The Solar Greenhouse Outreach Program: A Compendium of Hands-On Solar Workshop Experiences, Final Report

The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Rural Development Service (RDS) Solar Greenhouse Outreach Program was designed to expand the solar greenhouse concept through the format of “hands-on” workshops developed in New Mexico by the Solar Sustenance Project. The primary goals of the program were: 1) Work through existing’ public sector agencies to train housing and winterization crews in the design and construction of solar greenhouses. 2) Determine if the techniques proven to work in the western United States would meet with the same degree of participation and enthusiasm in other parts of the country. 3) Obtain hard data on greenhouse performance from various climatic zones. Five sites were chosen: 1) Community Action of the Cape - Hyannis, Massachusetts. 2) Monticello Community Action Agency - Charlottesville, Virginia. 3) Murray State University, Center for Regional Services - Murray, Kentucky. 4) Low Income Housing Development Corporation - Durham, North Carolina. 5) Department of Local Services - Little Rock, Arkansas.