Volunteer Spotlight- Kalee Snorden, Muncie Beyond Coal Volunteer Leader
April 29, 2020
Kalee is graduating from Ball State with a Major in Wildlife Biology and Conservation, and a minor in Spanish.
In summer 2018 she interned in Buenos Aires, Argentina, as a Cultural Vistas Fellow, working with Aves Argentinas in its environmental education program. She is president of the BSU student chapter of The Wildlife Society. She is a Udall Foundation Scholarship.
We have been blessed with Kalee’s leadership in the Muncie Beyond Coal Campaign during her senior year. Kalee has met with state legislators to advocate for renewable energy, connected with community organizations to foster discussion on a sustainable future for the Muncie and Ball State communities, and has been a leader in planning the next steps of our campaign to advance a transition to renewable energy for the Muncie community.
Kalee’s long-term plans are to attend graduate school to study urban ecology. Kalee is passionate about sustainability, and is seeking professional and graduate study opportunities. You can find Kalee on LinkedIn.
Please congratulate Kalee on her graduation from Ball State and her recent win with moving Muncie beyond coal!
Heartland Group of the Hoosier Chapter at the Transportation Electrification Summit
January, 2019.
Jesse Kirkham, Chair of the Heartlands Group.
Heartland Group of the Hoosier Chapter of the Sierra Club recently attended the Transportation Electrification Summit conducted by the Great Plains Institute. It was a collaborative meeting of stakeholders from across the Mid Continent Region. In the U.S., transportation emissions have grown in the last decade, while emissions for the electricity sector have been declining. In 2017, transportation emissions exceeded those of electric power generation for the first time, at 27% of total U.S. carbon emissions.
Moving forward, we must make smart decisions and use a best practice approach to solving this problem.
Solarize Indiana holds workshops around the state
August 2017.
Thinking about installing solar panels on your home, community building, or business? The Hoosier Solarize Initiative is holding workshops around the state to help people take advantage of net metering, which reduces the cost of your solar power, before the program disappears. Solar installations completed before the end of this year will enjoy net metering until 2047, while those installed between 2018 and 2022 will benefit only until 2032.
Solarize workshops make it easier and less costly for property owners to install solar panels. Teams of knowledgeable volunteers have organized the Solarize Initiative with the goal of quickly expanding solar in cities around the state. See some of the scheduled events below and visit the Solarize links to learn more.
Solarize Indiana facebook page.
The Columbus Community Solar Initiative
This initiative is a joint project of the Energy Matters Community Coalition and the Winding Waters Group of the Sierra Club. The goal of the Initiative is to install 1000 solar panels within Bartholomew County by December 31, 2017. This goal was based on the demographics of the County as well as the experience of other communities in “going solar” by following what is known as the Solarize Model. Read more in the summer edition of our Hooiser Chapter newsletter The Sierran here.
Solar Power: What it is, How it works, and How to get it? From Solarize Indiana
Many people like the idea of having solar panels on their homes but feel daunted by their lack of knowledge about solar or worry that solar may not be a sound investment. Others can’t make the time to find a reputable solar contractor or fear that they’ll receive a poor price or product. Still others may not see going solar as something that regular folks do.
Solarize Indianapolis is a volunteer team who are motivated to promote clean, affordable energy in our community. This Initiative is modeled on the best elements of other grass-roots programs around the country, which have been successful in delivering simple, cost-effective means to solar energy. Note we are not selling anything. We are volunteers excited to share our experience and want to get more solar panels installed in the Indianapolis area as soon as possible.
If you have been thinking about installing solar photovoltaic panels, then, like us, you probably want to be confident of:
· getting a good price,
· making a sound investment that will lower energy bills for years to come,
· getting the project done without hassle by a qualified installer who guarantees the work,
· reducing one’s carbon footprint.
We invite you to attend one of our information house parties, which provide a short slide presentation of basic information about the costs and benefits and general information about solar panels and the decisions that need to be made.
The benefits of attending this information session:
1. You will be more informed about the decision to go solar by people who have already done it.
2. With this project, going solar is easy - we navigate the challenging parts for you, vetting contractors, prices and products,
3. We're all volunteer - we have no skin in the game.
4. Going solar feels great and saves you money.
5. By going solar now, you're in great company - lots of people have gone solar and lots will do so with this project.
6. The time is now to get started.
7. This is happening all over the state. It's already been done in NW IN, Columbus and Bloomington and it's being done in Carmel, Elkhart, Evansville, Goshen, Kokomo, Muncie and South Bend.
8. You will have access to our best practices for selecting a solar supplier.
9. Most likely you will benefit from a lower cost because of the price negotiated through collective agreements.
10. You will be able to move forward more rapidly and with confidence than if you do it on your own.
Energy Efficiency: Underscoring the importance of energy efficiency
- Building codes
- Energizing Indiana