Southface Institute: Blog

Shan Arora, policy programs manager here at Southface, recently spoke with the Natural Resources Defense Council about his thoughts on distributed generation and how the South can gain the most from its mounting desire for energy independence.

Southface’s Kavin Manickaraj traveled to Cape Canaveral, Florida this past weekend to watch a NASA rocket launch to the International Space Station. Why is a Southface staffer going to see …

Continue reading "Solar Cells Are Out of This World"

Today, 678 clean energy firms provide 19,633 full-time jobs in the Peach State – almost the same as the number of active physicians working here. The industry generates more than $2.9 billion in annual gross revenue and includes building efficiency, renewable energy, geothermal, smart grid, energy storage, fuel cell and alternative vehicle fuel sectors.

Southface Policy Programs Manager Shan Arora earned a spot on Georgia Trend's 2014 40 Under 40 List for his dedication to making cities more livable and efficient.

This testimony was given during EPA public hearings in Atlanta on July 29, 2014.

The residential workshop took place at Weatherford Place, a Solar Community of EcoCraft Hybrid™ Homes in Roswell designed and constructed by Cadmus Construction. The development has achieved the first Platinum Level LEED for Homes Certification in Georgia, a pioneering feat attained by only five percent of LEED for Homes certification recipients nationwide.

A few years ago, who would have thought Georgia was about to become a center of national significance for solar policy and leap other states on the deployment of solar PV? At the end of 2010, Georgia had 5.7 MW of solar, a paltry sum given its abundant sunshine. Based on a July 11 Georgia Public Service Commission (PSC) ruling, the state should have over 800 MW by the end of 2016. The story of how this happened so fast is an example of diverse groups finding common cause and keeping solar power in the spotlight.

Author: John Sibley What is the future of solar power in Georgia? The future is bright. Solar power has begun to take off in our state. The installed capacity of …

Continue reading "The Future is Bright for Solar"

Shan Arora is a project manager with Southface’s Sustainable Communities Team. An environmental advocate since an early age, he transitioned into sustainable community development after working in the international trade and tax fields for a decade.

A major barrier to achieving clean energy policy in Georgia is the lack of data on resources currently developed within the state.