Clean Energy
Planet Reimagined’s Common Grounds Initiative seeks to develop co-located renewable energy resources on public lands actively being used for fossil fuel production. Twenty-three million acres of federal land is currently leased for oil and gas production and exploration, a large percentage of which is located in areas with high potential for renewable energy generation. Through co-location - the mixed use of one unit of land for multiple productive purposes - the Common Grounds team is working to encourage land-sharing between existing fossil fuel lease lands and clean energy projects in order to increase the number of renewable energy projects on public lands, revitalize energy communities through reinvestment, and reduce energy related emissions.
The 2025 energy fellowship contributions will focus on producing action research in support of the Common Grounds mission in the United States and internationally. Energy fellows will perform research and advocacy on one of the two areas described below:
Workforce Development: Strategies to Create Clean Energy Jobs
Fellows will review workforce development initiatives as they relate to decarbonization, energy equity, and environmental justice with a specific focus on the U.S. intermountain west. Through action research, fellows will contribute to the Common Grounds initiative by identifying opportunities to support skills training, education, and professional advancement for workers within the renewable energy sector and work together to determine how workforce development models in energy communities can be incorporated into Common Grounds projects. Through advocacy and outreach, fellows will build and nurture relationships with clean energy and workforce development stakeholders throughout the United States such as GRID Alternatives, Interstate Renewable Energy Council, and Center for Energy Workforce Development. Additionally, fellows will create public facing content, using storytelling as an element of action research to create a broader constituency for siting renewable resources on state and federal lands, to strengthen support for renewable workforce development initiatives, and to disseminate information on policy and programmatic efforts aimed at expanding the accessibility of workforce training opportunities.
Additional eligibility requirements:
Workforce Development Fellows must be U.S. citizens or have permission to work in the U.S.
Education or experience with research projects in workforce development and renewable energy is preferred. An understanding of U.S. based energy markets is required.
The fellowship is primarily virtual. Optional travel may include invitations to attend in-person meetings or events.
Global Common Grounds: Co-Locating Clean Energy on Fossil Fuel Lands in The Middle East and South America
Fellows will review the renewable energy development potential on previously contaminated or disturbed lands in the Middle East and South America. Through action research, fellows will contribute to the Common Grounds initiative by identifying opportunities to support renewable energy adoption and encourage the repurposing of disturbed lands - previously degraded from fossil fuel extraction - for clean energy production. Research questions will include the following:
What is the available land associated with abandoned or current fossil fuel infrastructure?
What private and public sector stakeholders are actively involved in the reclamation and remediation of previously disturbed lands?
What are the unique policies/regulations that would affect the ability to co-locate solar or wind with abandoned fossil fuel infrastructure?
Through advocacy and outreach, fellows will build and nurture relationships with energy, land management, policy, and research stakeholders in their assigned region. Additionally, fellows will create public facing content to strengthen support for renewable energy development initiatives and disseminate information on policy and programmatic efforts aimed at accelerating the adoption of clean energy resources.
Additional eligibility requirements:
Education or experience with research projects in renewable energy development is preferred. An understanding of energy markets outside of the United States is required.
The fellowship is primarily virtual. Optional travel may include invitations to attend in-person meetings or events.