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Last Updated on: 22nd May 2025, 02:35 am
Baltimore, MD — Earlier this year, the Climate Access Fund, Solar Stewards, CohnReznick, and additional partners “flipped the switch” to activate Solar4Us @ Henderson-Hopkins, a $3.8 million, 808 kW rooftop community solar project. The project, owned and developed by the Climate Access Fund, is located at Elmer A. Henderson: A Johns Hopkins Partnership School, a Baltimore City Public K-8 School. In addition to saving approximately 150 low- to moderate-income households nearly $1 million in energy costs over 35 years and providing job training opportunities, Solar4Us @ Henderson-Hopkins amplifies practical ways companies can participate in the energy transition through Social RECs®.
Through a unique arrangement established by Atlanta-based social enterprise Solar Stewards, job training and coursework at the school will be funded through professional services firm CohnReznick’s purchase of the Solar4Us @ Henderson-Hopkins’ Renewable Energy Credits (RECs), generating over a quarter of a million dollars in ongoing revenue for the Solar4Us @ Henderson-Hopkins project, the Climate Access Fund, and the organization’s future community solar objectives.
“We recognize that companies have an important role to play as good stewards and good neighbors in local economies,” said Anton Cohen, partner and renewable energy practice leader at CohnReznick. “Partnering with Solar Stewards clarified the renewable energy credit space and provided economic justification for CohnReznick to pay a premium for the Social RECs®. Our partnership enables hundreds of families to have access and save money on their electricity bills with clean, affordable power at a
reasonable price and reduces our company’s carbon footprint.”
CohnReznick was one of the first national professional services firms to establish a dedicated clean energy practice and has worked on some of the largest federal decarbonization efforts in recent American history, from the $26 billion RECOVERY Act energy programs down to the more recent Inflation Reduction Act. As part of CohnReznick’s Sustainability strategy, it is committed to purchasing renewable energy certificates from projects that directly benefit historically excluded communities.
Since the late 1990s, RECs have transformed markets for renewable energy by allowing renewable energy generators to connect with clean energy buyers, regardless of where the energy is generated or used. Through the Solar Stewards Marketplace, one hundred percent of the revenue from RECs is used to fund community projects with social and economic benefits for historically excluded communities, creating a Social REC®. Annual membership in the Solar Stewards Marketplace allows companies to select available community opportunities and select projects that meet their missions and objectives.
The team at Solar Stewards vets each project. It provides a high level of rigor and oversight so participating communities can be verified and businesses can reduce their risk and ensure the validity of social impact claims. In the long term, communities and businesses benefit because these projects facilitate additional investment and consequently attract and build additional talent in the area.
“Solar4Us @ Henderson-Hopkins is one of three Social REC® partnerships to come online in the past 18 months,” said Dana Redden, founder and CEO of Solar Stewards. “Our patented Solar Stewards Marketplace ensures economic- inclusion and accountability with social impact claims. There is so much value in authentic local partnerships!”
“Our involvement in Solar4Us @ Henderson-Hopkins was especially meaningful because it is such an impactful project,” said Joel Cohn, partner at CohnReznick. “Seeing the system going live was a powerful reminder that businesses like ours are essential in creating a better, brighter future for our communities and our country.”
About Solar Stewards
Solar Stewards creates real-world opportunities for a more inclusive clean energy economy. Our patented Solar Stewards Marketplace provides valuable tools for collaboration, equity, and impact in renewable energy development for organizations that serve the community, such as affordable housing, universities and schools, non-profits, and municipalities. Through our unique model, we combine environmental and social attributes to help committed private-sector leaders make strategic clean energy commitments that directly benefit traditionally historically excluded communities. More information on the Solar Stewards Marketplace is available at https://solarstewards.net.
About CohnReznick
CohnReznick is firmly rooted in our purpose: creating opportunities for our people, making a difference for our clients, and strengthening our communities. Despite rapid growth, we retain an entrepreneurial spirit and culture driven by a commitment to superior client service and giving back. More information is available at https://www.cohnreznick.com.
About the Climate Access Fund
The Climate Access Fund (CAF) is a Maryland-based nonprofit Green Bank that developed, constructed, and owns the Solar4Us @ Henderson-Hopkins project. CAF’s mission is to reduce the energy burden of low-income households by increasing access to discounted clean energy through innovative clean energy development and finance. Since 2018, CAF has focused its efforts on the expansion of community solar in Maryland’s historically disinvested communities to ensure that low-income households can experience the social, economic, and environmental benefits solar power has to offer. For more information about CAF and its work in climate justice, please visit www.climateaccessfund.org.
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