Washington University, Missouri Botanical Garden and the Midwest Renewable Energy Association (MREA) are partnering on a third phase of Grow Solar St. Louis, a solar education and group-buy program that makes it easier and less expensive for residents to pursue solar on their homes. If you or anyone you know has considered solar for their home or small business, the program is an excellent resource as you learn and explore options.
Grow Solar St. Louis will host eight webinars, called Solar Power Hours, starting in April and continuing into June. Registration is free and there is zero commitment. Education is a major part of the Grow Solar program. Anyone even mildly curious about solar is encouraged to attend!
Background:
In 2019, WashU partnered with the Missouri Botanical Garden’s EarthWays Center and MREA to pilot Grow Solar St. Louis in St. Louis City and St. Louis County. In its first year, Grow Solar St. Louis saw an incredible surge of interest from residents with 424 KWs of renewable solar energy being added to ~70 homes in the St. Louis area. In 2020, the program expanded to include St. Charles County and added another 456 KWs of solar to homes in St. Louis City, St. Louis County, and St. Charles County. WashU, MOBOT, and MREA are committed to growing the local solar market and are partnering with a number of municipalities and organizations on this third phase of the program.
MREA also coordinates a group-buy program for the Illinois side of the St. Louis region: Grow Solar Metro East. Grow Solar Metro East began in 2016 in Godfrey, IL with the help of local organizations and a partnership between Lewis and Clark Community College and MREA. It has now expanded to include a large group of partners.
WashU also partnered with Renew Missouri to launch a commercial solar group-buy program, Renew STL Solar, which is designed to support businesses, schools, churches, local governments and others pursue solar on their buildings.
The development of Grow Solar St Louis and Renew STL Solar were possible thanks to generous support from Bloomberg Philanthropies.