Renewable Energy Initiative
Our History
Wintergreen Renewable Energy Co-op (WGC) was created in 2012 in response to the growing climate and economic crises, and operated until 2020. The Co-op was comprised of a group of local farmers, green energy advocates, and community members who shared the common goal of ensuring a sustainable energy future for the region by building community power. The Co-op was a locally based, community owned co-operative, helping to fight climate change by developing and investing in community-based renewable energy projects, envisioning a region where our energy needs could be met through renewable and clean energy technologies.
The first discussions about the Co-op were held at Wintergreen Studios in 2010, when the Wintergreen Renewable Energy Initiative was formed. And so, it now comes full circle. With the dissolution of the Co-op at a time when the province was no longer supporting renewable energy installations, the Co-op returned to its Wintergreen Studios roots.
Community ownership and participation provided the foundation for all WGC projects, and these values now continue in its new embodiment as the Renewable Energy Initiative under the umbrella organization of Wintergreen Studios.
Our Projects
Abbey Dawn Road
It was a dreary Sunday afternoon, but a crowd of people assembled to see the new solar installation at Abbey Dawn Road in June 2017. Even with the clouds, we could see and hear the Morgan tracking system at work. Mike Brigham, President of SolarShare was there to answer questions posed by the public. Tori Stafford from Kingston’s Whig Standard covered the event.
SolarShare
In the spirit of co-operation among co-ops, Wintergreen and SolarShare worked together for many years to develop solar projects in the Kingston area. Members of both Co-ops were invited to invest in SolarShare for projects that were already operational, making it easy for Ontario investors to earn a reasonable return while doing something positive for the planet. Click here for information on SolarShare projects that are already built and producing stable revenue streams.
SolarShare projects convert energy from the sun into electricity. 20-year contracts with the provincial government pay for the electricity produced, and SolarShare pays it back to investors in the form of 5% Solar Bonds. SolarShare shares our passion for bringing everyone in Ontario on board with renewable energy, ending our reliance on climate damaging energy sources.
Community Outreach
The Co-op organized and took part in many community events in Kingston, South Frontenac, and at Wintergreen Studios itself, where annual Green Energy retreats have taken place annually since 2010. These educational outreach events will continue under the Renewable Energy Initiative umbrella. In addition to continuing to host the Annual Green Energy Retreat, Wintergreen Studios will offer workshops in Westport, Sydenham, Kingston, and beyond.
Our Directors
David Hahn
President and Founding Director (2012-2020), David has been a champion of renewable energy for 40 years. He built his own highly insulated passive solar home when he and his family moved to Bedford Township in the 1980s. He now owns a 10 KW solar photovoltaic grid tied system under the MicroFit program. David’s greatest passions center around community involvement in all its manifestations – culture, education, renewable energy, and locally produced food. David continues as an advisor for the Renewable Energy Initiative.
Wolfe Erlichman
Wolfe Erlichman, Secretary-Treasurer and Founding Director (2012-2020), is retired and lives on a farm with a 10 KWH Micro-Fit solar installation in South Frontenac. Wolfe has a Masters of Social Work specializing in community work (U of T, ‘68), and worked as a planner for the City of Toronto in the late 70s. Wolfe also owned and ran a printing business in Toronto, and helped start a retail food co-operative.
Rena Upitis
Queen’s Professor Emerita Rena Upitis (Founding Director, 2012-2020) designed and now manages Wintergreen Studios. Educated at Queen’s and Harvard, Rena became interested in sustainable building practices as a post-doctoral candidate at MIT in the mid-1980s. A passion for renewable energy followed; for the past 20 years, she has been designing structures that encompass green building techniques and green energy.
Wayne Miles
Wayne served as Vice-President and was a Founding Director (2012-2018). He is the former Director of Queen’s University International Centre (QUIC) in Kingston, Ontario. For over four decades, Wayne focused his energies on working in the field of international and intercultural education. This journey has taken Wayne away from Kingston to live for extended periods in Japan, England, Zambia, and Indonesia. Currently Wayne sits on the Board of the Buck Lake Association as the Chair of the Friends of the Lake Committee.
Dave Jackson
Dave Jackson, Founding Director (2012-2018) was an affordable housing developer based in Kingston. He developed over 1000 units of co-operative housing, and served as the President of the Kingston Not-for-Profit Housing Association. In Dec. 2011 he was elected as Chair of the City of Kingston Housing and Homelessness Advisory Committee. Dave was a Trustee of the Limestone District School Board for Portsmouth and Trillium Districts, and a research lead for the Social Planning Council of Kingston and District. Dave Jackson served on the Board until his untimely death in April of 2018.
Brian Killins & Stephen Abbott
Brian Killins joined the Board as a Director in 2018 and Stephen Abbot became a Director in 2019. Both Brian and Stephen were active members of the Wintergreen Renewable Energy Co-operative (see above!), and joined the Board as we began to navigate towards a new future for renewable energy in the region.
Our Advisors
Justin Connidis
Justin Connidis served as an advisor to the Wintergreen Renewable Energy Co-operative from its inception (2012-2020). Justin is Counsel to Dickinson Wright LLP (Toronto office) and an Adjunct Professor at Queen’s University. He practices business law with an emphasis on corporate governance, mergers and acquisitions, financing and restructurings, and mining law, policy and communities. Justin also serves on the executive of Bedford Mining Alert. Justin and his wife, Julia McArthur, reside in Kingston and have a managed forest and recreational property, including a cordwood hut, a mere stone’s throw across Canoe Lake from Wintergreen Studios.
Kristina Inrig
Kristina is a graduate from Carleton University with a BPAPM – Bach. of Public Affairs and Policy Management in Development Studies. She is the President & CEO of Sustainable Foundations Inc, a green real estate investment firm in Eastern Ontario. Her focus is developing green rental properties and providing sustainable investing opportunities. Kristina also provides extensive consultation services in the environmental non-profit sector, and was the past Executive Director of Tucker House Renewal Centre. She was an advisor to the Coop from the very beginning (2012-2020) and often helped organize the Annual Green Energy Retreats.
Steve Lapp
In 1985 Steve graduated with a Masters in Engineering specializing in solar thermal technologies. Since that time he has worked for several large corporations in researching applications of alternative energy systems. Transit vehicles, fuel cell battery hybrid vehicles, solar photovoltaics and solar cookers, and PV system design in Canada have been his passions for over 25 years. After developing the Energy Systems Engineering Technologist program at St. Lawrence College in 2005, Steve taught in the program until his retirement in 2018. Steve was one of the original members of the Renewable Energy Initiative.
Paul McKay
Advisor to the Renewable Energy Coop and friend of Wintergreen Studios, Paul McKay has won Canada’s top award for investigative reporting, feature and business writing several times. He is the author of four published books, including Atomic Accomplice: How Canada Deals in Deadly Deceit. He was the Toronto Star-sponsored Atkinson Fellowship in Public Policy recipient in 1990, and the Pierre Berton writer-in-residence in 2005. His writing has appeared in the Toronto Star, Globe and Mail, Ottawa Citizen, Kingston Whig-Standard, Harrowsmith Magazine, and Maclean’s Magazine. With a special expertise in energy/environment issues, he has also served as a senior policy adviser to the Ontario Minister of Energy; and is a past director of the Ontario Sustainable Energy Association and the Independent Power Producers Society of Ontario.
Roger Peters
Roger Peters was President of the Ottawa Renewable Energy Co-op (OREC) and was responsible for preparing the co-operative’s first share offering statement. He was a founding board member of the Canadian Renewable Energy Alliance and a volunteer with Ecology Ottawa on local energy efficiency and renewable energy issues. Roger is a professional engineer and has worked in the renewable energy field for over 30 years in Canada and internationally as a consultant, policy analyst, researcher, and writer. Roger served as an advisor to the Coop in the first few years of its existence (2012-2016).
