Decentralized Community Solar for Underserved Communities
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"Putting the 'We' in Web3 Energy — community-owned solar infrastructure powered by blockchain."
WeSolar is a decentralized platform that democratizes access to solar energy by enabling communities to co-own solar infrastructure, finance installations through peer-to-peer lending, earn energy credits, and govern expansion decisions — all through transparent smart contracts on the Celo blockchain.
Built by the Elevation Foundation — a federally recognized 501(c)(3) nonprofit (EIN: 92-1042348).
31 million U.S. households — disproportionately Black, Latino, and low-income — experience energy insecurity. They spend 8–10% of household income on energy bills, compared to 3% for higher-income households. Solar energy remains inaccessible due to:
- $15,000–$30,000 upfront installation costs
- Credit checks and income requirements that exclude the most vulnerable
- Opaque utility-controlled community solar programs with no resident governance
WeSolar replaces the utility company middleman with four smart contracts that make community solar ownership transparent, accessible, and self-governing:
| Contract | Purpose | Status |
|---|---|---|
WeSolarToken.sol (WST) |
ERC-20 energy credit token, minted per kWh generated | Written |
SolarPanelRegistry.sol |
ERC-1155 fractional ownership — 100 shares per installation | Written |
WeSolarFinancing.sol |
P2P loan lifecycle: request → fund → repay | Written |
WeSolarDAO.sol |
Community governance via OpenZeppelin Governor v5 | Written |
┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ COMMUNITY SOLAR PROJECT │
│ Homeowner requests installation → Financing contract │
├─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│ P2P LENDING MARKETPLACE │
│ Community members fund the project in cUSD stablecoin │
├─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│ FRACTIONAL OWNERSHIP │
│ SolarPanelRegistry mints 100 NFT shares per panel │
├─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│ ENERGY PRODUCTION & CREDITS │
│ Solar produces energy → WST tokens minted per kWh │
├─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│ COMMUNITY GOVERNANCE │
│ WST holders vote on: new installations, pricing, grants │
└─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘
- Node.js 20+
- npm
- A wallet with Celo Alfajores testnet tokens (get free tokens here)
git clone https://github.com/ModernDigitalDevelopment/wesolar.git
cd wesolar
npm installcp .env.example .env
# Edit .env and add your PRIVATE_KEY (never commit this file)npx hardhat compilenpx hardhat testnpx hardhat run scripts/deploy/01_deploy_all.js --network celo-alfajoreswesolar/
├── contracts/
│ ├── core/ # The four production smart contracts
│ │ ├── WeSolarToken.sol # WST energy credit token (ERC-20)
│ │ ├── SolarPanelRegistry.sol # Fractional ownership NFTs (ERC-1155)
│ │ ├── WeSolarFinancing.sol # P2P loan lifecycle
│ │ └── WeSolarDAO.sol # Community governance (OZ Governor v5)
│ ├── interfaces/ # Contract interfaces (IWeSolarToken, etc.)
│ └── mocks/ # Mock contracts for testing
├── test/ # Hardhat test suite (target: 90%+ coverage)
├── scripts/
│ ├── deploy/ # Deployment scripts
│ └── verify/ # Celoscan verification scripts
├── deployments/
│ ├── alfajores/ # Testnet deployment addresses
│ └── celo/ # Mainnet deployment addresses
├── frontend/ # React dApp (Phase 2)
├── api/ # Backend API (Phase 2)
├── docs/
│ ├── architecture/ # Technical documentation
│ ├── business/ # Executive summary, whitepaper
│ └── guides/ # Getting started, deployment guides
└── grant-applications/ # Active grant applications
├── celo-climate-collective.md # Ready to submit
├── energy-web-foundation.md
└── epa-ecj-thriving-communities.md
Celo's architecture is uniquely suited to WeSolar's mission:
- Mobile-first: 70% of energy-insecure households have smartphones — Celo's mobile SDK enables participation without computers
- Carbon-negative: Celo offsets more carbon than it produces, aligning with WeSolar's climate mission
- cUSD stablecoin: Enables stable-value loans without cryptocurrency volatility risk
- Sub-cent fees: Makes energy credit microtransactions economically viable
- MiniPay wallet: 4M+ existing users in underserved communities globally
- Refactor
WeSolarFinancing.solto use cUSD stablecoin for loans - Fix amortization interest calculation
- Write comprehensive test suite (target: 90%+ coverage)
- Deploy all 4 contracts to Celo Alfajores testnet
- Set up GitHub Actions CI/CD pipeline
- Build minimal demo web interface
- Submit Celo Climate Collective grant application
- Register for Gitcoin GG25
- Full React dApp with wallet integration (MiniPay, MetaMask, Valora)
- Homeowner dashboard: ownership shares, WST earnings, bill credits
- Lender dashboard: loan portfolio, yield tracking
- DAO voting interface
- 3 pilot installations (150 households)
- Smart contract security audit
- Mobile app (React Native + MiniPay SDK)
- Chainlink oracle integration for trustless energy data
- Secondary market for ownership NFT trading
- Multi-chain expansion (Base, Polygon)
- 25 installations, 1,500 households, 5 cities
| Program | Amount | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Celo Climate Collective | $25K–$100K | Draft ready — submitting |
| Energy Web Foundation | $50K–$200K | Drafting |
| EPA ECJ Thriving Communities | $500K–$3M | Researching |
| DOE Community Solar Partnership | $100K–$500K | Researching |
| Gitcoin GG25 | $5K–$50K matching | Needs testnet deployment |
| Ethereum Foundation ESP | $30K–$100K | Drafting |
The WeSolar Token (WST) serves multiple functions:
| Function | Description |
|---|---|
| Energy Credits | 1 WST = 1 kWh of solar energy produced by the network |
| Governance | Vote on platform upgrades, new installations, treasury allocation |
| Ownership Rewards | Earned proportionally by SolarPanelRegistry NFT holders |
| Bill Credits | Redeemable for energy bill discounts with partner utilities |
| Project | Repository | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Sotilitarianism | sotilitarianism | The philosophical framework |
| Transparently | transparently | Blockchain governance DApp |
| Elevation Engine | elevation-engine | Autonomous DeFi yield engine |
| Website | elevation.foundation | Official website |
We welcome contributions from developers, solar energy professionals, and community organizers. Please read CONTRIBUTING.md before submitting a pull request.
The Elevation Foundation is a federally recognized 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization (EIN: 92-1042348) that builds open-source blockchain infrastructure for transparent governance, community finance, and economic empowerment.
- Website: elevation.foundation
- Email: grants@elevation.foundation
- GitHub: ModernDigitalDevelopment
MIT License — see LICENSE for details.