Building Momentum for a Renewable Future: SOLAR 2025 in Review

SOLAR 2025 photograph on the convention website. © ASES

The American Photo voltaic Vitality Society (ASES) hosted SOLAR 2025, the 54th annual Nationwide Photo voltaic Convention, August 4–6, 2025, on the College of Colorado Boulder. The occasion introduced collectively thought leaders, innovators, policymakers, college students, school, researchers, and advocates from throughout the photo voltaic and renewable power neighborhood to share concepts, encourage innovation, and construct momentum for the clear power transformation.

This yr’s convention theme, “Innovation for Common Renewable Vitality Entry,” highlighted options that drive local weather resilience, power justice, and technological progress. Attendees arrived curious concerning the state of the trade, given current federal modifications, and left affirming that photo voltaic is right here to remain.

The trade is robust sufficient to persist with out federal subsidies and continues to have help at state and native ranges. Attendees engaged in dynamic periods, expanded interactive poster periods, hands-on workshops, ASES’s first-ever profession truthful, and networking alternatives that fostered collaboration throughout the clear power sector.

All through the convention, a number of recurring themes emerged, underscoring the breadth and urgency of at this time’s renewable power transformation. Displays and discussions highlighted the rising significance of insurance policies that guarantee equitable entry to power, significantly for low-income households and communities.

Improvements in agrivoltaics, together with approaches that combine photo voltaic with crops, livestock, and pure habitats, confirmed how photo voltaic can improve relatively than compete with agricultural and ecological methods. Constructing-integrated photo voltaic and grid developments demonstrated how renewable power is shaping each our infrastructure and our day by day lives.

A gaggle of convention attendees touring Jack’s Photo voltaic Backyard as a part of the Native Boulder Photo voltaic Tour. © ASES

Periods additionally explored tipping factors for photo voltaic, wind, and batteries, in addition to the worldwide forces driving the transition coverage and geopolitics, local weather and sustainability dangers, synthetic intelligence, power transition financing, important minerals competitors, and the speedy development of cleantech industries.

The convention concluded with a name to motion: governments, firms, and most of the people should work collectively to embed transparency, inclusiveness, and good governance into each stage of the renewable power sector. This contains coverage frameworks, procurement processes, funding practices, and neighborhood advocacy.

SOLAR 2025 carried an optimistic and forward-looking spirit. Attendees got here away with sensible insights and renewed skilled connections, and likewise with a shared sense that the clear power transformation is accelerating. Regardless of coverage shifts and provide chain points with tariffs, the conversations in Boulder mirrored a neighborhood assured in photo voltaic’s endurance and united by a imaginative and prescient of a simply and sustainable power future.

ASES Fellows who got here to the 2025 Fellows Reception to have fun the three 2025 fellow inductees (Seth Masia, Jennifer Rennick, and Jeffrey Peterson). © ASES

Our nation’s longest-running annual photo voltaic convention, ASES is dedicated to being aware of our influence on the bottom and on the setting. Through considerate planning, SOLAR 2025 was a 100% zero-emissions occasion. By buying carbon offsets and adopting sustainable practices, ASES ensures that these in-person conferences help the planet we’re working to guard.

Thanks to everybody who joined us in Boulder to make this yr’s convention each inspiring and sustainable. A really particular thanks to our beneficiant sponsors and companions:

• Nextracker
• Photo voltaic Design Associates
• Ampacity
• Clevercoat Renewable Roofing
• Nationwide Renewable Vitality Laboratory (NREL)
• Canvas Cloud
• Boulder County Sustainability Local weather Motion & Resilience
• Photo voltaic Wave Vitality, Inc
• ProjectLeapFrog.org
• REPowering Faculties
• Vote Photo voltaic
• Blacks in Efficiency Advertising and marketing
• College of Colorado Boulder’s Grasp of the Atmosphere
• New Vitality Colorado
• The Worldwide Photo voltaic Vitality Society

Save the Date: SOLAR 2026 in Austin, TX

ASES is happy to announce that subsequent yr’s convention, SOLAR 2026, the fifty fifth annual Nationwide Photo voltaic Convention, can be held October 19–21, 2026, in Austin, Texas. The convention will as soon as once more unite professionals, college students, and neighborhood leaders to advance the imaginative and prescient of a 100% renewable power future, together with celebrating the fiftieth Anniversary of our ASES Chapter, the Texas Photo voltaic Vitality Society (TXSES)! Pete Parsons, Government Director of TXSES has proclaimed that it is going to be the very best photo voltaic convention ASES has ever had. Maintain a watch out for updates at ases.org/convention.