A renewable energy marketplace and solar-focused charity have teamed up to take donated solar equipment and divert it from the landfill to underserved communities. EnergyBin and Good Sun are now accepting donations of functioning solar panels that will be repurposed.
EnergyBin is leveraging its member network to pull together solar equipment, monetary donations and other resources. As a wholesale solar business-to-business exchange with over 500 members, EnergyBin tries to cover the entire solar supply chain and support Good Sun.
“We understand that non-profits don’t typically have vast resources to allocate toward marketing initiatives to promote their cause,” said Renee Kuehl, director of sales and marketing at EnergyBin. “By leveraging EnergyBin’s resources in support of Good Sun, we can play an integral part to increase awareness of Good Sun’s work among EnergyBin members and the solar industry at large as well as encourage others to get involved in this cause.”
To date, Good Sun has served over 2,000 low-to-middle income families, diverted over 150,000 pounds of solar panels away from landfills and provided over $300,000 in materials and monetary donations to other non-profits and disaster relief efforts. Good Sun collaborates with partners to bring solar energy to underserved communities.
This year, the organization is working with Habitat for Humanity to install rooftop solar PV systems on 40 homes for families. In addition, Good Sun plans to donate a 30-kW solar system to a northern California watershed protection organization through a business model of non-profits helping non-profits.
Past Good Sun projects include solar installations at three charter schools in Nevada County, classroom construction and solarization at the Queen Elizabeth Nursery & Primary School in Uganda, solar backup systems for the CURA Orphanage in Kenya and the Buhoma Hospital in Uganda, and solar for the Hospitality House homeless shelter in Grass Valley, California.
Good Sun’s solar installations function as educational and vocational training opportunities. During construction, Good Sun field technicians train workers to prepare them for jobs in the renewable energy industry.
“At Good Sun, we focus our resources on our philanthropic projects, leaving little in the budget for other expenses such as marketing,” said Eric Stikes, co-founder and president of Good Sun. “Having EnergyBin as a partner, advocating for our mission by advertising to their considerable list of contractor, manufacturer and distributor partners, allows us to have a
presence in a much wider marketplace than we would otherwise be able to access. This proposition is unique and our partnership with EnergyBin is therefore extremely valuable as it has the potential to allow Good Sun to scale up and multiply our positive impact to the people we serve and the communities in which we work.”
Through the collaboration, EnergyBin members and individual solar owners are invited to support Good Sun through cash and solar equipment donations in exchange for a tax write-off, or offer equipment at discounts. Modules acceptable for donation need to be producing at least 50% of their rated power. Equipment donors should be prepared to show evidence that second-hand modules have been tested and are in good working order. Good Sun is a U.S. federally-registered 501(c)(3) public charity and California state-registered domestic non-profit.
Those interested in donating solar equipment can do so here.
News item from EnergyBin
Interesting, from what I’ve witnessed over 30 or so years, many of the early solar PV panel manufacturers that produced solar Panels back in the early to late 1980’s are still able to put out rated output power to specifications even when the once white backing where the solar cells are mounted are turning dark brown after decades of use. The cheaper thin film panels of the early 1990’s had a clear plastic over the ribbon cells of the panel. The plastic tends to yellow, crack then flake off. One good rain after that and the panel may not put out half power from then on. Better to look for crystalline solar PV cells encapsulated with a glass cover.