Meeting solar demand during the pandemic has been difficult for industry leaders. However, that’s changing, in fact, rather quickly.

This past year was not a strong one for the economy. As the pandemic took hold of the world, supply chains were disrupted, consumers stayed home, and the economy fell at historically fast rates. Stock market yields slid and many investors were skittish about the state of the global market. Spending and investing tried up as people saved their money, uncertain about their income.

With the landscape of energy markets in constant flux, and an overall trend of electric rate increases, many customers are turning to alternative energy options. Solar is amongst the most popular alternatives due to its increased accessibility and affordability. Going solar allows customers to avoid inflation and the inherent volatility of energy costs while harnessing the cheapest available form of energy on the market.

One of the most interesting challenges to achieving carbon neutral electricity generation is harnessing the intermittent generation of solar and wind. Right now, many firms, households, and utilities rely on lithium ion batteries to store energy for times when generation is low. What if there were another solution for energy storage that produced carbon neutral electricity?

That solution might be hydrogen fuel. The benefits of hydrogen fuel for storing fuel are many. Hydrogen fuel can be generated by using existing hydrocarbon fuels, like excess methane from natural gas wells or landfills, or by using electrolysis to split water molecules. The fuel produced from these procedures burns extremely cleanly, producing essentially just water vapor and heat.

In urban centers, space is at a premium, requiring creative thinking and innovative approaches to find sustainable solutions to climate and health challenges. Many municipalities are searching for ways to integrate emissions reduction technologies with more environmentally friendly activities.

A perennial desire for sustainable urban planners has been to better utilize the miles of concrete and asphalt that make up the surfaces of roads and sidewalks to achieve sustainability goals. For many cities, taking space back from cars and parking lots to plant urban greenery, provide safer bike lanes, and offer more pedestrian space has been the preferred method of greening urban areas.

In late June, Senator Jon Ossoff of Georgia introduced the “Solar Energy Manufacturing for America Act” to the U.S. Senate. Citing President Biden’s goal of decarbonizing the grid by 2035, the bill focuses on supporting American solar manufacturers in an effort to revitalize domestic solar production capabilities. Such a bill has been viewed favorably by environmentalists and the solar industry as a means of achieving those increasingly popular goals.