with Brett Isaac, Navajo Power
Ep. #231 of The Social Entrepreneurship & Innovation Podcast
Brett Isaac is a renewable energy entrepreneur, business strategist, and the Founder and Co-CEO at Navajo Power, a native-owned public benefit corporation that develops utility-scale clean energy projects on tribal lands and maximizes the benefits for the local communities.
Navajo Power has the vision to bring clean energy to communities in a different way. They work intentionally to bring and maintain power to households with sustainable, clean energy. To date, they have deployed over 200 off-grid solar systems to serve households without grid electricity.
Brett is a member of the Navajo Nation and a skilled communicator who has worked with and collaborated with the local community to have an equitable and sustainable clean energy transition.
After Brett came home from college, his community decided it was time to start a transition. They chose Brett to help build a company that provides clean energy, benefits the livelihood of the local community, and lessens the impact of climate change.
In this episode, Cory and Brett talk about making a transition to clean and equitable energy. Brett shares his foundational interest in power, particularly in clean energy, the struggles making the transition, the issues of equity, power structure and system, and the impact of the transition on the livelihood and welfare of the local community.
The full transcript for this episode and more can be found at SocialEntrepreneurship.FM/231.
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“One piece of advice that always sticks out to me that a really seasoned developer said, is, ‘projects will die 1000 times before they succeed, so don’t lose hope when things look a little bleak or tough.’ And, you know, there’s a discipline to what we’re doing to contribute to the transition, and staying the course is about just having faith when it’s dark, and also celebrating our wins when we get them. We need to be appreciative of how far we’ve come as well as optimistic about how far we can go.”
— Brett Isaac, Navajo Power
Watch/Listen:
Links & Resources Mentioned
- Brett Isaac on LinkedIn
- Navajo Power on Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram, Facebook
- Jonathan Nez, Navajo Nation President
- Dan Rosen on LinkedIn
- Mosaic
- Danny Kennedy on LinkedIn
- New Energy Nexus
- Blood and Thunder: An Epic of the American West by Hampton Sides
- The Better World Weekly Newsletter
- Become a Sponsor
- Cory Ames on LinkedIn and Twitter
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- (Article) How Does Solar Energy Work? Your Step-by-Step to Understanding Solar
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- (Article) How to Save Energy at Home (in 2021): 14 Ways to Conserve Energy
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About the Host

Cory Ames
Co-Founder & CEO, Grow Ensemble
Cory is the host of The Social Entrepreneurship & Innovation Podcast, where he’s interviewed well over 150 leaders in the space of better business, social impact, and innovation. Prior to Grow Ensemble, Cory was the CEO of a digital marketing agency, a position he earned at the age of 22. There, he became an expert on all things digital marketing & SEO.
Cory Co-Founded Grow Ensemble as a vehicle to raise awareness of and inspire action around some of the world’s biggest problems and problem solvers.
He blogs, podcasts, and publishes video on all things leaving the world a better, more just, equitable, and habitable place for all.
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