Solar = Job Creation Powerhouse: New Report: 260,000 Solar Jobs in US
Dear, political partisanship. Please let the data speak: 1 in every 50 jobs added in 2016, across the whole U.S. economy, was in the solar industry. That's 51,000 new solar jobs last year. All in, this amounts to a 20% annual increase in solar jobs for each of the last four years. To summarize: If need be, screw the environment. Instead, just be pro-(clean energy) jobs. Read more.
Quantum Leap by Distributed Solar and EVs:
Threat to Fossil Fuel Demand by 2020?
The takeaway: “There is no more 'business as usual' in the energy sector – so it is time that scenario was discarded...Low-carbon technologies are about to achieve critical mass decades before some companies expect.” Don't take my word for it. This new analysis comes from the Carbon Tracker Initiative (with board members from JP Morgan, Citi, University of Oxford, Rockefeller Brothers Fund) and the Grantham Institute at Imperial College London. Read more.
ENERGY STORAGE | ELECTRIC VEHICLES
Microgrids Find New Financing Models: News from DistribuTech Conference
With falling solar and storage costs, and rising interest in grid resilience, microgrids are primed for expansion. Two innovative investment models may hold the keys to unlock growth: 1) The Power Purchase Agreement model, borrowed from the solar industry (e.g., Duke Renewables builds and owns it, PPA with high-credit county government customer who pays for its grid resilience benefits over time). 2) Partly rate-based for grid-wide benefits, and partly customer-funded for behind-the-meter services. Read more.
Go Big or Go Home:
World's Biggest Battery Installed Last Week
AES Energy Storage just installed a 30 MW lithium-ion battery in S. California -- the biggest ever. When adding this to three other battery installations last week, almost 78 MW were completed in SoCal. This is equal to 30% of the entire 2016 US storage market. Even though batteries are more expensive than natural gas peakers in most instances, they get installed much quicker, are more modular, and help renewables integrate into the grid. Read more.
PRODUCTIVITY | TIPS | TRIVIA
The Power of Consistency:
Habit and Systems, Not Inspiration, Matters Most
Motivational guru Tony Robbins once said, “It's not what we do once in a while that shapes our lives. It's what we do consistently.” Here's more evidence on the power of good daily habits: "Chains of habit are too light to be felt until they are too heavy to be broken." (Warren Buffet) "We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit." (Aristotle). So, what will your top 5 personal and professional habits be for today, tomorrow, and 10,000 tomorrows?
10+ Ways to Say You're Madder than _______:
Entertaining Expressions of Catharsis
Just in case you have any extra reasons to be frustrated or angry lately, here are more ways to express yourself. But be wary, you might also cause laughter simultaneously. We could probably use more of that, too. For example, "I'm so mad I could have (pass) a kitten!" Or, "I'm havin’ a blood rush.” And, "Ugh, I'm burnin' thunderwood, man!" Thanks to our Northern U.S., Georgia, and Louisiana friends for those. Read more.
