Published

1 year ago

June 8, 2024

Alice Rush

On Earth Day last month, SACE and EVNoire, united in helping to craft a more just and dynamic electric e-mobility future, came out to support an event orchestrated by SOWEGA Rising in Albany, Georgia. “Tech Flex Innovation Earth Day” was a great opportunity to celebrate Earth Day and the future of technology grounded in innovation, sustainability, and ingenuity.

Left to Right: Chris Heron of EVNoire, Aunquarius Brown of SOWEGA Rising, Sherrell Byrd of SOWEGA Rising, and Madelyn Collins of Southern Alliance for Clean Energy

SOWEGA Rising is the newest project partner to join Electric Black Futures, an exciting project SACE and our partners EVNoire and Clean Cities Georgia recently launched to advance equitable access to electric vehicles (EVs), infrastructure, and jobs in underserved communities in Georgia. With funding from the U.S. Department of Energy over the next three years, we will join multiple local partners to support Black communities and shape the e-mobility landscape in Albany, Savannah, and Atlanta. SOWEGA Rising will spearhead efforts to ensure seamless communication and engagement within Albany communities. SOWEGA is also co-leading the creation of a community-centered strategic plan to align federal electric transportation funding with community mobility needs and priorities in Albany.

Pictured: Joshua Anthony, 21-year-old student at Georgia State University and recent candidate for Georgia’s 153rd House District seat

The Electric Black Futures team was also delighted to meet a few community champions at the event. These leaders are already carving out a greener, more just future. One of these trailblazers, Joshua Anthony, came by the Electric Black Futures table to share his innovative transportation vision for Albany. Anthony is a 21-year-old student at Georgia State University who recently ran for a seat in the Georgia House, seeking to represent Georgia’s 153rd House District, which includes downtown Albany. He is a local Albany descendant who has big dreams of growing and nourishing his hometown, and is determined to manifest the future he envisions.

Joshua shared his five-year revitalization plan, which includes building an electric light rail system to connect his hometown with other Southwest Georgia cities. He explained how Albany once had a goal to be the railroad hub of Southwest Georgia, but this priority became neglected as time passed. Joshua is determined to resurrect and implement this historic Albany dream:

“The goal of a light rail would be to connect our southern hub of communities in tandem with Albany, bolstering our economic power across southwest [Georgia].”

Anthony imagines a clean transportation future that doesn’t leave the people of his town scrambling to find a ride, one that taps into the increased economic and social opportunities that come with better connectivity and transportation systems. This light rail project could be a vital alternative to the Greyhound and transit buses currently running in Albany, especially considering recent transportation hardships the community members have face and the shortage of bus drivers.

Left to right: Dory Larson and Madelyn Collins of SACE tabling, community members of Albany checking out electric vehicles

The Earth Day event was held outside the Thronkeesta Heritage Center, which sits on the last remaining brick street in the city in Albany. The term “thronateeska,” derived from the Muskogee Creek language, is often translated as “place of flint gathering.” The Lower Muskogee Creek Tribe, located east of the Mississippi River, has its headquarters at Tama Tribal Town in Whigham, Georgia, about 60 miles south of Albany. “Thronateeska” refers to the area covering present-day Albany and the Flint River in Southwest Georgia.

In 1974, concerned citizens spearheaded the revitalization of Albany’s historic downtown railroad depot area and created the Thronateeska Heritage Foundation, Inc. Today, Thronateeska’s Heritage Plaza houses the Science Museum, Wetherbee Planetarium, and History Museum. This location was the perfect backdrop for SOWEGA Rising to host this Earth Day event, which was a beautiful convergence of the innovations of the past, present, and future.

Sustainable technology and its beneficial impact on communities like Albany was the central theme of the event. Community members had chances to experience advancements in e-mobility, as well as cyber security, drone technology, health, gaming, robotics, and more. SACE and EVNoire provided education and hands-on experiences, allowing participants to drive cutting-edge EVs. While riding along in the EVs and talking to folks at the event, SACE and EVNoire listened to participants’ stories of community innovation and their visions for a desirable electric mobility future!

Video: SOWEGA Rising’s CUE Coordinator Aunquarius Brown taking his first test drive in an EV

In addition to test drives, SACE and EVNoire offered education to build community awareness about different avenues available for education and career paths in the field of e-mobility, including horizon opportunities to participate in Electric Black Futures’ project work for futurescoping development of e-mobility technology in their communities.

For many in Albany, this was a first encounter with electric vehicles, and the experience opened eyes to the possibilities of how innovations in transportation can intersect with community needs to foster social connectivity, recreation, and leisure – to reduce transportation barriers and promote a clean, accessible multimodal system that centers social inclusion. It was also a chance for community members to learn about workforce and career growth opportunities in the e-mobility field, such as the Electric Vehicle Fundamentals (EVF) program at Albany Technical College, facilitated by another Electric Black Futures project partner, the Technical College System of Georgia (TCSG). Albany Technical College is one of the many colleges in the TCSG system to provide a low-cost, non-college degree pathway for EVF to prepare students for the certification test necessary to embark on a career as an SME-EV entry-level worker and to access advanced manufacturing career pathways.

“It’s unlocking possibilities and unleashing potential! Tech Flex Innovation Earth Day brought innovation to life. Many organizations joined us for a day of inspiration and collaboration in environmental and climate justice and creativity as we explored the latest technologies and trends shaping our future here in southwest Georgia!” – Aunquarius Brown, SOWEGA Rising’s Climate, Utilities, and Environmental Justice Coordinator and lead for Electric Black Futures’ Albany community liaison work

The Electric Black Futures team left the event inspired, informed, and equipped with a newfound understanding of ways this project can use its bandwidth and connections to collaboratively empower and futurebuild within Black communities in Georgia so that they have the tools and knowledge needed to build an e-mobility future that reflects their visions and needs.

Electric Black Futures is a collaborative program between Southern Alliance for Clean Energy, EVNoire, and Clean Cities Georgia, committed to invigorating e-mobility leadership and job opportunities in Black communities in Atlanta, Savannah, and Albany, Georgia. By centering communities’ knowledge, vision, culture, and imagination, this project aims to put more Black hands at the helm of driving the direction and crafting the electric future. To learn more, visit the Electric Black Futures website, sign up for email updates, or email info@electricblackfutures.org.

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The post Electric Black Futures Partners Celebrate Earth Day and the Rich Heritage – and Future – of Albany appeared first on SACE | Southern Alliance for Clean Energy.

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Renewable Energy

Trump Runs into Trouble with U.S. Farmers–But How MUCH Trouble?

Published

9 hours ago

October 25, 2025

Alice Rush

This from the pro-democracy Lincoln Project, with a few comments below:

First, Trump screwed over American soybean farmers with his pointless trade war with China.

Now, Trump’s screwing over American ranchers by promising to import millions of dollars of Argentinian beef.

Trump hates America’s farmers.

Betrayal really is the right word.

Don’t forget, Trump won 93% of rural areas less than a year ago. Farmers voted for this guy because they thought he would have their back. But since coming into office, all Trump has done is screw them over. We’re not surprised.

But now’s not the time to say “ha, ha, I told you so!” – even though that’s kind of our jam.

Now, we need to reach out to the Americans Trump lied to. Show them they’re not better off. And show them the way forward is kicking this liar and his enablers out of office. Their costs are going up, too.

Trump’s bottom line is… well, the bottom’s falling out. If Trump wants his party to even have a prayer at keeping their majorities, he needs to carry the rural vote. And from what it looks like now, the rural vote is about ready to turn on the party they supported in the last cycle.

A few points.

1) Trump doesn’t “hate” farmers, any more than he hates real estate agents or pastry chefs. One thing we have learned about Trump over the years is that everything and everyone in his life is a transaction. If someone can do something good for him in terms of wealth and/or power, he’s a friend. For now.

The only people he “hates” are people who never, under any circumstances, are in a position to help him. That’s why he said the other day, “I hate Democrats,” meaning those people who support preserving democracy and rule of law, while repelling fascism.

2) I’m sure that farmers are keenly aware that Trump’s tariffs have hurt them; they don’t need to be told this. I know tons of these people, and they’re very good at basic math in terms of tons/acre, dollars/ton, etc.

3) Not only are farmers aware of the fact that Trump’s tariffs have begun to hurt them financially, but they are also upset. I use the word “begun” because the real economic damage that tariffs create emerges over a period of years, not weeks or months.

4) Let’s consider for a moment the mindset of the typical American farmer. Sure, financial success is important but so are (in most cases) extreme conservative values.

A few years ago, my brother told me, speaking about someone we both know well, “He’d vote for an orangutan before he’d vote to Hillary Clinton.”

In any case, good for the Lincoln Project for doing what they can to help the United States climb out of the pit into which it’s fallen.

Trump Runs into Trouble with U.S. Farmers–But How MUCH Trouble?

Renewable Energy

Is Trump Poised to Announce Victory over the American People?

Published

10 hours ago

October 25, 2025

Alice Rush

I have a very good friend who’s about my age, i.e., getting old, who writes:

We the People either find a way to break Trump’s party’s grip on the wheel, or we go down with the ship….Like many of our older citizens, I’ve been fighting against this evil current for decades, and with many in later generations who’ve also been waking up and grabbing oars, I still hope we may together turn the tide.

In many, probably hundreds of talks we’ve had on this and related subjects, you’ve always been the more optimistic one. And that’s a good thing, as pessimism is a self-fulfilling prophesy.

I agree that there are scenarios under which Trump is removed from office before our nation becomes another Russia. Yet my imagination is running thin, as each day we have an event that boggles the mind: he did WHAT to the East Wing of the White House?

Does Washington D.C. need a new ballroom? Our course not. Trump has a need, however, and that is to show the American people that, to use my favorite French expression: les carottes sont cuites, i.e. “the carrots are cooked,” a metaphor for “the dinner I’ve made is a disaster and it’s too late to save it.”

Most of what he does on a daily basic is patently illegal, and, while small acts, like executing a few Venezuelans on the high seas with no proof of guilt of a crime may seem trivial, what they really mean is this: “Obviously I know that this clearly violates both domestic and international law. That’s the whole point. I can do anything I want, and no one can stop me.”