Awards Committee

InSPIRE (Innovative Solar Practices Integrated with Rural Economies and Ecosystems) is a national agrivoltaics research initiative that unites field research across the United States with advanced modeling and analysis to explore how solar energy and agriculture can thrive together. InSPIRE's work spans grazing, crop production, pollinator habitat, and greenhouse-integrated solar systems. Their suite of free public tools — including an Agrivoltaics Map, Data Portal, Shading Tool, and Financial Calculator — makes it easier than ever to evaluate and act on agrivoltaic opportunities. By convening multi-sector research teams and publishing actionable findings, InSPIRE supports the replication and scaling of agrivoltaics across North America.

Founded in 1980, American Farmland Trust created the conservation agriculture movement and has spent decades speaking up for the land and the people who grow our food. Their Smart Solar℠ initiative addresses one of agrivoltaics' most pressing challenges: ensuring that the massive solar buildout required to meet U.S. energy goals doesn't come at the expense of the nation's best farmland. AFT's approach guides solar development to low-conflict sites, protects soil health where projects do land on agricultural land, and actively promotes agrivoltaics as a path where farming and solar energy production strengthen each other. Their policy work, technical assistance programs, and regional Smart Solar initiatives are helping shape the rules of the road for responsible solar development nationwide.

The American Solar Grazing Association (ASGA) is the leading organization advancing solar grazing as a viable and beneficial practice for both solar operators and agricultural producers. Founded to promote sheep grazing on solar installations, ASGA facilitates research, develops industry best practices, and connects solar developers with experienced graziers. Solar grazing is among the most widely adopted forms of agrivoltaics in North America today — and ASGA has been instrumental in building the knowledge base, networks, and standards that make it work at scale.

Solar Farm Summit (SFS) is an ecosystem dedicated to advancing the thoughtful integration of solar energy, agriculture, and land stewardship. Since launching North America's first dedicated agrivoltaics conference in 2023, SFS has grown into a platform for education, community building, and action — producing regional summits, the Solar Farm Tours program, the Student Design Challenge, and the North American Agrivoltaics Awards. Their highest objective: prove that solar, agriculture, and conservation land uses are not in conflict, and move that idea from conference rooms to fields across the continent.