Jade Garrett, Solar, Virginia

Jade Garrett, who has been in the industry for 6+ years, is
the Owner of Positive Deviancy.

Why is clean energy important to you? I want to make an impact that will make the world a better place for my children when I am gone.

What’s your proudest accomplishment in clean energy? To date, we have helped over 80+ renewable energy startups get over $1.85m in aggregate to launch their businesses.

What did you do prior to working in clean energy? Entrepreneurship

How did you first get introduced to clean energy? One of the startups I was working for won 2 MIT Clean Energy Prizes, then I got involved with the American-Made Challenges program with the Department of Energy (DOE).

What do you wish more people knew about the clean energy industry? It is not that difficult to get idea stage funding from the DOE to start your business with clean energy.

What does your job mean to you and your family? My job means that my children get to see what hard/strategic work is able to accomplish when faced with huge challenges that need to be overcome.

How is clean energy helping your community / state? We are pulling together an alliance of Clean Tech Accelerator programs for Virginia and working to get this noticed as a priority for funding from the state of Virginia.

Why should congress invest in clean energy jobs? Clean energy is where there is more opportunity to make equitable jobs open to all.