Around the 2016 election, there were a number of state level ballot initiatives that would fundamentally change the landscape of local, renewable energy. For this, Bloomberg Markets reporters reached out to ILSR Energy Democracy initiative director John Farrell for his feedback.… Read More
This week in Energy Democracy news: Ballot initiatives in Florida and Nevada end up on different sides of the solar divide, Arizona’s public utilities commissioners are up for re-election (as is the future of the state’s renewable future), and our answer to Ken Bone’s energy question is republished. Featured Stories: Why going local makes sense for … Read More
For more than five years, Vineyard Power Cooperative has provided electricity customers living in one of Massachusetts’ best-known island communities the chance to buy into an energy future that favors renewables and bolsters their local economy. This is part of a series released in October 2016 for Energy Awareness Month highlighting communities and community energy projects … Read More
On October 18th, John Farrell delivered a keynote presentation to the annual gathering of the BioCycle Renewable Energy from Organics Recycling (REFOR16) in Orlando, Florida. In this presentation, Farrell details how microgrids are a realistic piece of our renewable energy future and the intersection of biogas and other renewable energy technologies, such as solar and wind energy.… Read More
An unconventional approach to grassroots organizing in Wisconsin’s capital city has in recent years tipped incumbent utility Madison Gas & Electric (MGE) toward policies that favor consumers and renewables, a distinct shift in a state held back for years by entrenched monopolies with outdated business plans. This is part of a series released in October 2016 … Read More
At the second presidential candidate debate, one red-sweater-wearing American earned notoriety for his question about little-discussed energy policy. The question deserved a thorough response, given that it brushes on some myths of the clean energy transition but also the challenge of guaranteeing justice for displaced workers. Midwesterner Ken Bone asked this question: What steps will your … Read More
In a roundup of the best podcasts that are enabling the sharing economy, Shareable shared both our Broadband Bits podcast and our Local Energy Rules podcast, a wonderful honor for us.… Read More
This is an update of analysis done back in June, state-by-state information has been updated, however, conclusions have largely been left the same, see the original post here. Citizen-sponsored ballot initiatives frequently demand progress on renewable energy implementation (and have for years), oftentimes these occur when state legislatures show little to no political will to increase locally-owned solar … Read More
In this episode, Chris Mitchell, the director of our Community Broadband Networks initiative, interviews John Farrell, the director of our Energy Democracy initiative about the concept of energy democracy and about his latest report, Is Bigger Best in Renewable Energy? John specifically outlines some of the key concepts that make up the principles of energy democracy and how locally-owned renewable energy continues to shape our electric grid in new and exciting ways.… Read More
