Caption: Erica Mackie
Erica Mackie 

Solar Power To The People

From: Alex Wise
Series: Sea Change Radio
Length: 29:30

Embed_button
Solar power is an essential part of the green technology revolution, a movement that has the potential to create jobs that are good for the community and the environment. But when we think about who’s actually benefitting from solar right now, it tends to be mid-to-upper income individuals and households. This week on Sea Change Radio, we speak to two women whose organizations are creating templates to make solar power an equitable component of a carbon-free tomorrow. First, we hear from Erica Mackie, the co-founder of Grid Alternatives, a non-profit solar installer that focuses on getting solar electricity to low income families. Then, host Alex Wise speaks with Jeanine Cotter, the CEO of Luminalt, a San Francisco-based solar installer that hires much of its workforce through local community based organizations. Both women envision a solar industry that benefits a wider swath of the community and offers working people a fair living wage. Read the full description.

Ericamackie_small Solar power is an essential part of the green technology revolution, a movement that has the potential to create jobs that are good for the community and the environment. But when we think about who’s actually benefitting from solar right now, it tends to be mid-to-upper income individuals and households. This week on Sea Change Radio, we speak to two women whose organizations are creating templates to make solar power an equitable component of a carbon-free tomorrow. First, we hear from Erica Mackie, the co-founder of Grid Alternatives, a non-profit solar installer that focuses on getting solar electricity to low income families. Then, host Alex Wise speaks with Jeanine Cotter, the CEO of Luminalt, a San Francisco-based solar installer that hires much of its workforce through local community based organizations. Both women envision a solar industry that benefits a wider swath of the community and offers working people a fair living wage.

Also in the Sea Change Radio series

Caption: Ezra Garrett

Fighting Power Gridlock: PG&E’s Ezra Garrett (30:00)
From: Alex Wise

How do we advance sustainable practices in a world driven by the profit motive? Public policy that mandates the use of renewables by private companies is one way. Not ...
Caption: James Leaton

Hot On The Carbon Trail: Bill Baue & James Leaton (29:30)
From: Alex Wise

The Carbon Tracker Initiative and the Carbon Disclosure Project are two ongoing, vital efforts to help us better understand how much fossil fuels and greenhouse gasses ...
Caption: Lester Snow

Ceres Conference Preview: Lester Snow and Bennett Freeman (30:00)
From: Alex Wise

The Ceres Conference is an annual gathering where organizations as different as the Sierra Club and Shell come together to discuss ways to accelerate the transition to a ...
Caption: Philip Ackerman-Leist

Securing The Foodshed: Philip Ackerman-Leist (30:00)
From: Alex Wise

There is little disagreement that urban farming translates into increased access to local, sustainable, and healthy food, and that this is a very good thing. But how is it ...
Caption: Steven Mufson

Down The Line: Steven Mufson on the Keystone XL Pipeline (30:00)
From: Alex Wise

Are you interested in knowing the facts about the Keystone XL pipeline? Well, depending on the source, the “facts” vary wildly. Proponents tout the Alberta tar sands as the ...
Caption: Michael Skelly

Michael Skelly on Wind Energy: Blowing Over Barriers (29:50)
From: Alex Wise

Promoters and detractors of wind power have one point of agreement - both see the transmission lines that carry wind energy as inefficient and very expensive to build. If ...
Caption: Ed Gillespie

Sustainability Adventurers (30:00)
From: Alex Wise

Can a spirit of adventure lead us toward more sustainable living? This week on Sea Change Radio, we try to answer that question. First, host Alex Wise speaks with Jem ...
Caption: Adam Browning

Here Comes The Sun: Adam Browning part II & Matt Wasson (29:59)
From: Alex Wise

Last week on Sea Change Radio host Alex Wise spoke to Adam Browning, the executive director of Vote Solar, a non-profit organization that advocates for solar power ...
Piece image

Vote Solar’s Adam Browning: A Shining Example (29:59)
From: Alex Wise

Listening to the national dialogue on energy policy can be a little discouraging. Not only does it feel like progress is not happening fast enough, it often feels like as a ...
Caption: Bill Reed

Not Business As Usual: Bill Reed & Rob Deitz (29:59)
From: Alex Wise

“A person who knows that enough is enough will always have enough” – Lao Tzu (6th Century B.C.E.) Like it or not, we are all consumers to some degree. But when is enough ...

Piece Description

Musical Works

Title Artist Album Label Year Length
Quiet Please Galactic Crazy Horse Mongoose. Zomba 1998 01:40
Don't Let the Sun Go Down on Me Bettye LaVette Interpretations: The British Rock Songbook. Anti 2010 01:13
Whistle While You Work Adriana Caselotti Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (Original Soundtrack). Disney 1993 00:45
Nice Work If You Can Get It Sarah Vaughan Complete Musicraft Master Takes. The Jazz Factory 2001 00:50

Related Website

SeaChangeRadio.com