Addressing Racial and Ethnic Disparities in Residential Rooftop Photovoltaics: Exploring the Role of Financial Mechanisms

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About the project

Studies have demonstrated that the deployment in the United States has not been equitable, with significant racial and ethnic disparities documented across a broad range of household incomes. The root causes are still largely unknown and require a strategic evaluation to ensure the pitfalls are avoided as we venture into deploying additional carbon-free technologies (e.g., storage, electric vehicles).

We are evaluating the role of financial mechanisms as key components to achieving high penetration levels of residential rooftop photovoltaics (PV), and how these might have impacted solar PV growth in the past. Our goal is to assess policies that can allow the effective and equitable rollout of new, cleaner technologies while removing the inequities we still see are pervasive in our society.