By Lydia Larsen for Inside Climate News.
Broadcast version by Mark Richardson for Illinois News Connection reporting for the Solutions Journalism Network-Public News Service Collaboration

The Green Energy Justice Cooperative recently placed first, second and fourth in the Illinois Power Agency's second round of community-driven community solar project selection.

Being selected for this solar development program, made possible through the Illinois Climate and Equitable Jobs Act, represents an important step in developing and building clean energy projects in Illinois communities. The co-op, founded by environmental justice group Blacks in Green and local partners, is now applying for renewable energy credits totaling $12.5 million.

Green Energy Justice Cooperative's proposals are for three solar developments that together will produce nine megawatts of solar power. The developments, planned for development in or near Aurora, Naperville and Romeoville, will bring down energy costs in low- and moderate-income households as well as Black and brown communities west of Chicago.

Once completed, the projects will allow households that don't have access to or ownership of a rooftop to save money on their electric bills. Subscribers become co-owners of the cooperative and have a voice in the management and share in the profits generated.

Project leaders are now proceeding with applications for renewable energy credits from the Illinois Power Agency, which will help finance the project's development.

"That's a major piece that makes the project financially viable and feasible," said Wasiu Adesope, the project manager at Blacks in Green.

While those renewable energy credits will provide an important piece of funding, the project will also need more financing. Adesope said that they're not just looking for traditional lenders, but financiers that are invested in their cooperative's mission.

While in some cases renewable energy development is located far from the communities who use it, the GEJC developments will be built for and by the community. The Illinois Power Agency's community-driven community solar criteria states that local communities initiate the development and that the projects are located in those communities.

'We Have to Be Involved in Big Projects'

Nearly a decade ago, as part of his position at Heaven's View Christian Fellowship in Peoria, Illinois, the Rev. Tony Pierce began organizing around climate issues and assisting in negotiations for the Illinois Future Energy Jobs Act. The bill, which passed in 2016, led to a solar workforce training program that Pierce helped found.

"If we're talking about creating jobs that are going to move people out of poverty into the middle class, particularly with BIPOC people, then we have to be involved in big projects that could hire people at scale," Pierce, the vice president of GEJC, said.

Blacks in Green developed the Green Energy Justice Cooperative with multiple community based organizations, including nonprofits and LLCs affiliated with Pierce's church, in the Chicago area. Pierce said they wanted to develop and own these solar projects.

Pierce and other organizers weren't completely satisfied with some of the 2016 law's outcomes. Despite the fact that 40 percent of the Illinois population identify as people of color, BIPOC contractors ended up with less than 2 percent of the revenue from the Future Energy Jobs Act, according to Pierce.

Pierce returned to the state capital to negotiate what would become the Climate and Equitable Jobs Act. He knew they needed to create programs that would enable BIPOC contractors to benefit from the clean energy transition. Although the Future Energy Jobs Act created a community solar program that allowed subscribers to share a large solar project and collect credits for their share of the generated power, few of these projects ended up in Black and brown communities.

The Climate and Equitable Jobs Act, passed in 2021, created the state's community-driven community solar program. This program included more involvement from local communities and rules surrounding the projects meant a portion went specifically to Black and brown communities. The new program gets more BIPOC contractors and communities involved than the traditional community solar program.

People who participate in the solar training program will be doing much of the installation of the community-driven community solar projects, including those GEJC proposed. The developments are now on track to become one of the biggest non-utility-based solar developments owned by a clean energy co-op, according to BIG.

This type of solar development has been seen in other parts of the country, like those developed in Minnesota by Cooperative Energy Futures, a developer providing guidance to GEJC. Adesope is looking forward to seeing it further implemented in Illinois.

"I've seen disenfranchised communities that are usually at the receiving end of various programs where you have the imposition of models," Adesope said. "But this model ... every member has equal decision-making ability."


Lydia Larsen wrote this article for Inside Climate News.


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Due dates for student loan repayment remain uncertain for many Indiana students amid changes at the federal level. For those who were not granted loan forgiveness during the Biden administration, the possibility of pre-graduation loan repayment could be a financial torpedo.

Research site Education-data.org reports the average Indiana student loan balance is $33,000 as of June 2025 - lower than the national average - with slightly less than $31 billion owed statewide.

Nonprofit InvestEd works with students on the best approach to repayment. Its Chief Marketing Officer Bill Wozniak advises that early preparation is key.

"Plan as if it starts tomorrow. Plan as if it starts next month. Just be ready in case that happens," he said. "We've really been cautioning about planning ahead, if and when that day was going to come, and hopefully that advice was heeded, and maybe those funds weren't spent elsewhere."

Students often mistakenly pay double-digit interest rates, Wozniak said, which is why it's important to determine if loans are federal or private and to select the repayment plan that's the best fit. Every year, federal student loan rates change based on a formula set by Congress. Interest rates for loans between July 1, 2025, and June 30, 2026, range from 6.3% to 8.9%.

Education-data.org reports a total of nearly 906,000 student borrowers live in Indiana.

Wozniak admitted that setting aside money for savings is a challenge while in college, with housing, vehicles, credit cards and countless other living expenses to consider.

"Keep checking your email, keep up to date on the latest information," he said. "Make sure you read the things from your servicer, something that maybe you were supposed to start paying on, 2023, 2024, 2025. It might all of a sudden become a thing that you have to make a payment on."

President Donald Trump's tax and spending law contains new restrictions on the amount students can borrow and how they can repay. It also removes income-contingent repayment plans for student loans paid out after July 1, 2026.


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Americans have approximately 631 million credit card accounts, with nearly four cards per person.

The accounts can be a payday for con artists who prey on victims using a new scheme called the card decline scam. It involves flashing a "transaction decline" message during an online purchase. The buyer repeatedly enters the same or different credit card numbers under the belief the card or website is malfunctioning. The scammer collects a user's payment information each time they enter a card number.

Jennifer Adamany, communications director for the Better Business Bureau Serving Central Indiana, said the damage does not stop there.

"Later on, they will find out from their bank or their credit card company that the card was never declined but in fact, multiple charges have gone through," Adamany explained. "In some cases, these people's personal or financial information is being stolen, leading to identity theft."

The Indiana Economic Digest reports in 2023, Hoosiers lost almost $93 million to impostor fraud, 17% of which was due to identity theft. The Federal Trade Commission identified credit card fraud as the most reported type of identity theft nationally in 2024, with almost 450,000 cases submitted.

Most banks and financial institutions issue monthly transaction statements, meaning weeks can pass before the consumer realizes their identity has been stolen.

Adamany pointed out there are ways to shop safely online. The key is to take your time and take more than a quick glance before pulling out your credit card. Instead, verify the website and double-check the URL. Another tipoff, she explained, is a misspelling in the domain address.

"Sometimes it's a simple two-letter switch that to your eyes seems correct, but that slight little switch makes all the difference to direct you to a fraudulent website as opposed to the legitimate website," Adamany added.

It is important to look for the letter "s" in the address bar when you see the letters "http," which can add some security to the website, Adamany noted. Avoid clicking suspicious links and do not click on links in unsolicited emails, text messages or social media ads. She emphasized the tempting discounted items or limited-time offers can be tactics con artists use to rush shoppers into making an unsafe, impulse purchase.


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While a new ruling by a federal judge allows medical debt to remain on Americans' credit reports, Washington residents will be protected from the practice, under a new law.

Medical debt impacts nearly one third of Washingtonians, while six in 10 residents said they would not be able to pay an unexpected $500 medical bill.

Sen. Marcus Riccelli, D-Spokane, sponsored the bill, which he said could improve someone's credit score by an average of 20 points.

"I think there's just this general understanding that if you wake up and you have a bad day, you end up in the emergency room, that shouldn't impact whether or not you can get a job or get housing," Riccelli explained.

Some lawmakers pushed back against the bill, saying it will give an unclear picture of someone's financial status. The Washington Hospital Association supported the bill, which has been signed into law and will take effect July 27.

The law also bans unauthorized fees, threats of illegal actions and excessive contact by debt collectors. Riccelli argued it is a bipartisan issue, citing research showing the vast majority of Americans want their elected officials to reduce health care costs.

"It's really unfortunate that things seem to be moving in the opposite direction at the national level," Riccelli pointed out. "But in Washington, I'm looking to do what other states have done around cutting costs, providing protections for consumers and providing more transparency in pricing."

Emily Brice, co-executive director of Northwest Health Law Advocates, a nonprofit working to improve access to affordable health care in Washington, said recent moves by Congress will lead to more residents being saddled with medical debt, and the state needs to take more action.

"We are going to need innovative and creative policy solutions and, frankly, state leadership to prevent our health care safety net from being shredded," Brice urged.


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