New installation takes Hope Farms 100% off-grid, funded by Sun Club grant
HOUSTON, June 27, 2023 – Green Mountain Energy Sun Club and Recipe for Success Foundation invited community members, elected officials, and media representatives to a “Flip the Switch” to Solar ceremony on Tuesday, June 27 at 10:00a.m. The ceremony powered up Hope Farms’ new Sun Club Sustainability Plaza.
Funded by a grant from Green Mountain Energy Sun Club, the newly installed solar system will allow Hope Farms to power 100% of its core operational needs with renewable electricity, including on-site battery storage, putting the farm on the path to energy independence.
“This is a particularly exciting day. It’s been our vision, since first conceptualizing Hope Farms in 2005, for it to eventually be fully off the grid and rely strictly on renewable natural resources for power and water. We are deeply grateful to The Sun Club for making that vision a reality.” says Recipe for Success Foundation Founder, Gracie Cavnar.
With the switch to solar, Hope Farms is embracing the fastest growing source of energy in the U.S. The Sun Club-funded solar installations will power critical daily operations at Recipe for Success Foundation’s 7-acre Urban Agricultural Showcase & Training Center. They will also generate back up power to draw upon during power outages.
The new system includes multiple solar panel installations distributed throughout the site to support critical power needs. The system is designed to showcase small-scale, approachable opportunities to inspire consumers who want to incorporate solar into their homes in ways large and small.
At the heart of the installation is Sun Club Sustainability Plaza. The Plaza, unveiled in 2022, is home to the farm’s rainwater capture system, which was also funded by Sun Club. A new building in the Plaza features the latest in technology. A composting toilet facility was designed by students in the Design/Build Lab at the University of Houston Gerald D. Hines College of Architecture and Design, under the guidance of Professor Patrick Peters.
The modern structure, which is tied to the rainwater system and powered by solar panels, will take advantage of prevailing southerly winds for air circulation, a south facing roofline for maximum solar exposure, and proximity to the rainwater storage tanks. The new facility is prominently placed in the public area of Hope Farms and tied to the UnitedHealthcare Gathering Barn by a pergola walkway, shaded by native mustang grapes and another installation of solar panels. Permanent signage installed in the Plaza will educate students and visitors about the resources being conserved by the farm’s solar power and rainwater capture systems, along with ideas they can apply to their own homes, offices and gardens.
The new solar system will prevent the loss of power and includes the following closed loop, off-grid systems:
- ReneSola solar panels tied to battery storage installed on the roof of the new fully off-grid composting bathroom. It utilizes filtered water from the Sun Club Rainwater Capture System and features 3 composting toilets, LED lighting, fans and passive cooling.
- ReneSola solar panels, installed at the farm’s water well, fully powering the irrigation system and pump. This is critical to keeping the 7-acres of food crops healthy.
- ReneSola solar panels tied to battery storage, installed on the south pergola of the Gathering Barn. They generate enough electricity to support farm production and education programs: rainwater filtering, culinary classroom, offices, veg prep, refrigeration area and farm store.
- ReneSola solar panels tied to battery storage installed on the Flower Studio roof to run WIFI, security, office support infrastructure and chicken coops.
- A system of Briggs & Stratton SimpliPHI Energy Storage units. They will provide uninterrupted support for elements needing power through the evening hours: perimeter lighting, security system, toilet, barn, and studio.
- A 30-watt solar powered electronic gate with storage battery which also runs the security systems’ perimeter laser beams.
- 15 streetlamps (1,000 watts each) illuminating the front parking and the central working areas of the farm—critical to farm security.
“At Sun Club, our mission is to support organizations that make the world a more sustainable place. Recipe for Success achieves this not only by promoting healthier eating habits, but also by reducing the environmental impact of their operations.” says Green Mountain Energy Vice President, Mark Parsons.
About Green Mountain Energy Sun Club
Green Mountain Energy is changing the way power is made and advancing sustainable communities through the work of Green Mountain Energy Sun Club. Since its founding in 2002, Sun Club® has donated more than $13 million to 156 nonprofit organizations across Texas and the Northeast. Sun Club collaborates with nonprofit organizations on projects that focus on renewable energy, energy efficiency, resource conservation, and environmental stewardship. To learn more about Green Mountain Energy and Sun Club or to apply for a Sun Club grant, visit greenmountain.com/sunclub.
About Recipe For Success Foundation
Since 2005, Recipe for Success Foundation has worked to combat childhood obesity by changing the way our children understand, appreciate, and eat their food, and by educating and mobilizing the community to provide healthier diets for children. Its programs have empowered more than 50,000 youth with the knowledge and skills to make a lifetime of healthy eating decisions. Through efforts including the nationally offered Seed-to-Plate Nutrition EducationTM, www.eatitfoodadventures.org children’s learning website and Eat It! Food Adventures children’s cookbooks, the VegOut! 30 Ways in 30 Days Challenge (www.vegoutwithrfs.org) and Hope Farms in Houston Texas, the Foundation aims to make healthy food appealing and available to everyone with programs that teach, empower, and inspire healthy eating. It works to establish healthy eating as the norm and to create a culture in which nutritious food is shared, appreciated, and celebrated. Learn more at www.recipe4success.org.
About Hope Farms
Hope Farms is Recipe for Success Foundation’s 7-acre Urban Agricultural Showcase and Training Center that grows fresh, affordable produce amid a Houston “food desert” while training and providing small-business incubation, co-op services and workforce readiness for U.S. Veterans and others, preparing them to be urban agri-preneurs. The farm is also a healthy gathering place, offering regular cooking and gardening classes for children and adults, weekly produce deliveries to subscribers, an onsite Saturday market, a monthly First Wednesday Market and public events, such as the annual Earth Day festivities that celebrate local food and the power of shared meals to build community. Hope Farms is a critical component in achieving Recipe for Success Foundation’s mission to mobilize the community to provide healthier diets for children. More at www.HopeFarmsHTX.org.
