RENEWABLE ENERGY COOPERATIVE
ENERGY & ECONOMIC DEMOCRACY
THE CO-OP MODEL
WHAT IS A COOPERATIVE?
A cooperative (co-op) is a business owned and operated by the people who use its services or work there. Unlike traditional corporations driven by outside investors, co-ops are mission-driven to meet the needs of their members and community. When a co-op makes a profit, that money is either reinvested into the business or returned directly to its members.
Cooperatives are not a new concept. There is a long history of cooperative economics, particularly within Black communities, as a tool to fight racial discrimination and economic exclusion.
In the early 20th century, W.E.B. Du Bois advocated for co-ops as a path to a dignified life. Right here in Chicago, leaders like Halena Wilson, the Ladies’ Auxiliary, and the Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters successfully used cooperative principles to build independent community wealth. RECO carries on this tradition.
RECO IS AÂ MULTI-STAKEHOLDERÂ CO-OP
Because we serve both the people who build our solar projects and the people who use the power, RECO operates as a multi-stakeholder cooperative combining two distinct groups:
By bringing workers and consumers together, we ensure that the people who build the infrastructure and the people who live in the neighborhood can share ownership and control.
A business where the employees come together to create their own jobs. At RECO, our worker-owners earn living wages, share in the profits, and access resources and commercial clients they might not be able to reach individually.
​A structure where members pool their money to access goods or services at a better price. RECO subscribers gain collective buying power for clean energy that is typically difficult to access as an individual.
UNDERSTANDING COMMUNITY SOLAR
Community solar allows residents to participate in renewable energy without needing to install panels on their own roofs. Multiple households subscribe to a single, local solar installation, and the clean energy generated flows back into the local grid.
BENEFITS
Subscribing allows you to source your power from a local project structured around community cost savings.
Your energy dollars fund living-wage green jobs and technical training for residents right here in the neighborhood.
For local property owners hosting solar roofs, these installations can increase long-term property value.