One of the planet’s leading clean-tech entrepreneur’s, Danny Kennedy, has launched a new book that hopes to debunk myths surrounding the solar industry, and unveil some simple methods that the public alongside policymakers can use to help generate positive change in the energy industry.
The book, Rooftop Revolution: How Solar Power Can Save Our Economy – and Our Planet – from Dirty Energy, available in both electric and print versions, contains a forward by the former supreme commander of NATO, General Wesley Clark, and is based on Kennedy’s front-line experience and objective research, as it lays out the author’s belief in a win-win scenario for implementing solar energy throughout the United States.
“Solar energy isn’t a left or right issue: it’s an economic one, and it should be a central part of the election cycle dialogue on how to fix our economy,” says Kennedy. “There is in fact a clear economic imperative for clean energy now, and despite myths and misperceptions, solar power is already at work creating jobs, saving American households on their utility costs and securing both our workforce and our borders from the ills of dirty energy.
“The sun’s reliability, coupled with recent manufacturing efficiencies in our industry, make solar energy a more affordable, cleaner and safer way to power our lives. It’s not the energy source of the future, it’s the energy source of now.”
Throughout Rooftop Revolution, Kennedy cites key statistics, including:
- The solar industry creates jobs — domestic jobs — at a rate 10 times faster than the rest of the economy (2011 National Solar Census).
- Solar energy saves people money — by 2015, the Department of Energy estimates that two-thirds of U.S. homes will save money using solar.
- The steep drop in solar panel prices (50 percent since 2010), has benefitted American homeowners.
- Smart money continues to flow in to the solar industry. Global investment in renewable energy was $260 billion in 2011 (up from $243 billion in 2010) – and half of it went to solar.
The book also concludes every chapter with practical methods for how readers can become “Rooftop Revolutionaries” in combatting King CONG (that is, the “monolithic dirty energy lobby” Coal, Oil, Nuclear, and Gas).
“Dependent on millions of barrels of imported fuel for decades, the US has squandered its lives, treasure and legacy in grasping for foreign-sourced petroleum, while sitting on the most abundant energy resources and intellectual capital in the world,” said General Wesley Clark.
“Today, the opportunity presents itself in the solar industry to reverse these decades of failure, create millions of new jobs, and put America on top of the world energy markets. But there are formidable political, regulatory and bureaucratic obstacles to this vision. And these, too, are part of Danny’s story.”
A life-long clean energy advocate, Kennedy has worked on climate and energy issues for more than two decades. He was named 2011 “Innovator of the Year” by PBS for providing a high-impact and commercially-viable solution that responds to the world’s environmental challenges. Kennedy founded the leading residential solar power company Sungevity in 2007 to create a more widely accessible way of going solar for American households. As president of the company, he oversees government relations and community engagement programs.
Clean Technica (http://s.tt/1mVXq) – Reproduced with permission.
