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<\/p>\nDear Friends,<\/p>\n
As we close Women\u2019s month, we can’t help but use this issue as an excuse to shine a light on some of the many incredible women in our network. Women like Diana Adams, a job trainee who got 12 interviews from the job fair we held at Solar Power International last year, took an installation job, and then came back to work for GRID. And women like Esmeralda Ramirez, and army veteran who spent 12 years working in fuel security in the Middle East before coming home and finding solar. As we celebrate these women, we also need to reflect on the industry they have chosen to join, and ask ourselves is this a good industry for women to work in?<\/p>\n
Do women feel valued and respected in our industry? Do they see people like them among their peers? Do they have opportunities for advancement? Do they have the resources they need to balance family and work? When GRID launched our National Women in Solar Initiative, in partnership with SunEdison, two years ago this month, we started asking many of these questions both of our own workplace and the industry at large, and inviting the industry to do the same. While the percentage of women working in solar hasn\u2019t changed much since then, something else has. More companies are hiring diversity and inclusion managers and examining workplace culture, women\u2019s professional groups are growing and thriving, and more women are showing up on panel discussions at industry events. There is open and robust conversation in the industry about the need for women\u2019s voices and leadership. This is just the beginning as we work toward true equity in the industry, but it\u2019s a beginning worth celebrating. <\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Tim Sears and Erica Mackie
GRID Alternatives Co-Founders<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
As we close Women\u2019s month, we can’t help but use this issue as an excuse to shine a light on some of the many incredible women in our network. <\/p>","protected":false},"author":0,"featured_media":3485,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[79],"tags":[],"audience":[],"content-type":[12],"focus-area":[],"region":[],"series":[],"content-author":[],"class_list":["post-3484","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-workforce-education","content-type-news"],"acf":{"hero_media_type":"image","hero_media_image":null,"hero_media_url":"","hero_media_poster":null,"hero_video_play":"inline","related_stories":null,"pattern_override":null,"story_callouts":null,"media":null,"featured_blog_post":null,"featured_event":null,"pdf_download":null,"blockquote":null,"author":null,"notice":null,"social_embed":null,"contact_card":null,"meta_details":null,"faq":null,"table":null},"yoast_head":"\n