How To Volunteer | Group Projects | Team Leaders | Upcoming Events | SOLARTHON

How To Volunteer

Volunteer Application now available online

Reserve your spot on the volunteer installation crew
Help make the benefits of solar power accessible to low-income families while learning new skills and having fun outside. Gain hands-on solar experience and network with others interested in renewable energy, the environment, and our communities. Best of all, there’s no experience, special skills, or tools needed.

Sign up for our volunteer opportunities email list.

Enter your contact information to the right under “Get Involved”. We send out monthly emails with information about upcoming volunteer opportunities and orientation session dates – reply to the email to sign up. You can also click here for our events calendar. The calendar is typically updated during the first week of the month with confirmed opportunities and periodically updated throughout the month as events are planned. Please stay posted!

Complete and sign an online volunteer application. We encourage you to get your volunteer application in as soon as possible so we have your information on file.

Receive confirmation for your orientation, training, or installation date after you sign up. Please note: YOU MUST ATTEND A VOLUNTEER ORIENTATION BEFORE ATTENDING AN INSTALLATION.

Please note that we have thousands of interested volunteers and it is common to be waitlisted 2-3 times for an event.

Frequently Asked Questions

Time Commitment:	1-2 days, 8:30AM-4:30PM with a break for lunch. Installations are typically 2-day installations on weekends. You can volunteer for one or both days.
# of Volunteers Needed:	For safety and workflow reasons, each site can accommodate 10-15 volunteers each day. Spots fill up quickly with consideration for previously waitlisted and local volunteers and participants in job training programs. We have many installations planned for the year so please continue to check our calendar. We encourage local volunteer attendance at our events and cannot guarantee confirmation to individuals traveling long distances. We also cannot provide lodging assistance.
Qualifications:	No experience or tools necessary! Each team is led by an experienced volunteer Team Leader, and each installation is managed by an on-staff Construction Manager. Moderate lifting (20 lbs.) may be involved. As GRID Alternatives policy, all modules and inverters must be carried by at least 2 people at all times. If you are uncomfortable with heights or ladders, ground work is available.
Age Requirement:	18+ (In some cases, we can accommodate 16-17 year-olds with written parental consent. Please contact us for more information.)
Training Provided:	All volunteers are required to attend one 3-hour orientation session which covers basic solar electric concepts and a review of the installation process with a focus on safety. The orientation is not intended to be a technical training on system design. Once you have attended an orientation, you may sign up for as many installations as you like. You must receive confirmation for all installation dates. Translation can be made available upon request.
Comments:	GRID Alternatives is both a nonprofit organization and a licensed California C-10 electrical contractor. All volunteers must sign a waiver onsite at the installation.
Other Information:	When you are waitlisted for an event it does not carry over to future events. You must send a new request each time you want to attend something. For example: if you request a seat at a mandatory volunteer training in April and are waitlisted, you are NOT automatically put on a list for the next volunteer orientation. When the next orientation is announced, you must send another request for a spot.

How To Volunteer

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