The Solarize Guidebook: A Community Guide to Collective Purchasing of Residential PV Systems

Prepared for and published by NREL, US DOE/EERE. Authors: Linda Irvine, Alex Sawyer and Jennifer Grove, Northwest Sustainable Energy for Economic Development (Northwest SEED). February 2011.

This guidebook is intended as a road map for project planners and solar advocates who want to convert “interest” into “action,” to break through market barriers and permanently transform the market for residential solar installations in their communities. It describes the key elements of the Solarize Portland campaigns in Portland, Oregon: a grassroots effort to help residents overcome the financial and logistical hurdles of installing solar power. Over two years and multiple campaigns, residents of Portland installed over 600 solar electric photovoltaic (PV) systems. Although the success seemed to come out of nowhere, it didn’t just happen overnight. It took a concerted effort by many partners —neighborhood
volunteers, a neighborhood coalition, Energy Trust of Oregon (Energy Trust), the City of Portland, Solar Oregon and solar contractors— to convert customer interest into action. The report offers several program refinements from projects beyond Portland. The guidebook provides lessons, considerations, and step-by-step plans for project organizers to replicate
the success of Solarize Portland.

Download the Report
File Format: PDF
File Source: NREL