Adjuntas: A Solar Community

Since 2019, the Honnold Foundation team has been working alongside Casa Pueblo to co-create Puerto Rico’s first cooperatively managed, community powered solar microgrid.

Earlier this year, we introduced the Community Solar Energy Association of Adjuntas (ACESA), a nonprofit led by the local business association that manages microgrid operations. Thanks to our friends at REC Group and Rivian, ACESA will own, maintain, and manage the 1,000 solar panels powering 18 small businesses in the center of the town of Adjuntas.

While 2020 has presented challenges for all of our partners worldwide, Casa Pueblo’s Associate Director Arturo Massol Deyá says, “We’re extremely happy here in Adjuntas […] through solidarity and community engagement, we’re in the middle of a significant transformation.”

Read HF Project Manager Cynthia Arellano’s latest trip report to learn more about the Adjuntas solar microgrid.

A New Generation of Guatemalan Leaders

Asociación MAIA is the first school for indigenous girls in Central American, and a 2020 Honnold Foundation Partner. MAIA is committed to unlocking and maximizing the potential of young women to create transformational change. We spoke with Lidia Oxí, Director of Special Projects, and Jenny Dale, Coordinator of Institutional Support and Sustainability, to learn more about how girls’ education and the solutions to climate change are intertwined, in Guatemala and beyond.

In 2008, MAIA founded an afterschool program that provided Guatemalan girls with financial support for attending secondary school, and an intensive mentorship program that partnered girls and their families with supportive peers from within their communities. But by 2015, MAIA’s leadership team started to wonder if they could do even more. 

In Guatemala, 25% of girls and women attend secondary school, 10% graduate, and just 1% study at a university. Students must pass a difficult entrance exam in order to access public university, but a poor public education system creates a challenge— just 25% of high school graduates are considered proficient in reading, and only 6% proficient in math. “[In the beginning,] we were offering scholarships [to public universities], but students weren’t always able to pass the entrance exam”, explains Jenny Dale. Ultimately, poor public school education and generations of systemic poverty have created a massive gender gap in Guatemala’s leadership institutions.

How many women could be Doctors? Lawyers? Climate scientists and solar experts? With real investment and opportunity for the first time in generations, how far could she go?

MAIA’s founders envisioned a school designed specifically to meet indigenous Guatemalan girls’ holistic needs. A place where students’ cultures and identities would be recognized and celebrated. With support from donors all over the world, the MAIA Impact School opened its doors in 2017.

Rigorous academics help Girl Pioneers (MAIA’s own name for their students,) quickly surpass educational benchmarks. Classes also emphasize critical thinking skills, negotiation tactics, intercultural networking dynamics, and other crucial leadership skills, ensuring that Girl Pioneers don’t just graduate with an education— they graduate with a voice.

Since mentorship and teaching staff are 86% indigenous and 82% women, they understand the cultural and socioeconomic barriers their students face. They know what it’s like to feel torn between helping their families earn income and prioritizing their own learning. For example, Lidia Oxi’s roots are planted firmly in the same communities she now serves. She grew up in rural Guatemala and grappled with the same barriers her students face. Eventually, she earned a scholarship to the University of Georgetown and later, received an MBA while studying in Taiwan. Now, her experience and passion to lead the Girl Pioneers on a similar path makes students’ dreams that much more concrete.

“A growing body of data shows a cascade of positive outcomes associated with girls’ education. Literally every area of development– from addressing climate change to world economic prosperity– is improved when girls participate fully in society” — MAIA 

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MAIA’s team always envisioned the Impact School as a hub for solar energy education. According to Jenny, “Sustainability [is] a core piece of MAIA’s mission. We are not only preparing Girl Pioneers to enter the workforce, we want to make sure that they are prepared to be agents of change.” With the Honnold Foundation’s help, MAIA will soon finish installing a solar array that will save $10,000 annually, eliminate 32 metric tons of CO2 emissions per year, and catalyze the community’s commitment to sustainability. 

The solar array will be incorporated into the school’s science and sustainability curriculums, including a hands-on workshop open to families and the entire community. “Just to be able to share the utility savings, the process for getting a licence, and other [logistical] pieces [...] that creates tangible, practical, learning opportunities for the students and community,” notes Lidia.

Changing centuries of intergenerational poverty takes effort, belief, and continued investment, stresses Lidia. "We’re empowering students so that they can continue empowering their community, and then the country [...] but you cannot change the life of a person with a workshop. We've spent over 5000 hours across six years with our students, and we're just now starting to see those effects. For systemic poverty in communities to change, it's about an investment of resources, including time. It's a process."

The Honnold Foundation proudly supports MAIA’s Girl Pioneers, and the process of empowering a bright new generation of Guatemalan leadership. To support MAIA’s work, and other solar community initiatives like it, make a gift today.

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Rebuilding After the Fire: Solar Energy in Paradise, California

In 2018, wildfires swept across Paradise, California and surrounding communities, destroying residents’ homes and the livelihoods of countless more. In response, GRID Alternatives North Valley launched a disaster recovery initiative to help low income homeowners rebuild, using their unique volunteer training model to create economic opportunity for underserved communities in the process.

Photographer Nathan Heleine visited Paradise capturing residents’ loss, recovery efforts, and undeniable resiliency as they rebuild.

Since January 2020, California has required all new homes to have solar panels as part of its mission to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. While the law marks a victory in the fight against climate change, it also means that homeowners rebuilding have one more cost to consider.

GRID North Valley’s disaster resiliency program bridges this economic divide by offering free solar energy installations to qualifying homeowners.

Evelyn Thomas (left) made a harrowing escape to survive the 2018 Camp Fire. After losing her house and much of her community to the fire, she’s starting over with a new home. With the help of Honnold Foundation funding, GRID North Valley installed a solar energy system on Evelyn’s new home as one of the first residents to benefit from GRID’s disaster recovery initiative.

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GRID Alternatives also offers skilled trades training, connecting community members with job opportunities.

Sterling Gillmer (left) graduated from GRID’s workforce training and was soon hired by GRID’s North Valley office. In addition to his work in the community with GRID, Sterling volunteers as a youth basketball coach for his kids’ team.

In addition to being a part of the solar installation team, Sterling advocates for anti-recidivism work and helps GRID connect with members of the community who are overcoming a history in the criminal justice system.

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Solar installations bring the entire community together. Volunteers, contractors, GRID staff, and installation trainees work together to mount panels, install electrical wiring, and more.

GRID’s training program prepares students with the solar installation skills needed to secure an entry level job in the industry.

The Honnold Foundation is committed to helping GRID North Valley increase disaster resiliency in Northern California.  Make a gift today to support GRID North Valley, victims of the Paradise wildfire, and future Honnold Foundation partners.

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Community Engagement with Casa Pueblo

The Honnold Foundation and Casa Pueblo have been hard at work on making Puerto Rico’s newest cooperatively-managed and community-owned microgrid a reality. Soon, Rivian’s second life batteries will be used as the energy storage solution for a microgrid that powers small businesses in the town of Adjuntas— ensuring climate and disaster resilience for the heart of the community.

For the past year, the Honnold Foundation has worked side by side with the community to develop an energy solution that addresses local needs. Providing the materials and engineering expertise is just one part of establishing a community-owned microgrid.

Casa Pueblo

Adjuntas, PR

Honnold Foundation Project Manager Cynthia Arellano has spent extensive time in Puerto Rico, working with Casa Pueblo founders Tinti Deyá Díaz and Alexis Massol González, along with their son and current Associate Director, Dr. Arturo Massol-Deyá. With their support and guidance, Honnold Foundation has gotten to know the small business community in Adjuntas, and learned more about their vision for a solar-powered island.

Founders Tinti Deyá Díaz and Alexis Massol González

Dr. Arturo Massol-Deyá, Associate Director of Casa Pueblo

Cynthia Arellano, Project Manager

Arturo introduces Honnold Foundation, Rivian, and the microgrid project to the Adjuntas community.

Alex Honnold meets with community members during the team’s initial planning visit.

After a series of community meetings, it became clear that solar panels would have the greatest impact for small businesses in the center of Adjuntas. Not only are these businesses central to the Adjuntas economy, but in natural disasters, they become hubs for community services. In the aftermath of Hurricane Maria, local business owners powered up diesel generators to provide families with food, cold storage for medical supplies, charging stations for cell phones, and other critical support services.

Ultimately, Adjuntas’ residents determined that the microgrid’s solar energy should be owned and distributed by the community via a newly formed nonprofit, ACESA. ACESA will provide small businesses with energy at a reduced rate. After reinvesting some profits into microgrid maintenance and repair, ACESA plans to invest earnings into social good initiatives throughout the town of Adjuntas.

Meet some of ACESA’s leadership team and Casa Pueblo’s staff, pictured below.

Gustavo Irizarry, Lucy's Pizza Owner (Copy)

Jose Colon, Digital Point Owner (Copy)

Abraham Gonzalez, Hospice Center Owner (Copy)

Wanda Vasquez, Hardware Store Owner (Copy)

Tommy Barcelo II, Property Owner (Copy)

Walter Acevedo, Bakery Owner (Copy)

Rebecca, Casa Pueblo Staff (Copy)

Jorgie, Casa Pueblo Staff (Copy)

We’re delighted to play a role in building a brighter future for Adjuntas, and immensely proud to work alongside the talented teams at Casa Pueblo and Rivian. Check out a few more photos from our time in Puerto Rico, and make a gift today to support Casa Pueblo, the city of Adjuntas, and future Honnold Foundation community partners.

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Photos by Ben Moon and the Honnold Foundation

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Solar Energy and Social Justice

By Emily Peterson, Summer Intern 2019

Are you interested in an internship with the Honnold Foundation? We offer remote and office-based internships on a semester schedule. Follow us on social media or join the mailing list to be the first to hear about new opportunities.

At the Honnold Foundation, we believe the people most affected by climate change are those already disadvantaged in some way because of factors like race, income, and gender. Increasing energy access using solar can help change the trajectory of climate change worldwide while increasing resiliency and power on a community level. 

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The community of Adjuntas celebrating a solar-powered future for Puerto Rico. Photo by Ruben Salgado Escudero

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Typically, regions that have boomed economically have done so at a high environmental cost: burning coal to power factories, clearcutting forests and draining wetlands to build homes and shopping centers, and using gasoline to fuel cars. In areas that have not undergone this economic boom, an opportunity exists to change the parallel relationship between economic growth and environmental degradation. In Adjuntas, Puerto Rico, the Honnold Foundation is partnering with Casa Pueblo, a community-based organization focused on environmental conservation and sustainable development, to create a community-owned solar microgrid.

Powered by solar energy since 1999, Casa Pueblo understands the power of solar to drive economic and environmental change. In Adjuntas, businesses typically spend about a third of their operational costs on energy. “Energy independence means that people will be able to produce their own energy for their own productive activities… instead of paying someone else” says Arturo Massol-Deyá, Associate Director of Casa Pueblo. “And when they’re doing that, we’re promoting economic activation. Now we can talk about dealing with poverty levels in the area… And the beauty of this is that instead of us generating greenhouse gases and hurting nature that eventually pays back with hurricanes or droughts or other issues related to climate change, now we can reduce our ecological footprint.” 

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A volunteer installer at work on a GRID Alternatives project in the Navajo Nation. Photo by Irene Yee.

For longtime Honnold Foundation partner GRID Alternatives, solar education also has measurable social justice implications. In addition to installing solar on homes to reduce energy costs and dependence on electric utilities, the organization teaches community members how to install and repair solar panels themselves. A similar model is in the works with a new Foundation partner, the North End Woodward Community Coalition (NEWCC) in Detroit. Long after the initial solar panels are installed, members of these communities have technical skills that can continue to make their neighborhoods more self-sufficient and environmentally resilient. 

At the Honnold Foundation, we believe that solar energy can create a more equitable world– by increasing the economic resiliency of marginalized communities, supporting education and health for communities of color, and creating inexpensive power for homes who wouldn’t be able to pay for electricity otherwise. Increasing solar energy access is a powerful tool to address both environmental and social justice issues, and the Honnold Foundation partners with organizations who utilize solar to its full potential.  

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A New Partnership with Northern Navajo Solar Entrepreneurs

An estimated 18,000 homes on the Navajo Nation in the four corners region of the United States lack access to electricity. Many elders and families use dangerous and polluting kerosene and propane lanterns for light in their homes, trapping in harmful fumes and posing serious fire and health risks. Families spend $20–$40 each month on these inefficient fuel sources–a huge price considering that many survive only on $700 each month. Families are paying up to 6% of their income for a light source that is slowly killing them. Since 2010, Elephant Energy has worked to provide energy access for Navajo elders, families and school children through the distribution and sale of affordable and efficient small-scale solar technologies.

This spring the Honnold Foundation is partnering with GoalZero, The North Face, and Clif Bar to expand Elephant’s efforts and initiate a solar entrepreneurs project in the Kayenta Region of the Navajo Nation. Through generous solar product donations from GoalZero, fundraising matching from The North Face, and support from Clif Bar, we’ll be able to help bring Elephant’s proven strategy to a whole new area!

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What are the needs?

Access to solar light is life-changing for the elders and families that receive solar energy systems. For example, Bessie Wilson lives in a small Hogan in Bodaway/Gap Chapter with no running water and an outhouse nearly 50 yards away. Bessie has a young daughter and a 15-year-old son who travels to school over 40 miles away during the week. Prior to receiving a Goal Zero home solar system from Elephant Energy, Bessie and her family used expensive batteries to power a flashlight, or went without light at night. In March 2013, Elephant Energy installed a Goal Zero Escape 150 system in Bessie’s home, and additional lights outside her house and on her outhouse. Now, at night, Bessie can weave Navajo rugs to sell to support her family, and with the ability to study at night, her son has started getting A’s and B’s in school, instead of C’s and D’s.

What does Elephant Energy do?

Entrepreneurs Program
Solar entrepreneurs form the backbone of the Northern Navajo Solar Entrepreneurs Project. Elephant Energy believes that entrepreneurs must “learn by doing,” and as such, entrepreneurs participate in on-location trainings about pricing, marketing, and sales. This training allows entrepreneurs who are attuned to the cultural norms of the area to make informed business decisions. Trained solar entrepreneurs receive small-scale solar products to sell and generate income for their families. This program increases community economic development in the Navajo Nation and increases engagement in business.

Solar Schools Initiative
Through this Initiative, Elephant Energy partners with the Northern Arizona University to develop and teach a “solar schools curriculum” to community schools, and to provide study lamps that kids can check out from the library, just like they would check out a book. Kids can use these lights to study at home, while sharing knowledge about solar technology with their families.

Elder Installation Program
Elephant Energy partners with Community Health Representatives throughout the Navajo Nation to identify the highest risk members of each community. Through this program, Elephant Energy provides supplies to install solar products pro bono into the homes of sick and elderly community members, reducing dependence on costly and dangerous kerosene for light.

What are the impacts?

Elephant Energy’s Northern Navajo Solar Entrepreneurs Project will:

1. Eradicate kerosene use for lighting in the Navajo Nation

2. Establish clean energy technologies as viable and accessible alternatives to grid-based electricity from coal-fired power plants

3. Facilitate rural economic development by creating job opportunities on the Navajo Nation

How can you help?

Donate to help support the Northern Navajo Solar Entrepreneurs Project! Curious what your money will go towards?

$25 loans a solar-powered light and cell phone charger to a solar entrepreneur
$50 provides three solar lights in the home of a Navajo family
$100 eliminates kerosene use in the homes of two Navajo elders
$250 provides a solar system to light an entire home
$500 provides kid-friendly solar products for the Solar Schools Initiative

The North Face will be matching donations up to the first $5,000, after which the Honnold Foundation will match up to an additional $10,000; for a total of $15,000 in matching funds!

Donate Now

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Honnold Foundation On Sacramento's Fox 40

Honnold Foundation founder Alex Honnold dropped by his local news station after the Thanksgiving holiday to talk to reporter Sabrina Rodriquez. During their interview, Alex discussed about how climbing has given him a passion to channel his success toward improving the world and lives of others. The segment also features some great footage of a few of the projects we support. Thanks again to Fox 40 for the opportunity to help inspire others.

Click here for the interview.

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Get2gether Neighborhood Challenge

This summer the Honnold Foundation partnered with the Center for a New American Dream to fund their Get2gether Neighborhood Challenge. Communities from all over the United States submitted video applications for projects to improve their neighborhood within any of the three focus areas: sharing resources, strengthening local economies, and greening communities.

We and the folks at New American Dream were impressed by the initiatives people were undertaking to build local ethos and work towards sustainability. Nine projects from across the US were chosen by the panel, which included guest judge Alex Honnold. They were then provided support and guidance from NAD, along with ioby’s online crowdfunding platform and our matching grant up to $1000.

Here are the winners! Click the name to learn more about each. Get involved if its in your community, or think about starting a project in your area if its not!

NOLA TimeBank Neighborhood Expansion (New Orleans, LA)

Summit County Seed Library (Summit County, CO)

City Share Club (Cambridge, MA)

Asheville Tool Library (Asheville, NC) 

Baxter Community Center’s Garden Lending Library (Grand Rapids, MI)

Chula Vista Community Garden Living Laboratory (San Diego, CA)

Phoenix Tool Shed (Phoenix, AZ)

Local Community Directory (Timonium, MD)

Building Community at the UM Campus Farm (Ann Arbor, MI)