Clean Energy Resource Teams

With a population just over 5,000 residents, La Crescent powers more than half of the city with clean energy, and it's more than solar panels:

La Crescent powers more than half of its city with clean energy La Crescent has 5,200 residents. And they figured out how to run 66% of their city operations on renewable energy.

La Crescent's city council first developed a taste for clean energy when it saved them money.
“Now, the council expects it. If we built something today and didn't include a heat pump, they’d ask why.”
Find out what funding models make going green make sense (and cents!)

La Crescent powers more than half of its city with clean energy La Crescent has 5,200 residents. And they figured out how to run 66% of their city operations on renewable energy.

Did you know Minnesota is #2 for community solar?

Minnesota remains one of the foundational U.S. community solar markets. The state’s program launched in late 2014, and Minnesota has long been an early example of a market that scaled by avoiding hard caps on programs and using a compensation structure that made projects financially viable.

Minnesota was the national leader in community solar for years before being overtaken by New York in total capacity and, more recently, by Maine on a per-capita basis. Even so, its ranking shows the durability of the state’s early market design.

Top ten community solar states show the power of program design - pv magazine USA ILSR’s Community Solar Tracker shows Maine, Minnesota, and New York leading the country in community solar deployment per resident. At the same time, state program designs continue to shape how quickly shared solar markets scale.

“Bike share 2.0 is going to look different; the biggest difference is the introduction of e-bikes, allowing new riders to participate [and] longer rides with less effort.”
Our partners at Great Plains Institute are identifying funding to study a bike share relaunch in Minneapolis!

Minneapolis could soon see the rebirth of its bicycling ride share program Nice Ride vanished from the city's streets in 2023, but it could soon be back with a boost from e-bikes at Great Plains Institute.

📊 Minnesota solar power by the numbers
- 3,264 megawatts of total solar capacity across 27,358 installations to date in Minnesota
- 3,297 megawatts additional expected over the next 5 years
- 935 megawatts of community solar capacity as of 2024, with up to 620 megawatts more expected by 2030
- 1.4% of Minnesota homes have solar panels
- 65% drop in residential installs so far in 2026 vs. same period in 2025

How residential solar installers are weathering a downturn The scrapping of federal tax credits, reduced community solar payments, and other setbacks have the industry in search of new models.

Congratulations to former West Central CERT Coordinator Imani Emenyonu on her new role with Great River Energy! She left big shoes to fill, and stay tuned for our job posting...

We’re excited to welcome an outstanding group of interns to Great River Energy this summer. They kicked things off last week at our intern kickoff event, and we look forward to the energy, ideas, and perspectives they’ll bring in the months ahead. Welcome to the team!

Fields and Forests 2026 Solar Co-op - Solar United Neighbors Fields and Forests 2026 Solar Co-op Join the co-op (Opens in a new tab) Open this co-op is open to residents in Cass, Crow Wing, Morrison, Todd, and Wadena Counties, MN July 31, 2026 last day to join the co-op Join the co-op Table of Contents AboutCost & savingsUpdatesEventsInstallersContact us Abou...

Job alert!

🌅 Aaniin gakina awiiya – Hello everyone!
Our Fond du Lac Resource Management Division is hiring a full time Energy Projects Manager and this position will shape the long term energy future of our Tribal Nation.

This is a high impact role that supports our Band’s sovereignty, sustainability, and self determined energy systems. If you or someone you know is passionate about building a strong future for our homelands, this is an incredible opportunity.

⚡ What this position helps lead
• Energy project evaluation — guiding cost saving, energy efficient decisions during design, construction, and remodeling
• Energy programming — developing and managing energy initiatives, including grant work
• Technical review — ensuring mechanical, electrical, HVAC, and architectural plans meet standards and support community needs
• Energy savings strategies — identifying opportunities that strengthen the Band’s long term energy resilience

📅 Application Deadline: June 9, 2026

🔗 Apply Here https://tinyurl.com/FDLEnergyProjectsMgr

Use the link to view the full job description and submit an application. Fond du Lac Human Resources is available for any questions.

📣Miigwech for helping us spread the word and supporting the future of Energy for our Tribal Nation. ()

For 15 years, Jason Ludwigson drove past the local community pool and saw a massive missed opportunity.

Today, that roof is covered in a 30-kilowatt solar array. It kicks into high gear during the exact summer months when the pool's electric bills used to skyrocket.

But here is the part every local city council will appreciate: they didn't take big financial risks with taxpayer money to do it.

They used a zero-down leasing agreement to put panels on the fire station. The upfront cost to the city was $0. It proved the concept, lowered the energy bills, and carried zero financial risk for the town.

They teamed up with CERTs to pull in $150,000 in state grants, expanding solar to the public works facility, the animal shelter, and a new community pavilion at Wieser Park that's entirely electric.

Today, it's just how they do business. From the fire station to the electric zamboni at the local rink, the whole town is keeping operational costs low.

Welcome to Saint Paul’s most sustainable community center

The 25,000-square-foot North End Community Center opened in early 2025 with rooftop solar and a geothermal system, but it wouldn’t have happened without help from a special grant program.

“Early in the construction, the rooftop solar had to be removed from the project because of budget constraints, but the Solar on Public Buildings grant allowed the city to add the solar back into the project scope.”

https://www.cleanenergyresourceteams.org/story/welcome-saint-pauls-most-sustainable-community-center
Photos by Corey Gaffer Photography

Welcome to Saint Paul’s most sustainable community center The city of Saint Paul’s 25,000-square-foot North End Community Center opened in early 2025 with rooftop solar and a geothermal system, but it wouldn’t have happened without help from a special grant program.