Billy Parish (born September 11, 1981) is an American environmental entrepreneur, author, and activist. He is the co-founder and executive chair of Mosaic Inc., a leading financing platform for U.S. residential solar and sustainable home improvements.[1]
Billy Parish | |
|---|---|
 Billy Parish | |
| Born | Billy Parish September 11, 1981 New York, New York, U.S. |
| Nationality | American |
| Citizenship | United States |
| Alma mater | Yale University, The Mountain School |
| Occupations |
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| Years active | 2003 - present |
| Spouse | Married |
Early life edit
Parish grew up in Manhattan, New York City. His father, a lawyer, specialized in finance for electronic utilities. His mother, also a lawyer, met his father while working on a securitization deal.[2] He spent a semester of high school at The Mountain School in Vermont, where he was turned on to working for the environment.[3] In July 2005 he led a three-day fast in front of the White House to draw attention to the 150,000 deaths caused each year by climate change.[4] He designed his own major in sustainable economic developments at Yale University.[2] However, in 2002, he left Yale University and went on to found the Energy Action Coalition, renamed the Power Shift Network.[5] The Coalition became the largest youth-led clean energy advocacy network in the world, bringing together 50 environmental and social justice groups and over 340,000 members.[6] The coalition raised nearly $10 million in four years and helped more than 600 colleges make commitments to climate neutrality.[6]
In March 2009, the Energy Action Coalition organized Power Shift '09, which brought over 12,000 young people to Washington D.C., for the largest climate-focused training, lobby day and non-violent civil disobedience action in U.S. history. 1Sky states Parish is on the Board of Directors.[5] He is also co-chair of SolarAPP+ and board member and former board chair at The Solutions Project.[7][8]
Career edit
Parish played a leading role in creating the Clean Energy Corps proposal to create 5 million new green jobs in the U.S.,[6] which was incorporated into the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act in 2009. He also helped to expand the AmeriCorps public service program to include a new “Clean Energy Service Corps”.[9] with the idea that crowdfunding could affect a shift to green energy, Parish co-founded Mosaic. At that time, the company allowed individuals to micro invest in community-scale solar projects.[10] In 2014, Parish shifted the company’s focus from crowdfunding to financing for residential solar projects, and in 2018, expanded to sustainable home improvements.[11]
Personal life edit
Billy lives in Washington, D.C., with his wife and two daughters.
Awards and honors edit
- 2017 – Rolling Stone's 25 People Shaping The Future
- 2014 – Fast Company's "20th Most Creative People in Business"
- 2012 – Middlebury College CSE Vision Award[12]
- 2005 – Rolling Stone Magazine "Climate Hero"[13]
- 2004 – Brower Youth Award[14]
Writing edit
Parish has written over 50 articles for publications Inc., The Atlantic, HuffPost, and Grist.
- Making Good: Finding Meaning, Money & Community in a Changing World (ISBN 978-1605290782)
References edit
- ^ Litvak, Nicole. "U.S. Residential Solar Financing 2016-2021". Greentech Media. Retrieved December 1, 2016.
- ^ a b Cardwell, Diane (September 2, 2013). "A Bet on the Environment". The New York Times. Archived from the original on March 20, 2021. Retrieved April 24, 2021.
- ^ "Sprig.com Interview". Archived from the original on January 5, 2009.
- ^ Rolling Stone, November 3, 2005
- ^ a b "Board of directors". 1sky.org. Archived from the original on April 11, 2009.
- ^ a b c Kamenetz, Anya. "Climate Change Power Shift". The Nation.
- ^ "Billy Parish, President of Mosaic". The OGM. September 19, 2013. Retrieved January 5, 2022.
- ^ "Watt It Takes: The Origin Story of Mosaic With Billy Parish". Green Tech Media. Retrieved January 5, 2022.
- ^ Ross, Alice (November 9, 2020). "Green entrepreneurs look to make money and a difference". Financial Times. Archived from the original on February 12, 2021. Retrieved April 24, 2021.
- ^ "The Fossil Fuel Resistance: Meet the New Green Heroes". Rolling Stone. April 11, 2013. Archived from the original on January 25, 2021. Retrieved April 24, 2021.
- ^ "Mosaic, Freedom Forever Partner on Residential Solar Financing". Solar Industry magazine. February 18, 2021. Retrieved January 5, 2022.
- ^ Vision Award | Center for Social Entrepreneurship. Middlebury.edu (2015-08-13). Retrieved on 2015-08-13.
- ^ Cohan, Ellen (March 3, 2015). "Billy Parish". Climate One. Retrieved July 1, 2020.
- ^ "New Leaders Initiative 2004 Award Winners" Archived July 25, 2011, at the Wayback Machine, Earth Island Institute. Retrieved 29 December 2010.