Suncast

Host Nico Johnson speaks with Emilie Oxel O'Leary, CEO of Green Clean Solar, about the utility-scale solar industry's waste challenges in today's podcast. The US Dept. of Energy's National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) estimates 80 million metric tons of solar photovoltaics (PV) could reach end of life by 2050. Many million tons of additional waste are generated during the construction and installation of solar projects.Emilie shares how her Marietta-based commercial waste management and landfill diversion business partners with recycling companies to recover and reuse components from broken solar panels and related debris, reducing waste and conserving resources. Green Clean Solar is addressing the trash from solar installations today and positioning itself to handle future end-of-life issues.Recycling is essential to prevent solar energy from posing a waste burden for future generations, and this episode is a must-listen for anyone interested in sustainable solar energy growth. If you w

On today's Tactical Tuesday, Nico Johnson leads a conversation on the growing presence of renewables at CERAWeek, the world's leading annual global energy conference. Nico delves into the language surrounding the energy transition conversation and talks with three solar industry leaders about the importance of attending this event, held annually in Houston. You'll hear from Meghan Nutting, EVP of Government and Regulatory Affairs at Sunnova Energy, Abigail (Abby) Ross Hopper, president and CEO of the Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA), and Claire Broido Johnson, COO of Fermata Energy.CERAWeek, organized by S&P Global, brings together the world's economic, geopolitical, energy, policy, climate, and corporate leaders. Nico and his guests explain the increased visibility of solar, wind and other clean energy sources at the event, which traditionally focused on oil and gas. While fossil fuels still dominate, there’s a lot more chatter about the energy transition. Nico and his gues

Christine Todd Whitman gained prominence as the 50th person — and the only woman — to serve as a New Jersey governor. When her eight years in office ended in 2001, she spent two years as head of the Environmental Protection Agency in the administration of President George W. Bush.Now the former Republican is working with ex-Democratic presidential candidate Andrew Yang and others on a new political party called Forward — an option, she says, for the politically homeless. In addition to her political activities, Christie is an author and founder, and president of The Whitman Strategy Group (WSG), a consulting firm specializing in government relations and environmental and energy issues. In today's podcast, Nico Johnson interviews Christie from high above Houston in the Petroleum Club while they were both attending CERAweek in early March.  They talk about the Forward party's potential, its approach to environmental and climate issues, and the path she believes we should take to create

“‘No one knows where the equity metrics are’... This is completely false. Communities that have had to endure environmental racism and exclusion...they know exactly what success looks like.” Dana Clare Redden shares how her solar entrepreneurship has created success for communities and in business on today's Tactical Tuesday episode with Nico. Founder of Solar Concierge and Solar Stewards, Dana describes how she’s taken national economical strategies and creatively implemented them into local communities successfully.  Her goal as a business owner and board member of the Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA), is to implement business structures that include environmental, social governance, and corporate social responsibility programs to create value within working communities and for investors. In this snippet from our longer interview with Dana, you’ll get an understanding of how renewable energy credits (RECS) can create a line of revenue for communities in an open market bas

Emily Sanders Cohen talks with Nico Johnson about her 20-plus years of renewable project development, including more than 15 gigawatts of operational wind & solar projects. Emily has spent the past three years at Primergy Solar as Chief Development Officer, responsible for project development, power marketing and origination activities associated with the company's growing portfolio of North American utility-scale and distributed solar and storage assets. Quinbrook Infrastructure Partners, a specialist investor in lower carbon and renewable energy infrastructure, launched Primergy in 2020 to capitalize on the increasingly important role of solar-plus-battery storage solutions in accelerating the energy transition.In today's podcast, Emily discusses Primergy's battery storage projects (Including Gemini, the largest Solar + Storage project in the US) and how the company's work is helping us transition to a cleaner, decarbonized electric grid. Before Primergy, Emily oversaw renewabl

How do you ensure people remain the priority no matter how complex your product or service — and persuade investors to overcome unconscious bias against an untraditional woman-led technical company?In today's Tactical Tuesday, Nico talks with Piper Foster Wilder, the self-described non-technical co-founder and CEO of 60Hertz Energy. The Alaska-based company offers computerized maintenance management software that enables microgrids and their managers to use their assets more effectively and efficiently. In this snippet of a more extended conversation, Nico gives you a quick look at how Piper has embraced human-centered design (HCD), confident decision-making, a clear vision and task prioritization to find solutions to move her cleantech company forward.If you want to connect with today's guest, you’ll find links to his contact info in the show notes on the blog at https://mysuncast.com/suncast-episodes/.Our Platinum Presenting Sponsor for SunCast is CPS America!SunCast is proudly supported by

A startup spun out from Rutgers University called RenewCO₂ is rewriting the ways we make plastics and chemicals — along with the ways these industries will handle carbon emissions, regardless of the price of carbon or credits. Can we truly create carbon-negative plastics? How do we better capture and utilize the CO2 in existing chemical processes in a climate-positive way?Join Nico Johnson for an interview with RenewCO₂ Co-Founder and CTO Karin Calvinho as he breaks down the complexities behind the company's revolutionary chemical approach into understandable, sensible language. No need to break out the glossary to follow along; listen in on this fascinating chemistry lesson as Nico learns about catalysis, monomers, electrochemistry and more. Karin points out that chemical production accounts for more than 15% of global industrial greenhouse gas emissions, "so it's significant, and it's an issue worth working on."Karin’s focus on carbon-negative plastics is inspiring to all who wish to acceler

Mechanical engineer Shannon Miller is the CEO and co-founder of Mainspring Energy, which aims to increase grid reliability and resilience while accelerating the transition to clean fuels. She leads the design, manufacture, and commercialization of the Mainspring Linear Generator, whose fuel-agnostic design enables it to adjust dynamically for varying fuel qualities and types, including biogas, green ammonia, and green hydrogen. In today's Tactical Tuesday, Nico Johnson explores this remarkable woman’s background and motivations — and shares her practical advice on company culture, seizing opportunities and building successful climate tech careers and businesses. Her career journey is worthy of reflection, and It was a joy to get this intelligent introvert to open up a bit about her winding path to entrepreneurship in cleantech.If you want to connect with today's guest, you’ll find links to his contact info in the show notes on the blog at https://mysuncast.com/suncast-episodes/.Our Platin

Today's conversation is a deep and wonderful exploration of both the entrepreneurial journey and the built environment  — specifically, how we control it and how it controls us. My guest, Tanya Barham, is the CEO and founder of Community Energy Labs, which aims to make smart energy management and decarbonization accessible and affordable for public building (think schools, municipalities, etc).Tanya is an innovator, serial entrepreneur and self-described utility nerd, skilled in the execution of all aspects of technical service, product development, operations and commercialization from ideation through funding and growth while integrating systems and people. She has 20 years of experience developing programs and software to improve the built environment.In the early 2000s, when solar photovoltaic (PV) was still considered a largely fringe technology, she started a first-of-its-kind solar program called Solar 4R Schools for a Portland, Oregon-based foundation. More recently, she's focused on h

Solar veteran Dell Jones is the key account manager for TrinaPro, the all-in-one smart solar utility solution offered by Trina Solar. Since 1997, Trina has pioneered sustainable solar energy solutions, including solar modules, tracker systems, and inverters.On today's Tactical Tuesday, Dell explains how to maximize profits when installing or specifying tracker systems for utility-scale or large distributed-generation solar projects. We dive into a checklist of five ways to improve profitability by integrating trackers into your large-scale project development process.Dell has some 40 years of experience in the solar industry and deep knowledge of trackers from his work as a product manager at TerraSmart and other industry-leading companies. More than 80% of today's utility-scale projects are tracker-based, and Dell has been at the forefront during the product's rise to dominance.Join us for some insightful conversation — and get even more practical guidance by downloading Trina's whitepaper to see the many wa

Today’s episode guest, Wenbo Shi, goes Deep with me on how he’s built his Boston-based energy startup, including detailed answers on the how, when, why and who of his fundraising strategy like I’ve rarely gotten into with a guest. Wenbo honed his interest in solar and decarbonization during an intensive academic journey stretching from undergraduate studies at Xi'an Jiaotong University in Xi'an to a Ph.D. from UCLA and post-doctoral work at Harvard. He vowed early on to NOT be in the power sector; I get him to talk about why he ultimately realized he couldn’t avoid it.At both UCLA and Harvard, he researched microgrid and smart grid management and published more than 20 peer-reviewed papers, which have received more than 1,000 citations. Two of those papers ranked among the most popular articles ever published in IEEE, the world's largest technical professional organization. So you can trust me when I say that today’s guest is a smart grid expert!Wenbo embarked on an entrepreneurial path in 2019 aft

Recently in REsource Labs, we’ve been keying in on things from how to measure your carbon footprint to how to invest your hard-earned dollars into climate-tech startups.  If you’ve been following me for long, you know that I’ve been involved in a few groups working to unlock retail investor access to capital and I’ve even done a little Angel Investing myself!Kyle Cherrick is an entrepreneur, past SunCast guest, and has become a bit of a mentor in the world of climate investing. He’s the founder & lead investor for Climate Avengers, a venture capital community of more than 400 angel investors, and he’s a full-time climate tech operator at concierge marketplace platform, Electrum.He's focused his 15-year career on startups, from early-stage through the venture-funded (growth) stage and beyond, and has worked with industry leaders like First Solar, SunEdison, and Chint Power Systems. While heading business development at Electrum and its affiliate, Solar.com, in his spare time, Kyle also

Michael Orshan is a solar expert who has helped implement more than 10 gigawatts worldwide during the past 15 years. In that time, he’s become a trusted advisor and contributor to the growth of the global solar tracker industry. Presently, Mike serves as VP of US Sales for Valencia, Spain-based solar tracker vendor PVH and also is a founding board member at Breeze, a startup using existing oil and gas pipelines for electricity generation with compressed air pipeline systems (CAPS). In today's podcast, you'll hear his perspective on how manufacturers and utility-scale developers have evolved to address market needs, their current challenges, and their options for moving forward to overcome three critical issues in cleantech.Michael studied computer science and accounting in 1980’s, and quickly realized that converging technologies would create leapfrog opportunities for those who were prepared. His skills were put to good use in the nascent internet days for companies that changed how the telec

Miles Braxton is a solar developer who has carved out his own path as an up and coming clean energy leader.Miles has experience in financial modeling, project development and business development and a technical background in environmental science and engineering.  When I last interviewed him, he worked for Goldman Sachs Renewable Power Group's solar energy assets, coordinating risk management (insurance and environmental health and safety). He left that role in mid-2022 to take the position at Summit Ridge.Miles has learned to reinvest his hard earned skills and upward trajectory to "send the elevator back down" and mentor others. In today's Tactical Tuesday podcast, we talk about how Miles Braxton has used his experience in the solar energy industry to start Black Oak Collective, an organization that helps to provide resources and opportunities to Black professionals and advocates interested in sustainability. He also travels to colleges and universities around the country to share his

Serial entrepreneur Alex Stuart is the president of Carbon Block, which he co-founded in 2018, and Standard Carbon, which he launched three years later. An expert in greenhouse gas assurance, small-scale renewable energy and the carbon markets, his companies synergistically support his beliefs in transparent, accurate climate data. They're the latest projects for the busy Canadian, who founded two renewable energy companies and installed wind turbines for the U.S. government earlier in his career. Carbon Block is an environmental technology firm aiming to tackle climate change through carbon offsets. It uses proprietary hardware backed by blockchain to verify greenhouse gas (GHG) emission reductions and convert them into carbon offsets. Standard Carbon offers GHG-related consulting services to clients in renewable energy, agriculture, manufacturing, and transportation sectors.Alex thinks climate data directly affects a company's financial position — and not managing your risk ex

Cary Hayes is a solar industry veteran with nearly two decades of sales and business development experience. But his journey was anything but typical. From Ski Bum to Investment Banker, to Tree Climber and finally to Solar with REC Solar. He exudes fun and confidence while remaining among the most fiercely competitive people I know — and has excellent practical advice to share in today's Tactical Tuesday.  This is an excerpt from one of our most-downloaded episodes of 2022, and one of the episodes that got the most comments on Linkedin.Cary's spent the past six years leading REC Americas, the California-based North American division of REC Group, a leading European brand for solar photovoltaic (PV) panels. He was part of the team that first brought Norway-based REC Group to the US market in 2008, helping to fuel its global growth. In 2014, he left REC Solar (now owned by Duke Energy) to work as a vice president at Pristine Sun and Clean Focus before accepting a top role at REC Americas. H

  Bill Jordan capitalized on decades of experience in renewable energy, building materials and sustainable agriculture markets to create the Troy, New York-based solar development company that bears his name. Since he founded Jordan Energy in 2009, it's grown into a leader in solar photovoltaics (PV) system design, installation, and operations, in particular for the agriculture and dairy industries. Also known as Jordan Energy and Food Enterprises, the company supports many client partners from the farm community, including Dairy Farmers of America. It's a natural fit for a man with deep agricultural roots — his mother's family ran a produce shop in Philadelphia, and several of her brothers later expanded to farming in the Imperial Valley of Southern California. Jordan Energy demonstrates its belief in sustainable energy by sharing 10% of its profits with the Let's Share the Sun Foundation, which provides solar power to underdeveloped communities worldwide. In today's podcast, Bill tells us how he ma

We might be 1 month into the year, but it’s not too late to tighten up your pla. Today’s Tactical Tuesday brings you Two industry experts — Gustavo Gomes Monteiro and Michelle Davis — who share insights on the state of the global and domestic distributed generation markets and forecast what we can expect throughout 2023. Gustavo is the CEO of the distributed generation business at EDP Renewables North America (EDPR NA DG), a part of EDP Renewables, the world's fourth-largest renewable energy producer. He offers in-depth market knowledge, technical and transactional experience, and a global perspective. His insights include how multinational corporations integrate renewables, including solar and storage, and critical trends in distributed generation. Michelle is a principal analyst for US Distributed Solar at Wood Mackenzie Power & Renewables and lead author of its US Solar Market Insight Q4 2022. The quarterly report is created in collaboration with the Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA)

Kevin Conroy wants to make investing in sustainable assets as simple as buying stock in Robinhood. In 2019, he established Finite to give individuals access to sustainable institutional quality investment opportunities. The minimum initial investment is a mere $500. He describes Finite as the first platform to mobilize investor capital seamlessly into sustainable assets through publicly listed funds, adding that it "transparently invests in tangible assets delivering quantifiable impact and access to all investors." In today's podcast, Kevin explains how his interest in sustainable finance led him to create a company that allows everyday folks to invest in genuinely impactful projects. His perspective is informed by his roles as president and a co-portfolio manager for Finite's public fund, SOLRX.It's a meaningful conversation as we speed towards decarbonizing our economy and grid. It sheds light on the deployment of capital to sustainable assets and the significance of giving a broader s

Gregg Patterson is a former Hewlett Packard executive who ran multiple global businesses before jumping into renewables in 2006 — partly, he says, to help "save the world."In today's podcast, he explains how he parlayed a background in engineering, research and development and executive management into a solar career.After successfully leading two solar and energy startups to successful exits, Gregg accepted an offer to join Origami Solar, which intends to reverse the solar industry's reliance on aluminum through innovative, domestically-made steel module frames.Origami Solar gained attention in September by earning a grand prize in the U.S. Department of Energy's (DOE) American-Made Solar Prize competition. The $500,000 award aims to advance the company's patent-pending steel frame for solar modules to lower costs, reduce carbon emissions, and improve performance and value.Today Gregg gives us a closer look at the company from the lens of his role as CEO.He says steel frames are less expensive, re