235. The Fight for Affordable Energy in Rural America with Michelle Moore

Today, Matt checks back in with Michelle Moore, CEO of Groundswell and author of Rural Renaissance, nearly a year after the EPA canceled Groundswell's $156 million Solar for All contract. Michelle shares how Groundswell is pressing forward anyway, building a new financing model around corporate off-takers and utility partnerships to keep 20MW of community solar alive. They also dig into the full-blown energy crisis hitting American families at the kitchen table - electricity bills up over 10%, AI data centers driving unprecedented demand, and a federal government that has largely stepped out of the affordability business. Michelle says the renaissance in rural America is still waiting to happen - you just have to switch streams.   Learn more about Groundswell at groundswell.org Read Rural Renaissance: Revitalizing America's Hometowns Through Clean Power here: islandpress.org/books/rural-renaissance Listen to Michelle's first appearance on A Climate Change here: Episode 74   Subscribe now on Apple, Spotify, or wherever you get podcasts.   Guest Bio Michelle Moore is CEO of Groundswell, a nonprofit that cuts electricity bills in half for low-income families through community solar, resilience hubs, and energy efficiency. A former White House official and author of Rural Renaissance, she led federal sustainability for President Obama - cutting the government's energy bill by $11 billion and deploying 3.2 gigawatts of new renewable energy. She also served as a Senate-confirmed TVA board member and drove LEED to global recognition as SVP of the U.S. Green Building Council.   Episode Resources Groundswell: https://groundswell.org Rural Renaissance by L. Michelle Moore: https://islandpress.org/books/rural-renaissance Michelle's first episode (Ep. 74): https://aclimatechange.com/shows/episode-74-michelle-moore/ Matt Matern on LinkedIn: https://bit.ly/ACClinkedin A Climate Change on Apple: https://bit.ly/accapplepodcast A Climate Change on Spotify: https://bit.ly/accspotifypodcast A Climate Change on YouTube: https://bit.ly/ACCvids