ASGA Call 79 – Barriers to Agrivoltaics Growth: Initial Findings from the SI2 Solar + Farms Survey
August 7 @ 6:00 pm – 7:00 pm EDT
The Solar and Storage Industries Institute (SI2) is conducting survey and case study research into the barriers to growth in the agrivoltaics space across multiple stakeholder groups, including farmers and solar developers, under a grant from the Department of Energy.
As a part of that research, SI2 launched their Solar + Farms survey in February 2024, which a number of ASGA members participated in.
Join Shawn Rumery, Senior Program Director at SI2, as he previews results from that recent survey of farmers, developers and utilities with interests in the agrivoltaics space. The survey offered an opportunity for farmers and solar developers to share their experiences with and opinion of agrivoltaics. The webinar will detail the challenges faced by various stakeholders in the agrivoltaics space, show where those parties interests’ overlap or diverge, and preview strategies for mitigating concerns and finding common ground.
More information about the project
In late 2022, The U.S. Department of Energy Solar Energy Technologies Office injected $8 million into the study of various aspects of Agrivoltaics as part of their Foundational Agrivoltaic Research for Megawatt Scale (FARMS) funding program. One of the six awards was made to SI2, who is using the funding to support the aforementioned survey and case study research. This research will ultimately inform the creation of a series of agrivoltaics best practice guides for farmers, solar developers, and policy makers.
About the Speaker:
Shawn Rumery: As Senior Program Director, Shawn leads SI2’s programmatic initiatives, with a portfolio including research and analysis activities around siting and permitting, interconnection, agrivoltaics and workforce development. He also plays a leading role in shaping the organization’s external affairs strategy.
Prior to SI2, Shawn spent 13 years at the Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA), where he helped lead the organization’s research and analytical work. As part of this role, Shawn was a lead author on the SEIA/Wood Mackenzie U.S. Solar Market Insight Report series, as well as SEIA’s Solar Means Business annual report. His policy analysis directly supported a number of successful solar industry advocacy efforts, including the extension of the Investment Tax Credit in 2015 and passage of the Inflation Reduction Act in 2022.
Before SEIA, Shawn worked as a survey researcher at the University of Illinois at Chicago and spent time as a student affairs consultant for the Wroclaw University of Economics in Wroclaw, Poland.
Register here: https://solargrazing.org/ASGA-Call-79