When Chanse Foster talks to people at flea markets across the Navajo Nation, she leads with one question. And it’s a question that most Americans can’t relate to. 

“Do you guys have electricity at home?” she asks as people stop by the table she has set up. 

She asks that question because an estimated 13,000 homes across the Navajo Nation, which spans more than 27,000 square miles across three states, still lack access to reliable electricity. The homes are not connected to the grid, which means homeowners have to rely on costly generators to keep food cold in the fridge and keep the lights on after dark.

Some use kerosene lamps and even candles for light. Those who can afford the high cost of hooking up to the grid often have to wait up to a decade to connect.

As operations manager at Navajo Power Home, a company that offers off-grid solar systems for the Navajo and Hopi nations, Foster has the ability to help the people living in those homes generate their own electricity. 

“It feels like a dream come true to find a job in my community where I can serve my people and provide something that improves the quality of their life,” Foster said.

Navajo Power Home is using a $5 million Fixed Energy Improvements in Rural Areas Grant from the Department of Energy, funded through the Inflation Reduction Act. That grant funding should allow Navajo Power Home to electrify 1,000 homes by the end of 2025. 

The donation of 1,000 solar panels (from Qcells, a company that manufactures high-performance solar cells) will help Navajo Power Home outfit about 300 homes with solar arrays. That donation was coordinated, in part, thanks to an introduction facilitated by the nonprofit Clean Energy For America Education Fund.

“Solar is a good option for a lot of people out here because it’s fast, it’s easy to set up and it can be set up anywhere,” Foster said. “Our customers live so remote. It’s something that allows us to live our lives in the traditional way and still have the modern convenience of electricity.”

Foster and her colleagues have already installed solar systems at 250 homes, providing electricity to 900 people who previously didn’t have it. Those who connect to solar save between 40% and 60% on their monthly electric costs. Navajo Power Home estimates that homes relying on generators, when run for just five hours a day, five days a week, spend up to $400 per month on diesel fuel. 

A solar system not only reduces costs but also lowers a home’s carbon footprint and offers access to electricity all the time — instead of select hours on select days. For one homeowner, a grandfather who has gone his entire life without electricity, a solar array at his home means his grandkids can have cereal with cold milk before school. 

Along with the financial and environmental benefits, the grant funding is helping  Navajo Power Home to offer clean energy sector jobs to people on the reservation. 

On average, those jobs offer technicians the opportunity to earn salaries that are 33% higher than other jobs in the community. Technicians who install and help maintain the solar systems get the unique opportunity to see a homeowner’s reaction when the lights turn on without the noisy hum of a generator in the background.

Navajo Power Home can prepare people regardless of their previous experience. Foster had no background in business or solar before receiving training from the Navajo Power Home. Now she works in her community, making significant improvements to it. 

“The clean energy sector is a growing industry,” she said. “And, it’s very easy to learn. A lot of solar companies will provide on-the-job training and that’s what we do.”

The Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), passed by the 117th Congress and signed by President Biden is a piece of federal legislation that aims to reduce inflation by lowering the cost of prescription medications, investing in domestic energy production, and promoting clean energy, among other objectives.