Decarb.Earth: Bringing Solar Energy to Small Businesses

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Decarb.Earth: Bringing Solar Energy to Small Businesses.

Introducing Decarb.Earth, a startup that will increase the accessibility of solar energy to small businesses.

Currently, the world is in a very precarious position as climate change threatens the state of our earth. Among countless other issues, carbon emissions are at an all-time high and are only on the rise.

“In the 13.6 billion year history of the universe we’ve got these next nine years until we have 450 parts per million CO² in the atmosphere. That’s pretty much cutoff where we start getting into negative feedback loops and we turn this paradise into hell,” says Marco Funk, the founder of Decarb.Earth. Read more about the environmental impact of carbon emissions here.

Funk, however, has elected to not simply wait idly by as the actions of humanity destroy the environment, and is instead taking action against this rising threat. At its core, this is the central objective of Decarb.Earth: to take action against carbon emissions.

“We don’t seem very wise… knowingly putting ourselves in jeopardy of self-extinction,” he says. “When you come to that sort of realization… you want to play your part.”

Everybody wants to do their part for the environment, but it is not always an option. The largest barrier to renewable energy for small and medium-sized enterprises is that they are more often than not overlooked by the banks. Mostly, this is because of their relative sizes and finances.

This is where Decarb.Earth comes in.

By working with multiple SMEs to build a collective proposition that is appealing to banks, Decarb.Earth brings greater access to the resources these enterprises require to invest in solar energy.

"We don't seem very wise... knowingly putting ourselves in jeopardy of self-extinction. When you come to that sort of realization you want to play your part." - Marco Funk

THE BENEFITS:

CHEAPER ENERGY

Solar energy provides 25 years of lasting energy, which takes an average of seven to eight years for a company to pay off. This means that for 17 to 18 years, these companies will have free, reliable energy.

BETTER FOR THE ENVIRONMENT

The more businesses that convert to renewable sources of energy, the more sustainable long-term plans can be. With the climate changing at such a rapid pace, it is growing unpredictable and detrimental. However, the future will be much more secure when individuals and companies alike take every opportunity available to lessen their carbon footprint.

APPEALS TO CUSTOMERS

Like Fairtrade, Leaping Bunny, and Ecomark, people like to know that they product or service they are using is made with quality and care to the systems and individuals around them. Put simply, it’s rewarding and appealing to consumers to work with businesses that operate on renewable energy.

"As of now, the vast majority of the population is aware that there are significant changes happening to the earth's climate. Despite this, there is still quite a lot of ignorance concerning matters of decarbonisation. "

What are the challenges of decarbonising companies? Well, there are a few.

To start, not many individuals are aware of just how impactful their carbon footprint is. As of now, the vast majority of the population is aware that there are significant changes happening to the earth’s climate. Despite this, there is still quite a lot of ignorance concerning matters such as decarbonisation.

At its initial conception, this lack of awareness was the central intention of Decarb.Earth. “Initially, it was very holistic,” explained Funk. “Just like thinking okay, what are the core issues? Awareness is a core issue.”

As the company grew, the current service of creating tangible change in decarbonisation efforts took the forefront. However, in recognizing awareness as a barrier to the progress being made to prevent climate change, this remains to be a challenge Decarb.Earth intends to take on during its lifespan.

Another challenge is the complexity of these interlocking stakeholders. Between the SMEs themselves, landlords, corporate partners and more, there needs to be a secure interface where these connections can occur as an optimized process. To do this, Decarb.Earth plans to employ Solana’s blockchain technology.

Not only does Solana retain that crucial level of security for stakeholders involved, it works closely with the values at the core of Decarb.Earth, for it operates with a very miniscule carbon output. Learn more about blockchain technology here.

Ultimately, these efforts are long-term plans that are meant to last. Employing fundamental changes that will improve the way that the earth is taken care of will greatly impact the environment and these smaller businesses as well.

These businesses are given 25 years of solar energy, as well as resources such as the solar panels themselves that will last even longer. Plus, it is much easier to make preventative changes now, than be forced into making reactive changes a few decades later, as the climate crisis worsens.

But maybe, if there are enough people thinking like the founder of Decard.Earth, then the preventative change we desperately need will save our future from becoming a reactive climate apocalypse. Or, as Funk put it, “if there’s enough crazy people out there who want to shift the paradigm, then we actually have a chance.”

Rachel Tersch, Contributing Author

Rachel Tersch is a Canadian writer currently studying at the University of Western Ontario. She is completing a double major in the School for Advanced Studies in the Arts and Humanities with an Honours Specialization in Creative Writing and English Language and Literature. An avid reader, she is most often found with a book in her hand or lost in her own thoughts.

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