2018, and the pipeline of projects is growing again!READ MORE


Voices of 100%: Abita Springs Fights for Community Solar in Louisiana — Episode 65 of Local Energy Rules Podcast

Voices of 100%: Abita Springs Fights for Community Solar in Louisiana — Episode 65 of Local Energy Rules Podcast

Marie Donahue

November 19, 2018

Nearly 100 U.S. cities of different sizes have made formal commitments to 100 percent renewable energy. In our sixth episode of Voices of 100%, a multi-part series of Local Energy Rules, we feature the small town of Abita Springs, the first city in Louisiana to set such a goal. LeAnn Magee, who chairs the grassroots, volunteer-led Abita Committee for Energy Sustainability that helped pass the town’s resolution, speaks with co-director of ILSR and Energy Democracy initiative director John Farrell about the motivations for and approach to Abita Springs’ commitment — starting with municipal buildings and advocating for community solar.READ MORE


Solar Co-ops Support Clean Energy Advances in D.C. — Episode 64 of Local Energy Rules Podcast

Solar Co-ops Support Clean Energy Advances in D.C. — Episode 64 of Local Energy Rules Podcast

John Farrell

November 13, 2018

How does a growing, national nonprofit organization help homeowners complete the circle between clean energy ownership and policy advocacy? ILSR’s Energy Democracy Initiative director John Farrell talks with Anya Schoolman of Solar United Neighbors (SUN) in this October 2018 recording about two major clean energy policies before the Washington, D.C., city council. SUN's solar co-op model has spread to 10 states, and builds the constituency for clean energy policy.READ MORE


How Cities Can Fund Their 100% Renewable Ambitions

How Cities Can Fund Their 100% Renewable Ambitions

John Farrell

November 8, 2018

We're inspired by the passage of the Portland Clean Energy Initiative this week, a ballot measure that will now provide $30 million per year for the city's clean energy and climate work. Even better, the funds will target local energy deployment that lifts up low-income folks and people of color with energy savings and solar energy, as well as jobs installing these cost-saving measures. But there are other tools more readily at a city's disposal for funding climate work.READ MORE


How Did Renewable Energy Fare at the Ballot Box? (2018 Election Edition)

How Did Renewable Energy Fare at the Ballot Box? (2018 Election Edition)

John Farrell

November 7, 2018

Several clean energy measures were on the ballot in state and local elections this November. The results of state ballot measures were mixed, but voters in Portland, Ore., won handily at creating a fund for equitable, local clean energy investments.READ MORE


ILSR’s Community Power Map Gets a Facelift

ILSR’s Community Power Map Gets a Facelift

John Farrell

November 5, 2018

How do states help or hinder local progress toward renewable energy? ILSR’s Community Power Map illustrates the ways, with an interactive interface that received a refresh this week. The companion to the annual Community Power Scorecard, the map highlights state policies like community solar and community choice energy that enable local clean energy deployment. It also shows the impacts of those policies by listing where projects have been developed, where communities have made 100% renewable energy commitments, and where communities have taken charge of their energy systems.READ MORE


Voices of 100%: Will Portland Voters Opt for New Equitable Clean Energy Fund? — Episode 63 of Local Energy Rules Podcast

Voices of 100%: Will Portland Voters Opt for New Equitable Clean Energy Fund? — Episode 63 of Local Energy Rules Podcast

Marie Donahue

October 31, 2018

Across the U.S., over 80 cities have made commitments to transition to 100 percent renewable energy. In our fifth episode of Voices of 100%, a multi-part series of Local Energy Rules, Alan Hipólito, director of Verde and advocate with the Portland Clean Energy Initiative, speaks with John Farrell about a unique initiative on Portland, Oregon’s ballot this Election Day. The two discuss what inspired Portland’s grassroots campaign and, if passed, how the city will fund a local, clean energy transition that centers low-income communities and people of color.READ MORE


Local Clean Energy on the Ballot this November

Local Clean Energy on the Ballot this November

Marie Donahue

October 26, 2018

This November, millions will go to the polls to cast votes in the midterm elections. In addition to electing candidates, some voters have a unique opportunity to directly shape their local energy system. Initiatives on the ballot in Portland, Ore., Washington state, and Colorado, present opportunities and new models for advancing local renewable energy, climate goals, and energy democracy.READ MORE


Minnesota Regulators Give Boost to Residential Community Solar

Minnesota Regulators Give Boost to Residential Community Solar

John Farrell

October 24, 2018

In a decision earlier this month, the Minnesota Public Utilities Commission approved a 1.5-cent adder to the per-kilowatt-hour compensation offered to residential subscribers of community solar projects offered in Xcel Energy territory in Minnesota. The Commission's decision gives hope that residential participation will continue, with the adder effective for projects started in 2019 and 2020.READ MORE


In New Op-Ed, ILSR’s John Farrell Notes Major Shifts in Technology and Decision-making Power Are Transforming Energy Sector

In New Op-Ed, ILSR’s John Farrell Notes Major Shifts in Technology and Decision-making Power Are Transforming Energy Sector

Marie Donahue

October 19, 2018

In an October 2018 op-ed featured in PV Magazine, John Farrell, ILSR Co-Director and Director of the Energy Democracy Initiative, argues how important shifts in both technology and decision-making are transforming the energy sector.READ MORE


Video: Advancing Energy Democracy with Community Renewable Energy

Video: Advancing Energy Democracy with Community Renewable Energy

John Farrell

October 11, 2018

This 30-minute video is a companion guide to the NAACP's Just Energy Toolkit. It begins with an interview on the site of a community solar project in north Minneapolis, a project that in many ways epitomizes energy democracy.READ MORE


Voices of 100%: Atlanta Works Toward Clean Energy for All — Episode 62 of Local Energy Rules Podcast

Voices of 100%: Atlanta Works Toward Clean Energy for All — Episode 62 of Local Energy Rules Podcast

Marie Donahue

October 10, 2018

Across the U.S., over 80 cities have made commitments to transition to 100 percent renewable energy. As the largest such city in the Southeast, the city of Atlanta has been a regional leader in evaluating how to succeed. In our fourth episode of Voices of 100%, a multi-part series of Local Energy Rules, Atlanta’s Energy Programs Manager Megan O’Neil speaks with John Farrell about the city’s relationship with its incumbent utility, what mix of renewable and energy efficiency makes sense, and how robust community engagement has helped ensure all residents will access the benefits of renewables and can help shape theirREAD MORE


New Jersey Publishes Model Community Solar Program Rules

New Jersey Publishes Model Community Solar Program Rules

John Farrell

October 3, 2018

Joining 14 other states, New Jersey’s Board of Public Utilities recently rolled out its draft community solar (or “shared renewables”) program rules. The program captures many of the best aspects of community solar programs, including generous compensation, project sizes, and a focus on access for low-income customers.READ MORE