It was February 1st, and Inovateus had a bit of a problem. We had a large load of solar power equipment we wanted to donate to a good cause. But donating literal tons of specialized equipment isn’t nearly as straightforward as a cash transfer. There are all kinds of logistical hurdles, and after several calls, it still wasn’t clear where we could do the most good with it. That’s where our network of green energy partners came in. A call between our own Timothy Powers, and Therese Dorau from the Environmental Resilience Institute led to a contact with the nonprofit Indiana Solar For All (INSFA) in Bloomington, Indiana.
Within two days, Woodie Bessler, one of the founding board members of INSFA, had connected with us. Within another two days Woodie had rented a U-Haul, a second member had volunteered to help drive up to South Bend, and a third had struck a deal with a neighbor to use his garage as a storage facility for the donated materials. On February 6th, the INSFA coordinator sent out an email to members saying, “we’re getting a huge donation of supplies that will be coming in between 7 and 8pm tomorrow night! Can anyone help unload!?” And in chilly 30-degree weather, in the dark of a Friday evening, eight community members showed up to do just that.
Emma Young, a member of INSFA, says, “this in-kind donation is HUGE for us! We have a robust volunteer corps, but funding has been a struggle since the state ended net metering. We typically install solar power on 4-5 homes in the spring and 4-5 in the fall, but we were struggling this year to fully fund just 2 installs. And the equipment is our biggest category of expense. So, when we got the email from Inovateus it was a total game-changer! I don’t think I’m the only one who was jumping up and down with excitement.”
Indiana Solar for All is a grassroots collective of neighbors based in Bloomington, Indiana, that has been spreading solar power since 2018. A core of professionals dedicates their time to train and oversee teams of community volunteers, who install rooftop solar on qualifying homes for free. This brings rooftop solar within reach to lower-income homeowners who can’t afford the upfront cost, and who earn too little to benefit from solar tax credits. Many program participants are living with a disability. A third of participating households are headed by women, and about half are Habitat for Humanity homes.
Emma Young describes her involvement, “I received a flyer in 2023, and I thought it sounded too good to be true. I have always wanted to make my home more sustainable, and had looked into solar panels before, but the cost was so far out of my range, it was just a pipe dream. Especially after the pandemic. But when I looked at the INSFA guidelines, I saw that my income would qualify me to apply for zero-cost panels in return for 80 hours of sweat equity. I applied, went through the process to get on the waitlist, and started volunteering. I do a lot on the fundraising committee, and I’ve assisted on the ground crew at 3 builds. It’s an incredible feeling. You come together with neighbors you’ve maybe just met, you get to know each other a little, Spanish and English speakers are all working together, and in half a day, you’ve accomplished this huge thing that will make a difference in someone’s life for the next 20 years.”
Some homeowners pay the reduced price of just the materials, while those making below 80% of Area Medium Income may qualify for a fully free installation. Homeowners who are accepted into the program receive education about solar and energy conservation, participate in their own installation, and then pay it forward. Some do their sweat equity by joining the installation teams, gaining valuable hands-on experience. Many others contribute by preparing food for the teams or covering the many fundraising, outreach, and organizational needs of the program between builds. There are no givers or receivers in the INSFA model: just neighbors working together to uplift each other.
The Indiana Solar for All program began in 2018 and has so far installed solar panels on 48 homes. INSFA believes that their work builds community, spreads valuable knowledge and skills for a green energy future, improves the financial security of vulnerable homeowners, and contributes to greenhouse gas reduction.
INSFA is a project of the 501(c)3 Center for Sustainable Living. You can learn more at insfa.org, and follow them on Facebook.
