Four Winnebago women helped install a solar array to cut their tribe’s electricity costs. Now, Marie Kills Warrior wants to turn that experience into jobs.
“This project has definitely planted the seed for our trainees to pursue solar as a career,” Kills Warrior, a workforce development trainer with nonprofit Tribal Energy Alternatives, told Tribal Business News.
The Winnebago Tribe of Nebraska partnered with the Native-led organization to provide hands-on solar installation training on a project that will cut energy costs at the tribe’s emergency services facility by an estimated $4,900 a year.
The four trainees completed 10-hour Occupational Safety and Health Administration training, earned CPR and first aid certifications.
“Although the project is completed my job is not done,” Kills Warrior said. She plans to help trainees update their resumes and find solar jobs where they can continue developing their technical skills.
The installation was Tribal Energy Alternatives’ first We Build project. Jan Scott, the organization’s construction manager, developed the effort after participating in GRID Alternatives’ We Build projects since 2018, according to a Tribal Energy Alternatives statement.
The project was supported by a $170,720 Tribal Solar Accelerator Fund grant, with additional funding from Google. Project partners did not disclose the total cost of the installation.
The 32.13-kilowatt array consists of 54 panels at the tribe’s fire and emergency medical services facility. Tribal Energy Alternatives said the system is expected to generate about 45 megawatt-hours of electricity annually and reduce electricity costs by an estimated $167,800 over its projected 25-year lifespan.
Tribal Energy Alternatives, a Denver-based Native-led nonprofit, began developing the project with the Winnebago Tribe in 2025. The organization launched that year, bringing together GRID Alternatives’ National Tribal Program and Tribal Solar Accelerator Fund.
Tribal Energy Alternatives estimates that Native women account for less than 1% of the solar workforce. The Winnebago trainees could serve as a resource for the tribe as it pursues future solar projects.
The new system is expected to offset about 746 metric tons of carbon dioxide emissions over its lifetime, according to Tribal Energy Alternatives.
“It was very exciting. I most definitely want to work with solar to learn more about how everything works with energy,” trainee Ravyn Kearnes-Loera said. “I’d say the most challenging part for me was the wiring, but I’ve conquered that aspect and I am more confident.”
