Grand River Group
Eryn H.
Rebecca G.
Tyler G.
What is a Wicked Problem?
A wicked problem is a multidimensional problem with no clear solution. The problem itself is hard to define, there are constant changes, and many unknowns.
Wicked Problem of Energy
The energy crisis we are currently facing is an example of a wicked problem. The sources of energy currently being used are not sustainable as fossil fuels will eventually run out; not to mention it contributes to climate change. However, renewable energy is not always a reliable source and implementing it would be costly. It is an incredibly complex issue involving many stakeholders including energy providers, consumers, environmentalists, and more. These people all have different values therefore different opinions on how to solve this problem. Additionally, getting everybody to agree is a challenge as well being that people have differing values and perspectives.
What's the Issue at Hand?
In Edward Burtynsky's Ted Talk he says, "it is not IF we run out of resources, it's WHEN." He also point out that we need to use our talents and ways of thinking to tackle the energy crisis at hand, which is what we are doing through this project. There is a group of local Natives, the Grand River Bands of Ottawa Indians, who own a multi-purpose building here in Grand Rapids along the Grand River. They are interested in implementing renewable energy but don't really know where to start. That's where we come in!
Implementing Alternative Energy to the Grand River Bands of Ottawa Indians' Building
Our choice for this project revolves around implementing and gathering resources in the form of information, as well as connecting the Grand River Bands to other organizations that may provide help in terms of financing or installing renewable energy for the Bands main building on Front Street in Grand Rapids Michigan. This issue was compelling for us because we value sustainable/alternative energy solutions, especially if it improves the overall heath of the environment and benefits the local tribe and community at large. Our group, the Grand River Group hopes to use our community based project as a means to promote the tribal sovereignty and self-determination of the Grand River Bands, and to enable them to make more informed decisions when is comes to renewable energy development projects.
Our Action Plan & Efforts
Issue Framing
The overall wicked issue we want to highlight is the challenge of integrating renewable energy into the current tribal infrastructure of the Grand River Bands of Ottawa Indians building. Renewable energy is a natural resource that is abundant and regenerative, and we want to assess the possibility and feasibility of capturing that energy with different types of renewable energy systems such as hydropower and solar. By implementing renewable energy, the current tribal infrastructure can be improved and better maintained to provide public safety, security, and economic development for the local Native community at stake.
Our Main Goal: This project will hopefully bring more visibility and public awareness to the disparities facing the local Native community of Grand Rapids when it comes to their representation and participation in environmental programs and projects in the local Grand Rapids community.
Planet
Pros:
Renewable energy such as solar and hydropower are abundant and regenerative.
Hydropower is generated by turbines being moved by free flowing water, this source is both clean and abundant, making it a reliable and efficient resource.
Solar power helps maximize the earth's resources and conserve energy by harnessing sunlight and turning it into electricity. It's clean and produces minimal pollution.
Cons:
Renewable energy is weather dependent.
Hydropower has environmental impact on wildlife, impacting and changing the migration of fish up and down the stream.
Hydropower typically will build a dam to harness the energy of the water. This has the potential to cause problems in the water because it is altering its natural flow.
Triple Bottom Line Analysis
The triple bottom line is a term used in sustainability that equally focuses on how the three elements: social (people), economics (prosperity), and the environment (planet) interact and impact one another. When tackling wicked problems, it's essential to consider how these elements impact one another, both positively and negatively. Our analysis of the triple bottom line reminded us that everything is interrelated through a complex network of activities, resources, and people that are all responsible for providing human sustainability and maintaining a healthy planet. This analysis helped us to weigh our pros and cons of implementing renewable energy and to measure the feasibility of our action plan efforts. People
Pros:
Renewable energy projects contribute to improving environmental impacts such as reduction of carbon dioxide gas and raising community awareness about the wicked problems brought on by climate change.
Jobs will be created for more people if we can shift to using more renewable energy.
Solar power helps the entire grid, not just the person with the solar panels.
Solar power generates little pollution, making it a much cleaner resource than using fossil fuels, thus producing a cleaner quality of air in the region, which ultimately benefits the overall health of the community members.
Implementing renewable energy to an individuals home can give a homeowner more control and understanding of their energy usage.
Cons:
Hydropower can have a large impact on local communities because they not only displace the wildlife, but they also have the potential to displace people due to the construction of a dam.
Profit
Pros:
You can sell solar energy back to the grid at a wholesale price per watt if you have excess energy being collected.
Save money on your monthly energy bill after paying the initial installation cost.
Solar panels can increase the value of a home
Solar panels have a long lifespan
There are federal incentives and rebates (cost savings) for implementing renewable energy.
Cons:
Hydropower is expensive to implement on a large and small scale to existing buildings.
Solar Energy is expensive to initially install and may need to be updated every 18-30 years.
Solar energy doesn't work when the sun is not out or if the panels are not placed optimally.
Progress Report: Our Accomplishments
Past Milestones (What have we accomplished)
We have been in contact with multiple stakeholders dealing with renewable energy.
We have met with Ron Yob, Chairman of the Grand River Bands of Ottawa Indians to gather information on their building and their energy usage.
We collected pictures and measurements of the building and ran a simulation to see if solar would be feasible.
Present Milestones (What are we accomplishing)
We are currently collecting and organizing all of the information we have gathered.
We are currently working on finding a feasible way to implement renewable energy to the bands existing building that is both cost efficient and productive.
Future Milestones (What do we plan to accomplish)
We plan to all meet with Ron and communicate our findings and to discuss the feasibility of implementing solar energy over hydropower.
We plan to communicate our findings with our renewable energy stakeholders to see if they agree with our finally analysis of the building.
The Take Home Message
Concepts Applied
Worked collaboratively - This project was carried out by a group of three people (originally four). We all worked together to frame the issue and attempt to solve it to the best of our ability.
"A group including people who can look at a problem like this in opposite ways is much more likely to come up with innovative solutions than one dependent on a single perspective." - John Fork-Williams
Worked with locals and experts - We got input from our stakeholders as we tried to solve this problem for a local group.
Irvine and Kaplan say in their Coping with Change piece “… one must also take seriously the local human resources that are necessarily part of the solution to a problem. All too often the public is a neglected, or largely untapped, resource. Finding ways to utilize this resource might go a long way toward solving our environmental problems and achieving sustainability.”
Failed forward - As expected, challenges arose. We faced several setbacks but we just reframed the problem, adjusted our ideas, and came up with different solutions.
Our Iterations
We struggled getting quick responses out of our stakeholders which lead to us making some decisions on the fly without expert consultation.
We lost a team member half way through the project. This caused us to have to split up her work load and distribute it amongst ourselves equally.
We had to adjust our focus from implementing hydropower and solar energy to just implementing solar energy after learning hydro electricity is not a good option for a smaller building like the bands.
We learned that even solar power may not be feasible for our site and we are currently working on moving forward with this information.
Two of the action plans we considered before deciding on our current action efforts were, Option 2: A call to action for the city of Grand Rapids to integrate the use of alternative energies in the Grand River as a means to affirm the sovereignty of the Grand River Bands of Ottawa Indians; and Option 3: To collaborate with the Grand Rapids WhiteWater nonprofit organization to learn more about the revitalization and restoration plans of the Grand River and the possibilities of implementing alternative/renewable energy to the Grand River.
Our Stakeholders
Ron Yob (pictured above) is the chairman of the Grand River Bands of Ottawa Indians, a state recognized tribe located in Grand Rapids still fighting for its federal recognition. He was the main stakeholder we collaborated with in our community based engagement project. Ron's view of our team’s wicked problem of implementing alternative energy to the building is that there needs to be more advocacy for tribal nations to be involved in local sustainability projects. Ron plays a very active role in the tribal community and in the community of Grand Rapids, and at the center of all his collaboration work is a focus of raising awareness and advocating for tribal sovereignty and self-determination. He is an integral stakeholder in our project as we are conceptualizing a plan to implement renewable energy into the current tribal infrastructure of the bands building.
Dr. Mehmet Sozen is an engineering professor at Grand Valley State University who is an expert in renewable energy. He explained that they implemented solar power for one of the engineering buildings here at Grand Valley and shared the logistics and results of it. With this information we were able to conclude that implementing solar power in the Band's building would not be economically worthwhile or cost-effective.
Bill Queen is a skilled solar presenter, facilitator, trainer, instructor and course developer. In other words he does it all. We were able to pick his brain and put his 15 years of solar experience to the test. Bill explained the steps needed to install a solar energy system, the different types of solar systems, and how to find the best system for our building. He also showed us how to calculate the energy we would have to produce for the system to be sustainable. We determined with our building's size and location that our site was not feasible for a solar system at this time.
Findings & Future Considerations
Hydropower is not practical for small scale or individual use.
Hydropower installation would likely require a permit with the city.
Solar power is incredibly complex with many variables to consider.
Solar power is not economically worth it for all buildings depending on factors such as electricity use and utility rates.
The engineering building referenced by Dr. Sozen was only yielding about 135 kWh per month.
The Band's building uses over 1000 kWh per month.
Even with grants or funding, solar panels and installation can be costly.
While there is a need to switch to alternative energy sources, it is not always feasible.
We found that community members were more than willing to assist us in our efforts.
We had time constraint issues and did not get to see the project to its full potential.
We still plan to present our findings to Ron.
Tribal Sovereignty and self-determination are still important to us, so as we continue forward in our action efforts, we will still need to consider other ways we can help the Band achieve this.
Sources
Burtynsky, Edward. (2009). Photographing the Landscape of Oil [Video File]. Retrieved from https://www.ted.com/talks/edward_burtynsky_photographing_the_landscape_of_oil?language=en#t-67943
Fork-Williams, John. (n.d.). How Diversity Improves Collaborative Problem-Solving. Cross Collaborate. http://www.crosscollaborate.com/2010/05/diversity-improves-collaborative-problem-solving/
Irvine, K. N., & Kaplan, S. (2001). Coping with Change: The Small Experiment as a Strategic Approach to Environmental Sustainability. Springer-Verlag New York Inc., 28 (6), 713-725.
