Chicago's Blacks in Green has been recommended for $12.5 million in renewable energy credits to spearhead the development of three community solar projects. These initiatives, valued at $25.7 million, are orchestrated by the Green Energy Justice Cooperative (GEJC), a project launched by Blacks in Green and other partners. The projects aim to benefit Black, Brown, and low to moderate-income subscribers in and around Aurora, Naperville, and Romeoville, Illinois.
The Illinois Power Agency ranked the GEJC projects first, second, and fourth among proposals in the competitive Illinois Shines competition. Naomi Davis, founder and CEO of Blacks in Green, emphasized the long-standing effort to ensure energy independence for underresourced communities, stating, "The opportunity was presenting itself with renewable energy credits that Blacks in Green and others had fought for, for over a decade."
Launched in 2022, the GEJC strives to provide economic and political power to low-income communities of color through ownership of energy generation. The co-op, consisting of organizations working towards just ownership of local clean energy, will offer co-ownership to renters, condominium owners, and homeowners unable to install solar. The success in the Illinois Shines competition brings the GEJC one step closer to delivering the benefits of the clean energy transition to marginalized communities.
Blacks in Green's mission extends beyond this achievement, with plans to expand clean energy businesses, work on a virtual power plant, clean energy microgrid, affordable energy legislation, and geothermal power. Naomi Davis emphasized the importance of community resilience against the harms of the climate crisis, stating, "We are looking to be our own emergency management system."
Source: energynews.us