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New Clean Energy Technology and Education Initiative Launches in Wilmington

We’re excited to announce the launch of Energize The Warehouse, a collaborative program to help The Warehouse become a place for local teens to learn about clean energy, electric transportation, and sustainable farming and agriculture. To kick off this initiative, The Warehouse recently installed an agricultural pod (Ag Pod), which will provide a sustainable year-round indoor vertical growing environment for fruits and vegetables.

Teens from The Warehouse will manage and operate the Ag Pod, receiving guidance and agricultural assistance from Second Chances Farm. The teens will grow and harvest local vegetables year-round, maintaining a sustainable food operation for residents and the local community. Future plans for the produce include making food donations to local grocers, participating in nearby farmers markets, and using the vegetables for educational cooking demonstrations at The Warehouse.

The Ag Pod is the first in a series of three clean energy projects. The second project will install solar panels and a battery storage system that provides clean solar energy and helps The Warehouse save money on energy costs. The third project involves a vehicle-to-grid bus that replaces the facility’s older diesel school bus with an all-electric, zero emissions bus—providing a cleaner transportation option and making it easier for community members to access The Warehouse, Kingswood Community Center and REACH Riverside.

We’re helping to fund, energize and operate the Ag Pod and other Energize The Warehouse projects as part of our efforts to work with organizations in Wilmington to demonstrate how new technologies and services can improve quality of life in the community.

These particular technologies offer solutions to some of the challenges the Wilmington communities face and provide hands-on-learning opportunities to local teens—helping them become the energy leaders of tomorrow.