Cluster 🌐 Microgrids & DERs: Democratizing the Microgrid — How Open Technology is Rewriting Energy Access
Energy access is a solvable problem, but the tools to solve it have been locked behind proprietary systems, donor dependency, and bespoke black-box solutions that collapse when the funding runs out.
Arila Barnes, energy technology leader and founder of Energy IoT Open Source (EIOT), makes the case for a different model: open, turn-key microgrid systems that communities can deploy, own, and evolve on their own terms. Drawing on hardware pilots, open standards like MQTT and SunSpec Modbus, and a cooperative cloud architecture, EIOT is building the "Lego blocks" of community energy, from rural Cameroon to urban Netherlands.
With 160,000 mini-grids still needed across Africa alone and a $91B capital gap to close by 2030, the stakes couldn't be higher. This session explores how open-source innovation can slash costs, eliminate stranded assets, and transfer real technical ownership to local communities, starting now.
Speaker: Arila Barnes, Energy IoT Open Source
Arila Barnes is a creative technology leader and climate tech angel investor with deep expertise in enterprise architecture, cloud computing, and Industrial IoT. She is the Founder and CEO of Energy IoT Open Source, a nonprofit accelerating micro-utilities worldwide through open source hardware and software solutions. With a career spanning GE Renewables, Standard Industries, and Utilidata, Arila has led cloud transformation, ML/AI platforms, and software product innovation at scale. She holds an M.S. in Software Engineering from the University of Scranton and is a certified Google Cloud ML practitioner. Arila is passionate about democratizing clean energy technology and building the next generation of climate tech talent.
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This ongoing series blends short talks, project shares, and group discussions with plenty of time to connect. Sessions vary each time, and are facilitated by Eric Bastoul and Liam O'Brien.
Here’s a typical flow:
Mingling, Name Tags + Snacks
Welcome + Intros
30 min talk (topic varies each session)
🛠️ Small Group Chats – what technologies are you experimenting with? Where are you getting stuck? What trends or partnerships are you tracking?
Open Networking to help connect participants with shared interests
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This is a 🌐 9Zero Cluster Meetup, topic-specific groups led by subject matter experts. With in-person meetups and online tools, they help 9Zero members meet others in their area of interest.