Recent News, Articles, Updates, Blog Posts and More!

Faces of GreenSpark: Meet Luke

We're so proud of our team here and wanted to give you a chance to get to know who we are - the faces of GreenSpark. We had a chance to sit down with Luke Spencer, one of our Project Engineers, and it was an absolute pleasure. See what he had to say. Q: Why should people care about clean/solar energy? A: "I think people do care about clean, renewable energy and for a variety of reasons. Many people site the need for a cleaner, low-carbon power source as their main reason. Others appreciate how solar energy improves our local…

Benefit Corporation in Action!

Did you know that GreenSpark is a certified Benefit Corporation, also known as a B Corp? This means we are committed to our triple bottom line of People, Planet, and Profit and dedicated to using our business as a force for good. One of the ways GreenSpark exercises business as a force for good is through one of our definitions of success - by giving back to our community. We donate shares of our Community Solar Program to non-profits, helping them reduce their operational costs. Our first two local beneficiaries are the M. K. Gandhi Institute for Nonviolence, a nonprofit…

Rochester Residents See Huge Savings from Installed Solar Arrays

GreenSpark installed a 7.42kW roof mounted solar array for Elliot and Anna Vos at their home in the Highland Park Neighborhood of Rochester in 2015. The array covers just about 100% of their annual electric usage saving them nearly $1500 per year. Over the life of the system the Vos' will see over $34,000 in savings. The payback period was originally just about eight years, but through GreenSpark's referral Program, the Vos' have referred so many new customers that they will see the return on their investment much faster.Vos Details Breakdown:7.42kW roof mountReduction in Electricity Usage - nearly 100%Anticipated Annual…

Why the Webster Solar Challenge

Webster Solar Challenge Rochester was recently listed as #2 on Redfin’s list of top 10 U.S. cities in the Northeast region with the most untapped solar potential. So what does this mean for our City and for GreenSpark? This means we have a huge opportunity in terms of job creation, sustainability, strengthening our local economy, and saving people money by powering our grid with clean, green, and local solar. GreenSpark went a step further to analyze the towns with the most untapped solar potential, and found that Webster homes frequently have ideal setups for rooftop solar, yet the financial benefits…

A Letter From Our CEO

A Letter From Our CEO on the Paris Climate Accord It took almost 15 minutes of my very first undergraduate class to know and understand that Climate Change is real. At that moment, I engaged in a career to help build a clean energy future – a task that has kept me busy for the last 20 years and beyond. The political decision to end US involvement in the Paris Climate Agreement is an assault that strikes upon an industry that has already survived a few. This latest setback may have been lethal had it struck in 1997, when I…

Solar Safety for First Responders

You may have noticed a neighbor, friend, or family member with a shiny and energy efficient addition to their roof. As more and more solar photovoltaic systems are installed across our community, country, and the world, it’s important to be cognizant of the impact solar will have. One area in which we see a huge impact is on the first responders that help to protect our communities, which is why we’ve worked with a number of local organizations to put together a seminar to help first responders to understand how solar systems operate and function. As members of the Greater…

A Brighter Future For Our Community

Our country was founded on the notion that our choices matter. As Americans, we have the right to choose where we live and how we live. Our ability to choose which businesses to support has become an empowering part of our democracy. In honor of the 47th anniversary of Earth Day, one of the best ways to take action is to learn how to choose green energy sources to power our lives. Solar options today, including Community Solar, exist for nearly anyone who has an electric bill. The ability to choose solar is vital to reducing carbon emissions, strengthening our…

Shawn Lessord Joins the GreenSpark Team

We're always on the lookout for passionate and talented individuals to make our family brighter, which is why we're thrilled to welcome Shawn Lessord to the GreenSpark team as a PV Sales Associate. Shawn comes to GreenSpark after designing over three Megawatts of residential and commercial solar PV systems. He's credited with the design of the first solar project in the preservation district of East Ave, the design of the first solar PV project in over 40 different municipal districts, the creation of the first Rochester-based Solar Home Tour, and the design and install of solar PV projects for two Municipal…

Connecting the Interconnection Dots

Article Written By Matt Vanderbrook, Senior Project Developer It’s a dynamic time for the solar industry in New York and in the Finger Lakes region as illustrated by the RBJ in an recent article: “The Finger Lakes region saw the second-highest growth in solar installations across the state in the last five years, Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced Tuesday.” You may have heard that the cost of solar has rapidly dropped which, combined with regulatory and policy efforts at the state and federal levels, has made New York one of the best states for solar in the nation. With such rapid…

Why The Women of GreenSpark are Working Today

GreenSpark answered the call for women and our allies to act together for equity, justice, and the human rights of women and all gender-oppressed people, through today's one-day demonstration of economic solidarity. While the women of GreenSpark do not feel discrimination within these four walls, we do experience it outside of these walls on a daily basis both work related and outside of the solar world. In solidarity with our female and gender oppressed friends we asked everyone to wear red to show support. We also asked the men of GreenSpark to tell a story either when they witnessed gender discrimination…

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