Dr. Stephen A. Smith Honored as 2017 TenneSEIA Solar Champion
NASHVILLE, Tenn., October 19, 2017—The Tennessee Solar Energy Industries Association (TenneSEIA) awarded its 2017 Solar Champion award to Dr. Stephen A. Smith at a reception following its annual meeting in Nashville. The non-profit organization serves as the primary advocacy group for the solar industry in Tennessee.
Since 1993, Dr. Smith has led the Southern Alliance for Clean Energy (SACE) as its Executive Director. He also serves on the Tennessee Valley Authority’s (TVA’s) Regional Energy Resource Council. Last month, Dr. Smith led SACE in the founding of Tennesseans for Solar Choice, a diverse and multi-partisan coalition, working to remove the market barriers and enable expansion for residential, commercial, and utility-scale solar PV through a statewide grassroots campaign.
“TenneSEIA is proud to present our Solar Champion award to Dr. Smith for his tireless advocacy on behalf of the 9 million ratepayers of the Tennessee Valley for their right to choose solar to power their homes and businesses,” said TenneSEIA President Matt Beasley. “We acknowledge his leadership and support as Executive Director of SACE for nearly 25 years, and through this award our members also recognize his leadership with the Tennesseans for Solar Choice movement. We congratulate Dr. Smith on this well-deserved recognition for his service to the people of Tennessee.”
“I am honored and humbled to receive TenneSEIA’s Solar Champion award. Solar power is a technology with so much to offer Tennessee: clean, low-cost power, economic development, and local control of energy resources,” said Dr. Smith. “SACE and I remain committed to continue pushing for better solar policies in the Volunteer State; it makes no sense that we would allow Tennessee to fall behind other states in our region in solar development. We look forward to working with TennSEIA to ensure that all of the solar market segments are performing well.”
Since the industry association incorporated in 2010, TenneSEIA has worked closely with TVA, local power companies, government officials, business leaders, and stakeholder group such as SACE and the Southern Environmental Law Center (SELC) to make solar a mainstream energy source and to realize the full potential of the solar industry in Tennessee.
For more information about TenneSEIA, please visit http://www.tenneseiasolar.com/.
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