Re-Volv

We are a San Francisco-based nonprofit organization with a mission to empower people and communities to invest collectively in renewable energy. Specifically, we finance solar energy systems for community-serving nonprofits and cooperatives using a revolving fund raised through crowdfunding. By going solar, these organizations save money on electric costs, reduce their carbon footprints, and educate their patrons and community members about the benefits of solar energy. 

Over the course of six weeks in early 2015, hundreds of people from around the country and around the world contributed to RE-volv's crowdfunding campaign to help the Other Avenues Food Cooperative in San Francisco go solar. When the campaign was done, 102 shiny new solar panels were installed on the roof of the Other Avenues Food Cooperative.

Other Avenues has been serving San Francisco's Outer Sunset neighborhood with organic, healthy food for 40 years. It's a true community establishment, just a few blocks from the Pacific Ocean. Other Avenues is now keeping its produce fresh and running its neon “OPEN” sign on clean solar power. More than 230 donors rallied together to crowdfund those solar panels through RE-volv. Through RE-volv’s pay-it-forward financing model, Other Avenues’ solar energy system will pay for three more solar projects over time. And, over the 20 year lease, they'll save more than $250,000 on electric costs and avoid more than 1.5 million pounds of CO2. 

Through crowdfunding, RE-volv empowers you to help finance rooftop solar installations for community-serving nonprofits and cooperatives. Here's how it works:

1. RE-volv partners with a community-serving nonprofit or co-op that wants its building to be solar powered. The community-serving organization signs a 20 year solar lease with RE-volv, paying zero upfront costs.
2. RE-volv crowdfunds tax-deductible donations from people around the world to finance the cost of the solar energy system. A contracted local solar installer installs the solar energy system on the organization’s roof.
3. Over the 20 year solar lease, the organization makes monthly solar lease payments to RE-volv, (instead of the utility) with interest, while saving up to 15% or more on its electric costs.

RE-volv hosts community engagement events during each crowdfunding campaign to educate folks. 

RE-volv is now scaling nationally through its web platform and Solar Ambassador Program, a year-long fellowship available to college students nationwide. The goal is to train college students to organize solar energy projects in their local community. RE-volv has five Solar Ambassador teams for the 2015-2016 academic year at Swarthmore College, University of California at Santa Barbara, University of Dayton, University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, and Villanova University. Collectively, the teams are spearheading rooftop solar energy installations for three nonprofits and two cooperatives in their respective college towns.

We humbly ask you support the Isla Vista Food Co-op crowdfunding campaign at www.re-volv.org. We need to raise $59,110 to finance a solar energy system for this Santa Barbara based community market founded in 1972. University of California college students are spearheading this solar energy project.