News > Announcing a new chapter: Stepping in as Board Chair of Solar United Neighbors

Announcing a new chapter: Stepping in as Board Chair of Solar United Neighbors

• Solar accessibility

April 28, 2026

At a pivotal moment for solar, why we keep doing the work

Two years ago, on Earth Day, I stood in Virginia’s Prince William Forest Park surrounded by friends and colleagues from across the solar community as Joe Biden announced the winners of the Solar for All program. I led its design alongside an extraordinary group of partners across government and the nonprofit community. It was one of the most meaningful moments of my career. Progress felt tangible. The path ahead felt clear.

It also, in many ways, felt like an ending.

Shortly after that moment, I left government to help bring those ideas into the world through private-sector financing. Today, I serve as Director of Climate Policy at Amalgamated Bank, working to connect policy, capital, and communities to deliver affordable, accessible clean energy.

That work builds on what I learned earlier in my career at GRID Alternatives—working directly with communities to expand access to solar and ensure its benefits reach those who need them most.

Two years later, the landscape has shifted dramatically. The Solar for All program, as we knew, it is gone. The policy environment has changed. Hard-won progress feels uncertain. But organizations like Solar United Neighbors refuse to give up and are continuing the work by fighting to protect it.

The work doesn’t stop

There’s a Buddhist saying I come back to often: chop wood, carry water.

It’s a reminder that real change isn’t just made in big announcements or breakthrough moments. It’s built in the daily, often unglamorous work of showing up again, and again, to do what needs to be done.

That’s what this moment demands of the solar movement.

Not just celebration when we win. Not just outrage when we lose. But steady, grounded commitment to the work itself:

• Expanding access to affordable solar
• Lowering energy burdens for families
• Building community power and ownership
• Advocating for policies that endure beyond political cycles

That’s what Solar United Neighbors has always done. And it’s why I’m honored to step into the role of Board Chair.

Why Solar United Neighbors

At its core, Solar United Neighbors is about people.

It’s about neighbors coming together to take control of their energy future. It’s about making solar available and accessible. It’s about ensuring that the benefits of clean energy—savings, resilience, and opportunity—reach everyone, not just those with the most resources.

That mission is more urgent now than ever.

Solar energy is under attack. By helping people go solar, join together, and fight for their energy rights, SUN builds a community of solar supporters to protect it.

Looking ahead

As I step into this role, I’m excited to work alongside an extraordinary board, a knowledgeable, committed team, and engaged partners across the country who continue to push this work forward.

I’m also clear-eyed about the challenges ahead. If the past few years have taught me anything, it’s that progress is rarely linear. We make progress by forging forward even when the conditions change.

So, we’ll keep going, building, and organizing. We’ll keep fighting where we must, build where we can and do the work.

Chop wood. Carry water.

Progress depends on what we do next.

If you care about affordable energy, resilient communities, and a world powered by clean energy, there’s a role for you in this work.

Get involved with Solar United Neighbors. Join a solar co-op. Tell your neighbors, friends, and family about your experience going solar. Educate your elected officials about policies that expand access to solar.

However you show up—show up. Solar United Neighbors will be there.

Nicole Steele is the Board Chair of Solar United Neighbors and Director of Climate Policy at Amalgamated Bank. She has spent her career advancing equitable access to clean energy, from community-based solar work at GRID Alternatives to leading the design of the federal Solar for All program at the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, in close collaboration with the U.S. Department of Energy. She now focuses on scaling clean energy deployment through financing and policy innovation.