This episode is part of our Skilled Labor Series hosted by MCJ partner, Yin Lu. This series is focused on amplifying the voices of folks from the skilled labor workforce, including electricians, farmers, ranchers, HVAC installers, and others who are on the front lines of rewiring our infrastructure.

Robert (Bob) Blake is a tribal citizen of the Red Lake Nation, which covers 1200 square miles in northwestern Minnesota. He's the founder, owner and CEO of a solar company called Solar Bear, which has a nonprofit associated with it called Native Sun Community Power Development.

Solar Bear focuses on solar project development and installation for commercial real estate. Whereas Native Sun focuses on workforce development, K-12 education and exploring ways to build infrastructure beyond solar to improve energy reliability on tribal land. Robert believes that the true power of clean energy transition is to tackle multiple systemic issues at once: diminishing poverty and mass incarceration with employment opportunities, strengthening tribal and energy sovereignty by ending a reliance on fossil fuels, and of course, mitigating climate change. 

In this episode, we learn what has shaped Bob’s thinking and why he's so hopeful for the future. 

In this episode, we cover: 

• [02:30]: Introduction to Red Lake Nation and impact of federal policies
• [05:34]: The concept of tribal sovereignty
• [08:05]: Bob's background and racism in Minnesota
• [10:37]: Unique opportunities within tribal nations for innovation and energy sovereignty
• [13:49]: Reversing colonial capitalistic systems
• [15:48]: Origins and overview of Solar Bear
• [20:01]: Examples of Solar Bear's customers
• [23:37]: Solar Bear's nonprofit counterpart, Native Sun Community Power Development
• [25:33]: Working with K-12 and college students 
• [28:57]: Solar workforce development for incarcerated people
• [31:04]: Funding sources for Bob's work
• [34:43]: Policy work and the Tribal Energy Advisory Board 
• [38:48]: Reimagining how energy is distributed in the transition

Resources Mentioned: From Prison to a Career in Solar Sierra Club

Get connected: 

• Robert Blake LinkedIn
• Yin X / LinkedIn
• MCJ Podcast / Collective

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Episode recorded on Jul 5, 2023 (Published on Sep 14, 2023)

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*Editing and post-production work for this episode was provided by The Podcast Consultant