ATLANTA — Atlanta is partnering with Decatur, Savannah and Georgia Tech universities to win a competition to come up with clean energy solutions for their communities.
channel 2's richard elliott Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm visited the university Thursday morning and announced that Atlanta University was one of the 40 finalists, according to a Thursday report.
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All they have to do is basically invent a better light bulb with clean energy.
They're in a clean energy race with $20 million at stake. The competition focuses on solutions such as micro power grids, virtual power grids, and utility-scale solar power generation.
Atlanta Mayor Andre Dickens joked with Granholm, who presented at Georgia Tech.
“Energy is rising, and I'm standing next to the Secretary of Energy. Things aren't getting much better,” Dickens said.
Each will receive $500,000 to find community-based clean energy solutions.
“We wanted to give them the opportunity to design the energy future they think they want and make it happen from the bottom up,” Granholm said.
Granholm toured some of Georgia Tech's labs Friday to learn more about what Georgia Tech can do to help Atlanta.
Representative Nikema Williams pointed out that this is not the government coming to tell communities what to do. Rather, she said, people in these communities will tell the government what they need and want.
And in some cases, how to do it.
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“The city of Atlanta is going to win one of these large grants, so we're excited to look to the future and see what voters come up with,” Williams said.
Mayor Dickens is a Georgia Tech graduate, so he's actively working to stay ahead of the competition. And more importantly, let's see what people in Atlanta and other cities come up with.
“The people of Atlanta, like other communities, want to make sure that their energy burden is reduced and their utility bills are reduced,” Dickens said.
The Department of Energy could select finalists by the end of the summer.
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