Equitable Solar in Underserved Communities: Solar Energy Innovation Network Round 3
In the third round of the Solar Energy Innovation Network (SEIN), underserved communities explored new approaches to the equitable adoption of solar energy in residential and commercial-scale settings.
To date, solar energy deployment has skewed toward certain communities and demographics. For example, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory found that the median income of households that adopt solar is significantly higher than that of the average U.S. household. Research published in Nature Sustainability found that Black- and Hispanic-majority census tracts have installed significantly less rooftop solar than other tracts.
These underserved communities may face barriers to solar photovoltaic (PV) adoption that differ from communities in which solar energy is already common. And different communities will have differing priorities that lead them to value solar's various benefits differently. In SEIN Round 3, underserved communities across the country are confronting the solar barriers they face and unlocking the solar benefits most relevant to their own contexts.
In December 2021, eight teams were selected from across the United States to participate in SEIN Round 3. Over the course of 15 months, these teams received direct funding and tailored analytical support from U.S. Department of Energy national laboratories, collaborated frequently with local stakeholders and other teams in workshops, and tested their resulting solutions in their communities. Ultimately, each team published its findings and the process that resulted in its solutions in detail, paving the way for other communities in different contexts to adapt and expand upon the solutions.
SEIN Round 3 is focused on solar PV that is sited in underserved communities. The eight teams were divided into two cohorts: one that focused on residential solar and one that focused on commercial-scale solar. Teams collaborated frequently with others in their cohort, focusing on peer-to-peer exchange and learning from others who face similar challenges. The SEIN program structure also creates opportunities for frequent peer exchange across cohorts, allowing teams to consider intersections between challenges and solutions for residential and commercial-scale solar in underserved communities.
Elevating Equity in Residential Solar Deployment
This cohort focused on developing solutions that expand equity in residential, behind-the-meter solar deployment. Many of these teams aimed to boost solar outreach and education within underserved communities. Teams considered community workshops, solar ambassadors, and workforce development programs—among many ideas—to highlight how the different benefits of solar energy can match the unique needs of each community.
Lead Organization: Texas Energy Poverty Research Institute
Location: Austin and Carrizo Springs, Texas
This team identified opportunities to more equitably deploy solar to properties owned or rented by families in underserved communities by leveraging utilities' low-income energy efficiency programs and Weatherization Assistance Program funding. This team collaborated to identify, refine, demonstrate, and evaluate strategies to widen access to residential rooftop solar among underserved communities and developed guidelines and implementation approaches to apply identified pathways.
Multistakeholder Team Members: AEP Texas, Austin Energy, Community Services Agency of South Texas, Frontier Energy, Houston Advanced Research Center, National Association for the Advancement of Colored People Austin, Texas Solar Energy Society, and Travis County
Publications and Blog:
Facilitating Equitable Solar Access Through Federal Assistance Programs, SEIN Blog Post (2024)
New Pathways for Equitable Solar Adoption in Texas, NREL Subcontract Report (2024)
Lead Organization: ReThink Energy Florida Inc.
Location: Tallahassee, Florida
This team sought to unlock the market potential for solar PV in low- to moderate-income (LMI) neighborhoods by evaluating technical potential, economic feasibility, and financial tools and programs. The project aimed to provide a pathway to install solar at a neighborhood scale that could be replicated in other LMI neighborhoods through awareness of solar benefits in underserved communities and business awareness of LMI funding opportunities.
Multistakeholder Team Members: City of Tallahassee, Debra Swim (Attorney, PLLC), Greater Bond Neighborhood Association, Greater Frenchtown Revitalization Council, Griffin Heights Neighborhood First Plan, Jacobs Law Office, Public Private Partnership for Sustainable Community Development, and Solar Energy Loan Fund
Lead Organization: Energy Trust of Oregon
Location: Portland, Gresham, Beaverton, Hillsboro, and Tigard, Oregon
The team addressed solar deployment barriers and disproportionately low solar awareness in Black, Indigenous, and people of color (BIPOC) communities of Portland, Gresham, Beaverton, Hillsboro, and Tigard, Oregon. The team worked to identify pathways for installing solar on BIPOC homes through innovative incentives for solar-related energy retrofits and home upgrades. The team also built a network of BIPOC "Solar Ambassadors" to educate and build capacity in their respective communities.
Multistakeholder Team Members: Adelante Mujeres, African American Alliance for Homeownership, Community Energy Project, Portland Community Reinvestment Initiative, Solar Oregon, Unite Oregon (Clackamas Chapter), and Verde
Lead Organization: Pecan Street Inc.
Location: Austin, Texas
This team addressed energy affordability and reliability in communities that have historically been negatively impacted by discriminatory housing practices and unjust lending programs. The team developed community-based research models and leveraged peer-to-peer information exchange to define pathways for adapting and expanding low-to-zero-percent interest solar loans for underserved neighborhoods of Austin, Texas.
Multi-Stakeholder Team Members: Austin Energy and GAVA (Go! Austin/Vamos! Austin)
Publications:
Safely Exploring Solar: A Guide for Austin Energy Customers, NREL Subcontract Report (2024)
Austin Solar Guide (Flyer): Wondering If Solar Is Right for Your Home? NREL Subcontract Report (2024)
Elevating Equity in Commercial-Scale Solar Deployment
This cohort focused on expanding equity in solar deployment at the commercial scale, including offices, warehouses, hospitals, hotels, retail stores, schools, nonprofits, and higher-education facilities. This applied only to commercial-scale solar that is sited within underserved communities. Many of these teams sought to improve the solar financing options available to small businesses and nonprofits while expanding solar workforce development opportunities in underserved communities.
Lead Organization: Houston Advanced Research Center
Location: Port Arthur, Texas
This project team addressed the lack of knowledge and affordability—and the capital barriers—to equitable commercial-scale solar. The team developed an effective, replicable, and scalable approach to implement solar-plus-storage microgrids that build community wealth in underserved neighborhoods of Port Arthur, Texas.
Multistakeholder Team Members: City of Port Arthur, Clean Energy Fund of Texas, Community In-Power and Development Association, Digital Workforce Academy Golden Triangle Empowerment Center, Entergy Texas, Lamar State College, Port Arthur Independent School District, Port Arthur Transit, Renewable Energy Partners, Social Wealth Partners, and Solar Energy Loan Fund
Publication:
Evaluating Utility Costs Savings and Resilience: A Case Study in Port Arthur, Texas, NREL Presentation (2024)
Lead Organization: Salt Lake City Department of Sustainability
Location: Salt Lake City, Utah
This team developed a framework to increase the uptake of commercial solar and storage in underserved communities by engaging community and business stakeholders, hosting community listening sessions, and developing culturally relevant outreach tools and resources that address solar market barriers and economically entrenched energy injustices. Resources developed by this team included findings from listening sessions, solar and storage case studies, battery storage incentive program recommendations, and best practices for financing commercial solar.
Multistakeholder Team Members: Rocky Mountain Power, Suazo Business Center, and Utah Clean Energy
Project Advisory Partners: Centro Civico Mexicano, Intermountain Healthcare, McKinstry, Utah Division of Multicultural Affairs, Utah Office of Energy Development, and Zions Bank
Publications and Blog:
Financing Solar + Storage for Small Businesses in Underserved Communities, NREL Fact Sheet (2024)
Salt Lake Solar Leaders Achieve Solar + Storage for Low-to-Moderate Income Businesses, SEIN Blog (2024)
Utility Programs Supporting Customer-Sited Battery Storage: Program Design to Ensure Mutual Benefits, NREL Fact Sheet (2024)
Lead Organization: Lake Street Council
Location: Minneapolis and St. Paul, Minnesota
This team is engaged minority-owned businesses in underserved neighborhoods to increase solar deployment. The team collaborated to apply human-centered design to understand stakeholders' lived experiences, gain insights, and challenge assumptions. The team co-created solutions to reduce inequities in solar adoption, increase business resilience, and build capacity and leadership to sustain ongoing community action.
Multistakeholder Team Members: City of Minneapolis, City of Saint Paul, Great Plains Institute, Neighborhood Development Center, Northside Energy Opportunity Network, Weber Consulting, and Xcel Energy
Publications, Data, and Blog:
Advancing Small Business Solar Equity: Final Technical Insights Report, NREL Subcontract Report (2023)
Screening Tool for Equitable Adoption and Deployment of Solar (STEADy Solar), NREL Dataset (2024)
Twin Cities Team Finds Opportunities to Expand Rooftop Solar for Underserved Small Businesses, SEIN Blog Post (2024)
Lead Organization: RE-volv
Location: Multiple
This team sought to increase solar adoption by houses of worship led by Black, Indigenous, and people of color (BIPOC) by strengthening existing partnerships and scaling up successful efforts. The team streamlined the solar project pipeline by identifying promising locations, presenting proposals, financing projects, and highlighting successes.
Multistakeholder Team Members: Green The Church and Interfaith Power & Light
Publications, Data, and Blog:
Advancing Solar Adoption in Black, Indigenous, and People of Color Communities One House of Worship at a Time, SEIN Blog Post (2024)
Commercial-Scale Solar PV Increases Local Residential Solar Adoption, SEIN Blog Post (2024)
Impacts of Non-Residential Solar on Residential Adoption Decisions, Frontiers in Sustainable Energy Policy (2023)
Locating Equitable Solar Opportunities by Census Tract: A Guide to the Screening Tool for Equitable Adoption and Deployment of Solar (STEADy Solar), SEIN/NREL Presentation (2024)
Screening Tool for Equitable Adoption and Deployment of Solar (STEADy Solar), NREL Dataset (2024)
Screening Tool for Equitable Adoption and Deployment of Solar (STEADy Solar), SEIN Blog Post (2024)
Bringing Solar to BIPOC Houses of Worship, NREL Subcontract Report (2023)
Solar PV on U.S. Houses of Worship: Overview of Market Activity and Trends, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory Technical Report (2024)
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