Why Clean Energy Is Not Enough: John Farrell on Lessons from David Morris

When ILSR co-founder David Morris published his pamphlet The Dawning of Solar Cells in 1975, nearly the only people using solar power were those in the Apollo program at NASA. Yet David saw decades into the future as he laid out a vision for community control and local ownership of a solar power system that was better for the climate and kept much more money in local economies than utility monopolies ever would. In many ways, says ILSR co-director and leader of the Energy Democracy Initiative, John Farrell, the world is still catching up with things David Morris wrote 50 years ago.  John Farrell is this week's guest. To hear him tell it, one of the most important lessons he took from David Morris was that the idea of clean energy itself isn't enough. In addition to the climate, we must also think about who owns energy and the systems that provide it. If clean energy systems are owned and controlled by energy monopolies, communities still find themselves at the mercy of huge corporations. A true energy revolution will come not only from clean energy, but community-owned clean energy. That's the path to energy self-reliance. That's the path that David Morris charted decades ago, and it's the path that John Farrell and ILSR's energy democracy team follow to this day.  For transcript and related resources, see the episode page at https://ilsr.org/articles/blp-why-clean-energy-is-not-enough

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Host

Danny Caine

Author, former bookseller, and passionate antimonopoly advocate Danny Caine loves to talk to the people fighting monopoly power in their communities.

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Building Local Power brings you thought-provoking stories and new ideas for breaking the hold of corporate monopolies and expanding the power of communities to chart their own futures. We deliver insights from trailblazing lawmakers, scholars, business leaders, and advocates. Plus, conversations with in-house experts at the Institute for Local Self-Reliance help reveal the patterns and policies that shape our economy and communities. These stories and conversations help map solutions that distribute power to everyday people.

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