The City of Sarasota is moving forward to meet its goal of 100 percent renewable energy generation by 2045. In collaboration with the Sierra Club, the Race to Zero campaign and the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE)'s National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), Sarasota is embarking on a deep energy analysis to identify how to create a more affordable and equitable clean energy future by incorporating renewable energy technologies, reducing energy consumption and eliminating fossil fuel dependence.

To inform its decision making, Sarasota is tapping into publicly available data from two online tools developed by DOE and NREL: the State and Local Planning for Energy (SLOPE) Platform and the Low-Income Energy Affordability Data (LEAD) Tool. NREL will use these data-driven tools to create customized analyses that can inform decisions and help the city reach its clean energy goals.

More than 180 cities, 10 counties, and eight states across the country have goals to power their communities with 100 percent clean, renewable energy. The National Sierra Club has designated the state of Florida as a high priority in the campaign to move to 100% percent clean renewable power.