Ted's Comments

Good article. I love the approach of the Carbon War Room - aiming for large scale changes. It's absolutely the right way to go.

Joel, my insights on the drivers for solar purchase are based on interviews with the heads of marketing and sales for leading solar energy installers. These are people who talk with customers on a daily basis. I'd be interested in hearing of recent research studies to see if they match my conclusions.

I think you're absolutely right about people going solar for their kids. I guess I was lumping that into the 'Environment' reason, but now that you mention it I do think it's a significant enough driver that it deserves its own category. Can I be SolarTed?

Thomas, thank you for reading the article and sharing your thoughts. I agree completely with the need to "keep it simple." I do think, however, that there's a lot of thinking and skill that goes into making a site that actually does look simple. But my point is less about the cost than about the need to look trustworthy and professional. If that can be accomplished on a very low budget then of course that would be preferable. Also, I respectfully disagree that having connections with social networking tools like Twitter is about promoting those sites. These sites make it easier for customers to find out about you, connect with you, and ultimately buy from you.

Daniel and Stephen - thanks for the feedback. The video was shot at the tail end of the construction phase so the wind farm was not yet operational. Now that it is operational I think it would make a lot of sense to shoot additional footage of the blades turning.

I attended a clean energy breakfast on Boston this year, and a New England-based manufacturer of solar components told a very revealing story about the new factory he built recently in China. He said that construction workers voluntarily slept on the factory floor so they could be there first thing in the morning (like, instantly) to start work. There are cultural differences at work here, and these can be a benefit to US companies. We should embrace the Chinese as friends and partners in the effort to build sales and increase the adoption of low-cost renewable energy.

Mariah, thank you for the insightful article. I think it's just a matter of time before we have national feed-in tarifs that will bring about widespread adoption of solar. It's a little early in the Obama administration to write him off or condemn his commitment to clean energy. The Obama administration worked closely with wind companies to craft clean energy-friendly legislation and it will time for things to kick into gear. Part of what we need in this county is a national communications campaign to teach people about solar and what it means for their pocketbook. Wouldn't it make sense in a financial crisis to demonstrate the economic benefits of solar? After all, the sun has never announced a rate hike.