This document discusses utilizing electrical microgrids for community economic development and revitalization. Microgrids are small-scale power supply networks that can provide energy for small communities. They can increase energy capacity and reliability while reducing carbon emissions. Microgrids allow for more community involvement and ownership in energy infrastructure. However, barriers include a lack of connectivity standards, economic models, and cooperation from utilities who may lose market share. The document acknowledges advisors and partners in developing the idea of linking microgrids to community development.

1. Community Economic
Development/Revitalization,
Utilizing Electrical Micro Grid
Development
Sanyakhu-Sheps Amaré
Executive Director, Phoenix Communities, Inc.
Benoit Hardy-Vallée, PhD
NECST—Northern Eastern Electricity Community Systems and
Technology
Phoenix Communities, Advisory Board Member
Community Economic Development/Revitalization, Utilizing Electrical Micro Grid Development

2. The Needs of the Energy
Economy in the 21st century
Increase supply of electrical energy
•
Reduce carbon footprints
•
Meet municipal requirement for
•
more “Green” energy generation
Address failure of the Public
•
Utilities to stem the tide of “black- The Energy Information
and brownouts” and pollution Administration (EIA) predicts that
worldwide electric power generation
will grow 2.4% a year between 2004
Manage an aging, centralized grid
• and 2030. Compounded over that
period, this small annual increase
will cause generation to nearly
double by 2030
Community Economic Development/Revitalization, Utilizing Electrical Micro Grid Development

3. The Micro-Grid—a New
“Electronomics” Paradigm
MICRO-GRID: “A small-scale power
supply network that is designed to
provide energy for a small community”
- Ingenia Magazine Issue 24, Sep 2005
Micro-level infrastructure
•
– to increase capacity to handle peak demands;
– reduce or eliminate incidents of wide area power outages
– help prevent local business losses
– new electrical products and services
More direct community involvement with development of their own energy generation
•
infrastructure systems and facilities, i.e., an “ownership” stake
Beginning with housing complexes (federal/state, NYC Housing Authorities, Tenant-owned
•
complexes, sub-divisions; major cultural, medicinal, educational, and recreational facilities
Utilization of smart-grid technology to manage distribution and load at the community level
•
Community Economic Development/Revitalization, Utilizing Electrical Micro Grid Development

4. Small Is Beautiful
As Micro-Grids are developing, some
•
can be linked together, in eect, causing
the development of “Integrated Micro-
Grid Sections”, with more flexibility
options for energy availability, reliability
and distribution.
• New Deal partnerships with existing
Public Utilities including
• More financial incentives for the business
community to invest in electrical micro
grid development
Community Economic Development/Revitalization, Utilizing Electrical Micro Grid Development

5. The CED Electrical micro-grid
paradigm: Community Grids
Consumers become partners in the
•
formation of the new grid companies
– benefit from the projected consumer
savings
– receive a percentage of project
revenue streams, depending on local
state laws.
Green collar training
•
– opportunities and apprenticeships by
being employed to help build the grid
and run its operations
Thought Leadership
•
– Establishment of a new Think Tank/
Clearing house on micro-grids: A new paradigm
NECST—Northern Eastern electricity
Community Systems and Technology
– Headquarted in Toronto, ON.
Community Grids equal new customers and new business partners, and job
training
Community Economic Development/Revitalization, Utilizing Electrical Micro Grid Development

6. Some barriers…
• Lack of connectivity standards to the Macro-Grids
• Lack of a reliable economic model for micro-grid deployment
• Public Utilities lack of cooperation to give up market share to
stimulate development in the micro-grid arena
• Micro-Gas Turbines (CHP’s) are not included, oftentimes, as a
“renewable” technology. While Gas itself is not considered a
renewable energy source, the use of gas-driven micro-turbines
to generate energy is green. Micro-turbines capture the heat
given off by the generating process, enabling entire building
complexes to shut down their oil-based boilers entirely, which
eliminates a significant carbon footprint!
• Lack of educational awareness of the projected benefits of
electrical micro grids
• Lack of demonstration projects to see and know and not just
postulate
• State Laws—some state regulation prohibits who can generate
energy, etc. and some states have no laws for micro-grid
applications
Community Economic Development/Revitalization, Utilizing Electrical Micro Grid Development

7. Acknowledgements
Kevon Makell our Advisor Board member, from PureNERGY and subsidiary of Bermuda’s
•
electrical company BELCO, who did the most amazing thing in our very first meeting, he
concretized our discovery of the link between community economic development and
electrical micro grids 2 years ago and we haven’t looked back since.
David Sharp our other Advisor Board Member, who discovered the link between Mission
•
Investing to our CED electrical micro-grid projects; and who with his very busy schedule
found the time to help Phoenix Communities position its micro-grid project(s) to investors
and foundations
To John Nelson whom I met in 1996 at SNHU doing my masters in CED. He worked then for
•
NCCED. John has echoed the exact sentiments of David Sharp and has embraced Phoenix in a
tight hug slowing us down while we focus on our business and strategic plan develop, that we
may be able to present an attractive investment profile to social energy investors and the
mission investing community, moving from idea to demonstration.
Stephen Bradberry, RFK, Jr. Memorial Foundation ’05 Awardee and ACORN Regional Midwest
•
Director, for helping us continually keeping us grounded to the community level for our
micro-grid projects. It was thru Stephen that we are beginning conversations with the New
Orleans housing authorities and have attracted the interest people to serve on our advisor
board
To Benoit Hardy-Vallée, PhD from of Toronto, Canada, the City of Gatherings We are forming
•
the North Eastern Electricity Community Systems and Technology, Benoit calls it NEXT! This
will be an internet think tank hub on electrical micro-grid clearinghouse publishing scientific
and CED social impact papers on Micro-Grids. The first paper we are discussing to be
developed is on the need for governments and municipalities to simultaneously include in
their national and regional grid infrastructural upgrade equal focus Micro-grids development
Community Economic Development/Revitalization, Utilizing Electrical Micro Grid Development