Community-owned solar microgrids are a great way to enhance the independence of communities that live in harsh climates. This model of ownership presents an accessible way to ensure energy security in rural areas and cities around the world. A great example of community-owned solar microgrids in action comes from Puerto Rico’s Casa Pueblo group. Residents of the island have embraced the deep and meaningful connections among to community “to create local buy-in and make it an equitable transition.”
The community-owned microgrid project, which is framed as a grassroots movement, will certainly add some resiliency to residents of Puerto Rico amid fossil fuel extraction and major climate events like Hurricane Maria which “damaged 80% of Puerto Rico’s power grid.”
Image Credit: Casa Pueblo
