Elise Couillard

Meet Elise Couillard, S2S Coordinator at Legacy Solar Co-op

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Elise Couillard

4/19/21

Elise Couillard has recently become the Switch 2 Solar (S2S) Coordinator with Legacy Solar Co-op. She is also currently the Treasurer for the Couillard Solar Foundation.

When Elise isn’t promoting solar, reducing food waste and pulling recyclable items out of the trash, you may find her working on her tiny house on wheels or watching wildlife. Elise holds a BS in Biology and Psychology and a MSc in Biology, and will always love field research and behavioral ecology. Ultimately, she centers much of what she does around making a positive impact on earth and having a small carbon footprint.

Read more about the S2S Program.

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1.25 Million Wisconsinites Now Eligible for Two Solar Group Buys

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4/19/21

The Northwoods Solar Group Buy is in collaboration with Carlson Electric, a member installer. Homeowners, businesses, and nonprofit organizations in the following counties in northwest Wisconsin: Eau Claire, Chippewa, St. Croix, Douglas, Bayfield, Ashland, Iron, Burnett, Washburn, Sawyer, Price, Polk, Barron, Rusk, Dunn, Taylor, Clark.

The Dane County Solar Group Buy is endorsed by the Dane County Office of Energy and Climate Change and is in collaboration with member installers, Full Spectrum Solar and Midwest Solar Power, LLC.

Growing solar in Wisconsin starts with folks in communities like yours who are passionate about renewable energy or energy independence and are looking for ways to act.

Here are a few ways you can help spread the word about this opportunity:

Read more

Fitchburg pharmacy

March Pop-up Vaccination event thru Fitchburg Pharmacy

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4/2/21

On Monday, March 29, the Co-op partnered with Thad Schumacher, founder and pharmacist at Fitchburg Pharmacy, to provide over 40 community members with COVID vaccinations! This pop-up vaccination location took place at Zion Faith Community in Madison, where the Co-op’s office is located.

The pharmacy continues to fulfill its mission of serving the Madison area with personal attention to individual needs.

Northwoods Solar Group Buy Benefits Communities in Northwest Wisconsin

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Legacy Solar Co-op

3/26/21–Madison, WI

Legacy Solar Co-op is announcing the launch of its Northwoods Solar Group Buy, in collaboration with Carlson Electric. This program offers homeowners, small businesses, and nonprofit organizations across northwest Wisconsin access to solar at lower rates than they can negotiate for themselves. It also gives residents in 17 counties the easy button through a recent financing option with greenpenny, a virtual and carbon-neutral bank dedicated to financing a sustainable tomorrow.

This opportunity is being offered in the following counties: Eau Claire, Chippewa, St. Croix, Douglas, Bayfield, Ashland, Iron, Burnett, Washburn, Sawyer, Price, Polk, Barron, Rusk, Dunn, Taylor, Clark.

The first in a series of educational webinars to learn more about the Northwoods Solar Group Buy is on Tuesday, April 6 at 6:00pm (register here).

Join the mailing list to be notified as future webinars are scheduled. Read more

The 2021 Dane County Solar Group Buy Will Benefit Communities And You

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Legacy Solar Co-op

3/21/21–Madison, WI

Legacy Solar Co-op is announcing the launch of its Dane County Solar Group Buy, endorsed by the Dane County Office of Energy and Climate Change and in collaboration with selected installers, Full Spectrum Solar and Midwest Solar Power, LLC. This program offers homeowners, small businesses, and nonprofit organizations across Dane County access to solar from vetted installers at lower rates than they can negotiate for themselves. It also gives Dane County residents the easy button through a recent financing option with greenpenny, a virtual and carbon-neutral bank dedicated to financing a sustainable tomorrow.

The first in a series of educational webinars to learn more about the Dane County Solar Group Buy is on Tuesday, April 13 at 6:00pm (register here). Webinar participants will learn:

  • How to produce clean, renewable energy from the sun
  • How solar protects against rising energy costs
  • How participants reduce or even eliminate their electric bill
  • How quickly investing in solar can pay for itself
  • How solar increases property values

Read more

people on roof with panels

2021 Will Be Twice As Busy For Projects

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St. Johns Lutheran Church in Oregon, WI

St. Johns Lutheran Church in Oregon, WI

2/26/21

2021 will likely be twice as busy for the Co-op as was 2020, but we are ready to take it on, and more!  The following are at various stages of development.  To get your community institution to show up on this list, please contact Kurt@legacysolarcoop.org.

  • Several Wisconsin-based Humane Societies — Let us know your favorite one and we’ll try to get a solar project started there this year!
  • Several Churches — Some started in 2020 but due to the pandemic, many were delayed.  Let us know if your church could use solar!
  • Multiple Schools — Both parochial and public schools are on the docket for 2021 Solar Legacy projects.  Is your school district open to solar?
  • Municipalities — Some old, some new.  Since Kurt’s talk with the Green Tier Legacy Communities, more cities, villages, and counties are looking at solar.
  • Boys & Girls Clubs — One is voting this week on a Solar Legacy project; hopefully, others will follow suit.  Do you know anyone at your local Boys & Girls Club?
  • Affordable Housing Developments — We are working with multiple housing groups to help to save residents electricity by using solar to offset utility payments.
Concept membership committee

LSC’s Membership Committee

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2/26/21

My name is Jackie Harrison-Jewell. This year, I have taken on the formal role of Membership Coordinator for Legacy Solar Co-op, with the task of growing our membership to include even more Wisconsin individuals, families and businesses interested in solar.

As you may know, Legacy Solar Co-op is member-owned, and since our beginning, we’ve grown steadily in membership from 18 members in 2014 to 215 members today. Our members offer insight and community connection and we appreciate every one of you for the role you’ve played in making the Co-op what it is today. We also know that steady growth in membership is one of the ways we can make a real impact on the solar and renewable energy work being done here in Wisconsin. Read more

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500,000 Wisconsinites Eligible for Our First Solar Group Buy of the Season

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Posted 2/26/21

We are in the process of organizing our second Solar Group Buy that will be available to all Dane County residents, businesses and nonprofits throughout 2021.

A Solar Group Buy is a program for reducing solar energy installation costs for businesses and residences sharing a common bond, in this case Dane County. We work with installers to be able to pass on significantly more savings to the customer than if they installed solar on their own. Read more

blog post featured green tier

Co-op Presents to Green Tier Legacy Communities

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Posted 2/6/21

Green Tier Legacy Communities are municipalities and counties across the state that are actively building their sustainable capacity. Led by the important work of 1000 Friends of Wisconsin and other partners, and now coordinated by the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (DNR), this program now includes over 25 communities and counties across the state.

Legacy Solar Co-op is happy to present to this group on its tax financing for solar systems in February, 2021. We hope this will strengthen our partnerships with municipalities and counties in Wisconsin. Learn more on tax financing and our other consulting services.

 

2020 by the Numbers

2020 By the Numbers

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Posted 1/28/21

Despite COVID being an obstacle, the co-op grew in many respects, as represented by the numbers below. We look forward to 2021 being another year of growth in the number of memberships and projects, in addition to the expansion of the Switch 2 Solar (S2S) offset and solar group buy programs.

View the full 2020 Annual Report or any of the images below to learn about each program.