Energy Exchange

Can blockchain unlock a sustainable future?

By Jorge Madrid / Published: October 1, 2018

Blockchain – a really high-tech “spreadsheet” or ledger used to record transactions securely – offers exciting potential for clean energy. With the rapid rise of distributed energy technologies — such as rooftop solar, batteries, smart energy devices, and electric vehicles — some analysts believe the market for blockchain applications in the energy sector is many times larger than it is for cryptocurrency in the financial sector.

Blockchain technology may hold great promise for a sustainable future, but we need to solve some important challenges first.

Posted in Clean Energy, Fourth Wave, Grid Modernization / Tagged Community Solar | Read 2 Responses

Regionalize and resist: A regional power grid could unlock 100 percent clean energy across the West

By Jorge Madrid / Published: August 6, 2018

Captain Planet taught us that when our powers combine, we can defeat any villain.

That’s hopeful news for those of us who want a livable planet for the future, because times are fraught: Our president has called global warming a “hoax,” withdrew the U.S. from a global climate agreement, and installed former fossil fuel lobbyists and CEOs to the highest positions of power.

Meanwhile, carbon pollution is at an 800,000-year high (the highest concentration of C02 in human history), and climate change is ravaging the world in the form of record-breaking heatwaves, extreme drought, and severe storms. Scientists warn that we need a dramatic decrease in carbon pollution and fossil fuels to avoid runaway climate change – which needs to happen at the fastest pace possible, and at the most efficient cost.

Posted in California, Clean Energy / Read 1 Response

‘Eastside Sol’ envisions the clean energy future we want to build together

By Jorge Madrid / Published: September 15, 2017

California has made great progress rolling out programs intended to make clean energy technologies like solar power and electric vehicles more affordable for all Californians. However, if we are going to continue to lead the vision for what a clean energy future can look like, we still have a lot of work to do. These programs still need effective ways to reach low-income communities who are most impacted by pollution and climate change, and who oftentimes lack the resources and information to access them.

Enter Eastside Sol – the city’s first 100 percent solar powered arts and music festival. Eastside Sol celebrated its third anniversary this summer, with an event that has grown bigger and better every year. The event showcases zero-pollution energy and mobility programs for residents of the greater Eastside Los Angeles area ‒ wrapped in a fun, festive celebration of Eastside culture and community.

Posted in California, Clean Energy, Electric Vehicles, Energy Equity / Tagged Community Solar | Comments are closed

Nation’s Largest City-Owned Utility Uses Equity Metrics to Ensure All Residents Have Clean Energy

By Jorge Madrid / Published: March 10, 2017

This week, the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power (LADWP), the largest municipal utility in the country, released the Equity Metrics Data Initiative (EMDI) “to track, measure, and report on how its programs are provided to all customers and residents of Los Angeles.” This data will help ensure the utility’s investments and programs are reaching all Angelenos.

EMDI is the LADWP’s first effort to use data in the pursuit of equity in planning a clean energy future for all of us. Data gathered during the initiative will be used to create a baseline for measuring the impacts of and access to investment and services from LADWP. These include things like energy efficiency programs, solar incentives, and electric vehicle charging infrastructure ─ tracking how they reach different neighborhoods and customers, particularly those with economic and environmental vulnerabilities. Read More »

Posted in Clean Energy, Energy Equity / Tagged LADWP | Read 1 Response

Eastside Sol Celebrates Community, Culture, and Clean Energy in Los Angeles

By Jorge Madrid / Published: September 15, 2016

By: Luis Gutierrez, Senior Associate, Leadership for Urban Renewal Network (LURN) and Jorge Madrid, CA Campaign Director, Environmental Defense Fund (EDF)

It’s a warm, sunny day in August at the iconic Mariachi Plaza in Boyle Heights, California. More than 400 local residents have come together to dance to the classic tunes of Selena and the cumbia-rock fusion of El Conjunto Nueva Ola – the entire stage powered by solar. They’re enjoying delicious vegan treats, participating in a live mural art project, and screen printing their own reusable tote bags. Many are collecting free shade trees to plant at home, learning about bicycle safety and receiving free helmets, and discovering information about a new vehicle trade-in program that allows Californians to swap out their older vehicles for a new or used electric car. So what exactly is this celebration of music, art, culture, and clean energy? It’s Eastside Sol.

Event organizers Jorge Madrid and Luis Gutierrez reflect on the origins of Eastside Sol, its driving principles, and what’s in store for the future.

Posted in California, Electric Vehicles, Energy Equity, Solar Energy / Comments are closed

10 Reasons Why We Love Community Solar

By Jorge Madrid / Published: August 2, 2016

Carlos Mandeville co-authored this post.

This year is set to be another record-breaker for solar power: the industry is on pace to nearly double in size by the end of 2016, and there are now more than one million solar installations in the U.S. that generated more new electricity in the first quarter of the year than coal, natural gas, and nuclear combined. This is good news, in part because 2016 is also on track to be the hottest year in recorded history – awash in scorching hot solar rays we can tap for clean, renewable energy.

Unfortunately, solar power is still inaccessible to vast, unreached markets and segments of the U.S. population. The National Renewable Energy Laboratory says only 22 to 27 percent of residential rooftops are capable of hosting a solar system because of structural challenges, tree shading, or “ownership issues” – mainly households who rent, and cannot install solar panels on roofs they don’t own. Likewise, U.S. households who earn less than $40,000 per year (40 percent of the U.S. population) account for less than five percent of all solar installations.

But the solar game is changing. New models are emerging to complement and fill gaps in the market.

Posted in Energy Equity, Solar Energy / Comments are closed