The Rural Renewable Energy Alliance (RREAL), is one of the seven nonprofit organizations that recently completed the Initiative Foundation's Healthy Organizations Partnership (HOP) program.
The two-year program is designed to help nonprofit organizations become more effective by providing strategic planning assistance, leadership training and implementation grants. RREAL, which began the HOP training in February 2007, has created a new strategic plan to serve low-income families in the community and was awarded a $5,500 grant. The organization will now receive priority funding consideration from the Initiative Foundation.
"This partnership with the Initiative Foundation has helped our organization to recognize our strengths while allowing us an opportunity to identify and reduce the impact of barriers as we move forward," said Jason Edens, Director.
The Rural Renewable Energy Alliance was founded in 2000 with a mission of making solar power accessible to people of all income levels.
The primary way in which RREAL achieves their mission is through their Solar Assistance program, whereby they install supplemental solar heating systems on the homes of low-income families, reducing heating expenses for the recipients.
Solar heating systems also reduce carbon and other space heating-related emissions. Another component to their program is education on solar technologies targeting youth.
"RREAL helps people stay warm without plundering the planet," says Jason Edens. "We look forward to being part of the energy transformation in the coming decade."
