About CTLR’s #HumansOfCleantech

Modeled after the New York Times' Humans of New York series, this is an idea by Peter Kelley and the RenewComm team for us to showcase our members!

Follow #humansofcleantech on LinkedIn for more in this series. #climatetech #energytransition #cleantechleadersroundtable 

I WAS THE TYPICAL GEN X KID:

We raised ourselves. I rode my bike all day, leaving early in the morning and coming home for dinner. I loved to dig in the dirt. I was passionate about plants and loved to cook. I’d stand on a stool with my mom making cookies, eclairs, bagels, and bread. We ended up buying 80 acres in a tiny town in Florida. Our family planted food which we ate, and every year I would get a calf, bottle-feed it, take it to market, and keep the money I earned.

My parents’ expectation was that I would just graduate from high school, get married and have kids. I didn't go to a four-year college because that wasn’t in the narrative growing up. It was, “What job are you going to do until you get married and have a family?” I went on to spend years doing real estate development as a paralegal. I did some big deals that in hindsight were terrible, like big housing developments killing the Everglades. I realized that wasn't what I wanted to do

My husband and I bought a bicycle hobby business in Fort Myers to get out of the rat race. Then 2009 came along and we lost it all. So we packed everything: kids, dog, goldfish, and our stuff, and drove to Asheville. I began working in a law firm again, just doing what I could to survive. I went back and got my two-year degree and learned about renewable energy, and I thought, ”I want to be a part of this. This is going to change the world as we know it.”

I started working in the legal department of FLS Energy. My real estate background transferred easily into Project Development and tax equity transaction closings, and I just fell in love with it. I'm doing something important every day.

I now have a pollinator garden, and deadfall branches for bugs and creatures to live in during the winter. I’ve always been a good steward, and as I’ve gotten older I’ve started asking, “How do we keep it this way? What do we have to do to preserve these things?” I volunteer with Asheville Greenworks, which is a local conservation group. I’m focusing on, “How do we make it sustainable and continue the progress?”

The industry mantra used to be “We’re going to make solar mainstream!” And we have, but what's next? The trend recently is commercial PPAs with the Amazons and Googles, with different  complex ways of structuring and financing. When are everyday people going to be able to plug into the outlet in their homes, and know that’s coming from a renewable source? That seems like the next milestone for our industry — building renewable electricity that is available to everyone, everywhere.