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Energy audit inspires Virginia yogis to ‘stand up for something that's important'

Elizabeth McGowan

July 08, 2019 |

Energy News Network |

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800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States, Yogaville, Virginia

A self-imposed audit of energy resources aimed at reducing a Virginia community's carbon footprint and utility bill resulted in a move towards solar power. The community now partners with other surrounding entities to teach solar bootcamps and raise awareness about the need for renewable energy sources.

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After pipeline feud, Virginia nonprofit aims to reunite community with solar

Elizabeth McGowan

June 20, 2019 |

Energy News Network |

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1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Union Hill, Virginia

A small town in Virginia has been divided over whether or not they should allow a compressor station to be built, so to help mend this rift, a local non-profit brought community members together for a weeklong solar boot camp. The nonprofit, which marries "green workforce development and environmental justice," used grant-funding to offer a cross-section of community members training that gives them the means to pursue careers in solar employment.

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Virginia solar installer partners with city to train and diversify workforce

Elizabeth McGowan

May 16, 2019 |

Energy News Network |

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800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States, Charlottesville, Virginia

Sun Tribe Solar, based in Charlottesville, Virginia, collaborated with the city on a curriculum that is helping previously underemployed individuals join an insular industry, especially those who are underrepresented in the field. The cohorts are small and recieve the necessary certifications and learn from classes designed in partnership with Sun Tribe Solar; the program is another way for the city to create a pipeline to good jobs for all residents.

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‘Coal just isn't the future': Meet the Kentucky miners picking up a new trade

Elizabeth McGowan

March 21, 2019 |

Grist |

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1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Harlan, Kentucky

As jobs in America's coal mines dwindle, local Appalachian communities put resources and opportunity into the sustainable energy business. A nonprofit in Kentucky called the Mountain Association for Community Economic Development bridges the gap between the two industries by providing sustainable energy training and internships for former employees of the coal mining industry.

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Black Lung: Reclaiming Coal Country

Elizabeth McGowan

January 08, 2019 |

Blue Ridge Outdoors |

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1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Ashcamp, Kentucky

While waiting on $1 billion of federal money to help address repercussions from a century of coal mining, communities in Kentucky and other Appalachian towns create their own solutions. Chapters of the Black Lung society seek financial means to help individuals with black lung receive medical care, and local businesses turn abandoned mines into sustainable energy plants and other new economic drivers.

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The key to easing land-use disputes? Listening, says Virginia solar developer

Elizabeth McGowan

December 05, 2018 |

Energy News Network |

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800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States, Nokesville, Virginia

In Virginia's Prince William County, one solar developer shows that the key to community support for renewables may be dialogue. Virginia Solar, a Richmond-based energy company, has won approval for a 20-megawatt solar project near Nokesville. How? By listening to citizen concerns about conservation, property values, and construction.

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Kentucky town's energy transition shows ‘you can do this stuff anywhere'

Elizabeth McGowan

September 10, 2018 |

Energy News Network |

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800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States, Benham, Kentucky

Benham may not be the first city to come to mind when thinking about clean energy advancements, but the small Kentucky city has made great strides in recent years to switch to solar energy. Hoping to reduce the cost of electric bills and simultaneously keep the lights on at the local coal museum, this transition could act as a learning opportunity for similar towns and regions.

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Why Massachusetts is the best state for landfill solar arrays

Elizabeth McGowan

March 28, 2018 |

Energy News Network |

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Under 800 Words

Response Location: United States, Lexington, Massachusetts

Repurposing contaminated sites for clean energy production may not sound like a common tactic to take, but Massachusetts has found a way to be highly successful at it. In fact, out of over 250 renewable energy installations across the United States, Massachusetts accounts for 40 percent of them. The state attributes this success to a combination of an enhanced ease of the bureaucratic process and opportunities for revenue stimulation for towns.

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Reclaiming Appalachia: A Push to Bring Back Native Forests to Coal Country

Elizabeth McGowan

December 14, 2017 |

Yale Environment 360 |

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1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States, West Virginia

Tearing down trees to save a forest? While that may not sound like a solution, it could in fact be the key to restoring the former forest that inhabited the Appalachian region in the Eastern United States. “Ripping so deep might seem extreme, but it’s the only way to give these native trees a chance,” says Chris Barton, co-founder of non-profit Green Forests Works and a professor specializing in forest hydrology and watershed management, by means of explaining the ongoing effort he and other researchers, scientists and non-profits are making to reclaim native forests in this region.

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Rising from the ashes, a Buffalo suburb ends its dependence on coal

Elizabeth McGowan

July 11, 2017 |

Grist |

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1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Tonawanda, New York

When the coal-powered Huntley Generating Station began to shut down, the livelihood of the local community in Tonawanda was greatly threatened; numerous jobs were at stake and looming impacts on the town's largest tax revenue stream meant shuttering schools and choking public services. Local community members organized and, through tenacity and frugal reallocation of resources, diverse groups - including labor unions, politicians, and environmental activists - joined forces in creating a way to sustain and revitalize their community beyond coal.

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