A sustainable congregation starts with energy efficiency
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EPA ENERGY STAR Action Workbook for CongregationsThis 79-page workbook provides detailed, practical advice to help congregations implement energy efficiency changes in their houses of worship and start saving money (2019). |
Our FREE Energy Efficiency Programs (really)
Solar Resources
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Going Solar: Michigan IPL's Guidebook for Houses of Worship (2015) |
Solar Guides
- Going Solar: 10 Steps for Congregations (1 page)
- What is a Power Purchase Agreement (PPA)? (2 pages)
- Solar Guide for Houses of Worship: How to Use Investors (by the Genesis of Ann Arbor Green Team, 10 pages)
Solar Stories
Solar Webinars
Solar Summit: A Webinar with Haslett Community Church (March 2020)
Solar Faithful: Using Investors and Power Purchase Agreements (May 2020)
Need help with your solar project?
A message from the Solar Faithful team:
"We would like to make you an offer you can’t refuse! You can help save the planet from climate volatility!
Ann Arbor Solar Faithful will guide you (yes you, the volunteer or professional associated with any non-profit building in the U.S.) through the process of getting a solar panel installation for your building at no upfront cost to the organization (the non-profit need only pay for periodically solar electricity generated, at a lower rate than is paid to their utility). Solar Faithful is focused on reducing the carbon footprint of Houses of Worship (HoWs) and non-profit buildings.
Solar Faithful was launched in late 2017 as a partnership between Ann Arbor and Michigan Interfaith Power and Light with a small Department of Energy grant. The goal was to come up with a scalable model for solar for HoW and non-profit buildings. Several solar installations have been completed in the Ann Arbor area primarily using an ‘Investor Model’ to take advantage of the Federal Investment Tax Credit for energy efficiency improvements. Ordinarily, non-profits cannot benefit from this tax credit because they do not pay taxes. Our Investor Model overcomes this drawback.

Recent solar installations Genesis of Ann Arbor and Ozone House (also Ann Arbor) were funded by altruistic investors at no cost to the non-profit organizations. This is a true win-win. The non-profit saves money on their power bills and the investors profit from their ownership of the solar panels, via periodic payments from the non-profit for the solar energy generated."
For guidance on your solar project, contact Murray Rosenthal at [email protected] .
Solar Congregations in Michigan
As of May 2020, nearly 30 Michigan congregations use some form of solar energy. Here are the ones we're aware of:
If your solar congregation would like to be added to this list, email Jennifer. Faith communities that have installed solar are usually pretty excited to tell others about it, so if you'd like our help reaching a solar congregation, let us know and we'll do our best to connect you.
Legal Templates
As a part of the Solar Faithful initiative, funded by a grant from the U.S. Department of Energy and the City of Ann Arbor, we have four legal templates that may be useful if your faith community endeavors to finance solar using a Power Purchase Agreement (PPA) or investor-owned LLC. Templates include:
☼ Solar Installation Agreement
☼ Power Purchase Agreement
☼ LLC Investor Operating Agreement
Enter your contact information here to receive the links to the legal templates.