Renewable Cities

While the policy needed to expand renewable energy mostly lies at the federal and state level, cities have a role to play. Cities can require or promote renewable energy adoption, aggregate demand, and facilitate expansion that is ongoing through state and federal policies. This chapter starts by examining the role of cities in developing renewable resources. It then discusses various cities that have committed to obtaining 100 percent of their electricity from renewable energy, with particular emphasis on solar. For instance, cities that own their own utilities, such as Austin, Texas, can require them to adopt renewables in the same way states can. A pathway some cities are taking, particularly in Europe, is remunicipalizing their utilities. In Hamburg, Germany, there is a citizen-led campaign to buy back its utility. This has put the city on a pathway to 100 percent renewable energy.