Climate Curve

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Project Summary / Description:

Gallup Solar was founded with the goal of bringing solar energy to the Gallup, New Mexico area. For several years we have hosted twice-monthly free classes about solar power to community members and offered low-cost solar devices for their use. These devices introduced purchasers to solar power and they returned wanting more solar capacity such as for refrigeration for medications. They also wanted education about solar applications. To address these needs, we sought grant support to develop a formal training program for individuals with interest in solar power that included free solar PV installation for off-grid homes.

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Best Estimate of GHG Avoidance/Reduction of This Project (Tonnes CO2 Equivalent/Year):

Sustainable Development Goals:

Impact on Underrepresented Groups:

Meetings and classes, including the Solar Team project, are open to all members of the community. Selection of Solar Teams considers equitable gender representation. This is important because women disproportionately suffer negative effects from having no electricity. Because women tend to spend more time inside the home due to cultural traditions regarding family responsibilities, they have more exposure to harmful by-products from kerosene lanterns, for example, increasing their risk for chronic illnesses. Providing off-grid homes with solar power reduces these risks. Also, since clean electricity extends the day with good lighting and internet connections, it frees time for women to pursue activities that have direct economic benefits.

We support economic diversity by creating conditions for upward mobility in two ways. Approximately 43% of the Navajo Nation lives in poverty. Employment in the solar industry and associated entrepreneurial opportunities may offer a pathway out of poverty that is not fraught with the health risks associated with coal and uranium mining and work in coal-powered electricity generating plants, big sources of jobs in the Navajo Nation. Adequate lighting, a safer home environment, and opportunities for healthier dietary options help remove stressors that otherwise limit educational achievement as well as reduce limitations imposed by chronic illness, factors that trap people in poverty.

We support an ethnically diverse population. Gallup, NM is our home base in McKinley County, which is 74 % Native American. And most of our guests drive from the Navajo Nation, which is 100% Native American.

Mission Statement:

Our Solar Team project aims to bring solar power to the estimated 15,000 homes without electricity in the Navajo Nation. This solar PV installation training program for Navajo people is a community-based effort to provide clean energy in a practical, cost-effective manner. The project has four primary goals: to provide a reliable, safe, zero emission source of electricity for lighting and small appliances, including a refrigerator; to provide assistance for maintenance and optimal use of solar PV systems; to replace kerosene lanterns and most generator uses; and to prepare people for employment in a growing solar industry. As part of our group-based Solar Team project, trainees are provided a free small solar PV system and refrigerator to install and maintain at an off-grid home of their choosing, providing invaluable training experience as well as a step toward solar electrification for off-grid homes.

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website: http://gallupsolar.org

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