Description
GRID Alternatives was founded during the 2001 California energy crisis by Erica Mackie, P.E., and Tim Sears, P.E., two engineering professionals who were implementing large-scale renewable energy and energy efficiency projects for the private sector. The vision that drove them was simple: why is free, clean electricity from the sun only available to big businesses and wealthy environmentalists, when it should be available to everybody? They wanted to develop a model to make this technology practical and accessible for low-income communities that need the savings the most, and where families often live in the shadow of polluting fossil-fuel power plants.
Every solar installation is a renewable energy "barn raising" that brings together environmental activists, advocates for low-income communities, green job trainees, community volunteers, and the homeowners themselves to participate in a fun, hands-on project that delivers immediate, tangible results: a fully installed solar electric system that provides immediate economic benefits to a local low-income family.
Tim and Erica's work creating GRID Alternatives was recognized in 2010 when they were honored with a James Irvine Foundation Leadership Award for advancing "innovative, proven and replicable solutions to critical issues facing California":
