Coop Power: Building Community Owned Sustainable Energy
Location
Co-op Power is a regional network of local communities creating a movement for a sustainable and just energy future. We are a consumer-owned energy cooperative which creates green jobs & sustainable energy projects in New England which are owned by its 330 members.
About You
Section 1: You
First Name
Erik
Last Name
Hoffner
Website URL
Organization
Country
United States, MA
Section 2: Your Organization
Organization Name
Coop Power
Organization Website
Organization Phone
877-266-7543
Organization Address
PO Box 688, Greenfield, MA 01302
Is your organization a
For‐profit
Organization Country
United States, MA
Your idea
Name Your Project
Coop Power: Building Community Owned Sustainable Energy
Country and state your work focuses on
Describe Your Idea
Co-op Power is a regional network of local communities creating a movement for a sustainable and just energy future. We are a consumer-owned energy cooperative which creates green jobs & sustainable energy projects in New England which are owned by its 330 members.
Website URL
Innovation
What makes your idea unique?
Our world can't wait for big companies or governments to create a green energy future. Co-op Power works to build this future, for the benefit of its members and their communities. As owner-members, we are the cooperative. By exercising our owner-member rights of democratic participation in decision making, joint purchasing, community solar installations, community-scale sustainable energy development, education, public outreach and policy advocacy, we work together through Co-op Power to change the way we power our world, AND share the profits! There is no other organization in the US like Coop Power, but when it succeeds, there may be many.
Do you have a patent for this idea?
No
Impact
This Entry is about (Issues)
What impact have you had?
Coop Power members have helped each other install dozens of solar hot water systems on each others' homes and businesses in the past year; the Coop helped to launch (with its fundraising and management know-how) the new energy efficiency company Energia in Holyoke, Mass, a worker-owned business that will weatherize homes and businesses; and is working to launch other green businesses in the region including Northeast Biodiesel which will convert waste vegetable oil into millions of gallons of renewable fuel annually. The Coop has also hosted an annual renewable energy summit for the past 5 years where thousands from around the region from every kind of household have learned about renewable energy, and has trained dozens of young people from disadvantaged backgrounds for green jobs. This is just a start. Coop Power aims to have programs in every region, and it will be up to its members what projects they want to create in their home communities.
Problem
In these times, you have to be a detective, an engineer, a mechanic, a builder and a scientist to secure sustainable energy resources for your home or workplace AND you need really deep pockets. Few resources are available and the ones that are available require a tremendous investment of time and money for you to make it through all the hoops successfully.
This lack of access to capital and know-how is holding our communities back from creating a just and sustainable energy future. Coop Power is working to address that and put people back in the decision-maker's seat. It gives its members and communities a voice in the conversation about our collective future.
Actions
Coop Power is working hard to find people who share this vision. We are engaging them in a dialogue about what they'd like to see happen in their communities to get to that just and sustainable energy future. It is also using its members' equity shares to launch jointly-owned renewable energy businesses that will benefit all of us. Already 330 people, organizations and businesses in MA, VT, CT, NH, and NY have joined this cooperative effort.
Results
Co-op Power will build sustainable energy resources and root its members' capital in our region. Co-op Power will harness the buying power of its members to secure sustainable and affordable energy products & services for all. Co-op Power will reduce our dependence on foreign oil, bring hope, opportunity, and clearer air to struggling urban areas, increase the region's energy independence, and strengthen our regional economy.
What will it take for your project to be successful over the next three years? Please address each year separately, if possible.
In the next year Coop Power needs to officially launch Northeast Biodiesel so that it can become its own independent business with its own revenue. Also this year the Coop needs to find another 100 member owners around the region to work with us to begin building a sustainable energy future. In 2011 Coop Power needs to find another 200 members and begin planning new green businesses in at least 3 communities. By 2012, the Coop hopes to welcome its 1000th member and inaugurate those 3 new businesses, whether they are solar farms, energy efficiency businesses, or new biodiesel facilities.
What would prevent your project from being a success?
If the Coop is unable to find enough new members it will be difficult for it to achieve its aims. However, the coop model is very well established in Europe and is catching on here, too. An inability to raise grant funding and investor equity would also make success difficult, but to date that has not proven difficult.
How many people will your project serve annually?
1001‐10,000
What is the average monthly household income in your target community, in US Dollars?
Don't know
Does your project seek to have an impact on public policy?
No
Sustainability
What stage is your project in?
Operating for 1‐5 years
In what country?
United States, MA
Is your initiative connected to an established organization?
No
If yes, provide organization name.
How long has this organization been operating?
1‐5 years
Does your organization have a Board of Directors or an Advisory Board?
Yes
Does your organization have any non-monetary partnerships with NGOs?
Yes
Does your organization have any non-monetary partnerships with businesses?
Yes
Does your organization have any non-monetary partnerships with government?
Yes
Please tell us more about how these partnerships are critical to the success of your innovation.
Coop Power partners with a diverse group of stakeholders which are all committed to a sustainable energy future, from state agencies to nonprofits that work on the issue and small businesses. It's critically important to have this diverse network so that we can all work in the same direction and share strategies for success. Its constituency is also very diverse racially and economically speaking, with partners in inner cities and upscale communities.
What are the three most important actions needed to grow your initiative or organization?
Coop Power needs to increase its membership, launch Northeast Biodiesel and related green businesses, and expand into new areas of New England.
The Story
What was the defining moment that led you to this innovation?
A group of biodiesel enthusiasts was trying to figure out how to buy the fuel as a group. It was determined that it took very much effort to coordinate the group buys, and would be smarter to make the fuel itself as a group. But there was no agreement as to how to manage such an initiative and find funds to begin it.
Tell us about the social innovator behind this idea.
The group had been using a public meeting space at the Cooperative Development Institute in Greenfield, Massachusetts, and when the director of CDI, Lynn Benander, heard what the discussion was about, she proposed an innovative cooperative structure to achieve its aims. CDI was then able to secure a grant to do a feasibility study of a small community owned biodiesel refinery, and Coop Power was created to incubate this first green business and be its majority owner. Lynn became its first manager and has shepherded it through its first critical years of operation.
No other organization like it exists in the United States, and when it succeeds it will be a model for communities and regions everywhere for how a community can cooperatively own and incubate green businesses which benefit their owners and home places.
How did you first hear about Changemakers?
Through another organization or company
If through another, please provide the name of the organization or company
New England Grassroots Environment Fund
 | butters said: Cooppower is a truly unique and game-changing organization. It has brought many great services to it's members and the community at ... about this Competition Entry. - 644 days ago read more > |
| HannahFries said: Co-op Power is a wonderfully innovative project--it represents the kind of thinking we need as we approach the daunting challenges ... about this Competition Entry. - 653 days ago read more > |
| rsstein said: Thank you, Barbara & Jerry. We need more to adopt this attitude. In addition to Co-Op Power, I am involved with the Transition Towns ... about this Competition Entry. - 654 days ago read more > |
| rsstein said: Thank you, Barbara & Jerry. We need more to adopt this attitude. In addition to Co-Op Power, I am involved with the Transition Towns ... about this Competition Entry. - 654 days ago read more > |
| rsstein said: Thank you, Barbara & Jerry. We need more to adopt this attitude. In addition to Co-Op Power, I am involved with the Transition Towns ... about this Competition Entry. - 654 days ago read more > |
| Erik Hoffner said: Barbara and Jerry Marcel sent this to me to post on their behalf, they're having trouble logging in to the site. - ... about this Competition Entry. - 654 days ago read more > |
| TomSimon said: As group of Renewable Energy Enthusiasts in Southern Vermont, we looked long and hard at many different ideas and organizations to help ... about this Competition Entry. - 658 days ago read more > |
| lboosahda said: This organization has the energy and knowledge to get folks to take action! I was able to help construct solar hot water systems in many ... about this Competition Entry. - 658 days ago read more > |
| magpiefarm said: I am so grateful to be a member of Coop Power. As a parent of a 15 and 18 year old, it is invigorating to be a part of something that is ... about this Competition Entry. - 658 days ago read more > |
| sigap said: people working together cooperatively for sustainable energy -- great idea! about this Competition Entry. - 658 days ago read more > |
