Native American communities have long been challenged by inequitable energy access. About 10% of the Navajo (Dine) Nation reservation-covering parts of northeastern Arizona, northwestern New Mexico and southeastern Utah-lacks access to electricity, while 40% doesn't have access to running water, according to a 2019 story on NPR. Bringing energy to reservations can be difficult. They are often located in rural areas far from grid access and span over vast distances, and Native communities often lack financial resources to become connected to the electric grid. Many young people move off reservations to find job security and economic opportunity. Over the years, several programs and nonprofits have aimed to increase energy access on reservations, sometimes through renewable energy. Off-grid solar industry programs have not always worked as intended-solar systems break down and are expensive to fix, AC systems require lead-acid batteries that sometimes only last a few years and "broken and abandoned solar junk is scattered across the reservation," according to Living Energy Farm (LEF), an intentional community and environmental education center located in Louisa, Va., founded by Alexis Zeigler and Debbie Piesen.
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