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Avishkar Shinde
UX Designer
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SolarHive
Helping Users Join and Save with Community Solar
7 mins read
Timeline
8 Weeks
( September 2023 - October 2023 )
mY ROLE
Product Designer
responsibilities
UX Research
0-1 Product Flows
Prototyping
Usability Testing
Tools
Figma
FigJam
Adobe Creative Suite
Notion
Overview
SolarHive, a product concept that makes it easier for renters and homeowners without suitable rooftops to access solar energy through Community Solar.
I led the market research, user interviews, and expert consultation to identify challenges and opportunities for solar adoption. Then I helped translate these insights into a clear design direction, which finally evolved into SolarHive.
We then prototyped key flows and the design in Figma, and then validated them through usability testing to refine our final product.
The Problem
Solar Energy is great, but it’s out of reach for many
Despite growing interest, solar energy is inaccessible to many households as they cannot install rooftop panels due to cost, rental constraints, or unsuitable roofs. There are alternatives like Community Solar, but they lack visibility and easy access.
These are the challenges we started with while designing a solution
01
How might we help users harness solar energy easily?
02
How might we help users discover and understand Community Solar?
03
How might we help users save money on bills and track their savings?
Our Solution
A simpler way to go Solar
SolarHive is an end-to-end community solar platform that lets anyone subscribe to local solar farms, earn credits on their utility bill, and track environmental impact.
No installation. No ownership required.
Below is a feature breakdown.
Step 1
Discover Local Solar Farms
Rent panels from nearby community solar farms.
Farm 1
Greenwood, IN
View Details
Farm 2
Brownsburg, IN
Farm 3
Carmel, IN
Proceed (Farm 1 Selected)
Step 2
subscribe to a plan
Compare plans and choose the one that fits your usage.
$19.99/Mo
Essential Plan
$9.99/Mo
Saver Plan
$29.99/Mo
Premium Plan
Select Plan
$19.99/Mo
Essential Plan
Recommended
150-200Kwh
Estimated Monthly Energy Production
4 Panels
Solar Panels Included in the plan
15%
Estimated Savings on Electricity Bill
Recommended
Farm 1
Greenwood, IN
10000 KwH
Energy Production
10$/Panel
Monthly Cost
Select Credit Amount
$35
Available Credits $45.56
$0
$45.56
Redeem Credits
Cancel
01
Find Solar Farms near you
Browse local community solar farms, see details like cost per panel, energy output, and pick one that fits your energy needs and budget.
02
Link your utility account
Connect your utility account so we can analyze your energy consumption, recommend plans and apply credits to your bill.
03
Compare plans
Compare plans by energy output, included panels, and estimated savings. You can also see how much energy your plan generates over time.
04
Earn bill credits
Once enrolled, earn solar credits based on your farm's energy generation. Redeem these credits to reduce your utility bill.
05
Track your impact
Monitor your environmental impact including emissions reduced, energy offset, and trees planted equivalent.
Initial Problem Discovery
Indiana’s reliance on fossil fuels
This project started in our Interaction Design Practice class, where my team chose to tackle UN Sustainable Development Goal 7 - Affordable and Clean Energy. We chose to work on renewable energy access, especially solar energy, after finding that it only makes up about ~3% of Indiana's electricity generation (EIA, 2024).
Sources of electricity generation in Indiana (GWh, 2024)
Desk Research
Solar adoption remains low
Our desk research revealed us why.
50%
of U.S. homes can’t install rooftop solar due to cost, roof issues, or rental status.
Source:
National Renewable Energy Lab
73%
of Americans agree solar is a smart investment, but lack of knowledge stops them from taking action.
Source:
FranklinWH Energy Surve
Alternative
What is Community Solar?
While researching, we also discovered a model called Community Solar, and this is how it works.
1
Solar Farms Generate Clean Energy
A local solar farm produces electricity and sends it to the power grid.
2
You Pay for a Share of the Panels
As a subscriber, you pay to receive energy from a specific number of panels at the farm.
3
Credits Show Up on Your Utility Bill
You earn credits on your utility bill based on the amount of energy your share produces each month.
User Research
Hearing directly from the people
Community Solar could actually solve all of our problems, but if it already exists, why aren't more people using it?
To find out, we spoke directly with the people we were designing for.
We spoke to
Individual Homeowners
Renters
Apartment Managers
What we wanted to learn
How do people feel about solar energy?
What barriers stop them from taking action?
Have they heard of community solar? Do they understand it?
Key Findings
Insights that emerged
After using Affinity Mapping to analyze the interview data, these are the major findings that came out:
82%
participants had no idea what community solar was.
64%
participants didn’t trust that solar would actually save them money.
73%
found solar marketing too technical and hard to understand.
100%
renters felt excluded because they didn’t own the property.
72%
of homeowners and managers gave up due to cost and complexity.
82%
users had no idea what community solar was.
64%
users didn’t trust that solar would actually save them money.
73%
found solar messaging too technical and hard to relate to.
100%
renters felt excluded because they didn’t own the property.
72%
of homeowners and managers gave up due to cost and complexity.
User Research
We asked the experts
We also spoke with an Energy Expert from AES Indiana, one of the state's largest utility providers. What they shared made a lot of things click.
Qoute
We don’t really push community solar because there’s no profit in it for us, and most of people don’t even know it exists.
Energy Expert, AES Indiana
Summary
Research Summary
We found out that the issue wasn't lack of interest, but lack of clarity, access and trust. Almost all of our interviewees said going Solar was complex and costly. And very few were aware of community solar. So instead of designing to convince more people to go solar, we focused on making community solar more accessible.
Design Direction
How Might We Make Community Solar Seem Easy And Approachable So People Can Find Local Options, Learn About The Benefits, And Join With Confidence?
User Persona
Defining the user
We developed a persona based on our research with renters and homeowners in Indiana who want sustainable energy options but lack awareness of community solar. Maya represents this target group.
Maya Patel, 27
Middle School Teacher
Rents an Apartment
Indianapolis, IN
Bio
Maya cares about the environment and wants to lower her electricity bill. She recently started looking into solar, but found it expensive, confusing, and clearly not made for renters. She’s willing to take action, but only if it’s simple, affordable, and easy to trust.
Goals
Save money on her energy bill
Support clean energy in a way that works for her
Find a solar option that doesn’t require owning a home
Pain Points
Surprised by the high cost of rooftop solar
Gets confused by scattered info about community solar
Doesn’t know who to contact or how to get started
Qoute
"I want to do my part for the environment, but I always thought solar wasn’t really an option for someone like me."
User Journey
Walking in Their Shoes
We also mapped out Maya's user journey trying to switch to solar without SolarHive to identify where users get confused and give up. This showed us specific pain points that we needed to solve in our design.
Starting
Decides to look into solar energy after seeing rising bills and reading about climate change.
"It’s time to finally do something about this."
Starting
Decides to look into solar energy after seeing rising bills and reading about climate change.
"It’s time to finally do something about this."
Low-fidelity Wireframes
Early sketches
We then drew some sketches exploring how SolarHive could address these pain points, with core user flows and features beginning to take shape.
Mid-fidelity Wireframes
Structuring the Experience
We then developed mid-fidelity wireframes to map out the core experience. Here we defined the layout and navigation for tasks like exploring solar farms and redeeming credits. These wireframes ensured our UX addressed Maya's needs in terms of usability and functionality.
Moodboard
Moodboard
Next, we created a moodboard by analyzing apps that focused on energy saving and sustainability to understand how they used color, layout, icons and tone to build trust and convey impact. This helped our visual direction to feel clean, modern, and approachable.
Solarhive
10h
Helping You Join
Community Solar, Simply
Clear and guided access to local solar farms.
SolarHive
Check Eligibility
Takes less than
4 Minutes
Typography
SF Pro Display
Color Palette
#A9EA96
#50A434
#FFFFFF
#000000
+10,000 Hoosiers
exploring Solar
www.solarhive.app
Usability Testing
Testing with real users
Once we had our mid-fidelity prototype, we tested it with 5 users and ran heuristic evaluations using Nielsen's 10 Usability Heuristics.
We asked users to complete two key tasks:
Getting on-boarded on the app, which includes finding and subscribing to a solar plan.
Redeem earned solar credits.
Usability Insights
What we found
Our testing highlighted various areas of improvements. Some of them were:
Users wanted to see plan and farm details before linking their utility account.
The concept of solar credits was confusing, and users wanted it explained more clearly.
Some users wanted to test the app without connecting their utility accounts.
There was no confirmation after redeeming credits, which made users nervous about their money.
SolarHive
Green Energy Made Simple
Connect to local solar farms, rent panels, and effortlessly power your home with clean energy.
Empower Your Savings
Save money on your electricity bill by generating renewable energy through solar panels leased from solar farms.
Hassle-free experience
Forget maintenance, installation, and space worries. Generate solar energy via solar farms, and channel it to your grid.
Green Energy Made Simple
Connect to local solar farms, rent panels, and effortlessly power your home with clean energy.
Empower Your Savings
Save money on your electricity bill by generating renewable energy through solar panels leased from solar farms.
Hassle-free experience
Forget maintenance, installation, and space worries. Generate solar energy via solar farms, and channel it to your grid.
Green Energy Made Simple
Connect to local solar farms, rent panels, and effortlessly power your home with clean energy.
Empower Your Savings
Save money on your electricity bill by generating renewable energy through solar panels leased from solar farms.
Hassle-free experience
Forget maintenance, installation, and space worries. Generate solar energy via solar farms, and channel it to your grid.
Green Energy Made Simple
Connect to local solar farms, rent panels, and effortlessly power your home with clean energy.
Empower Your Savings
Save money on your electricity bill by generating renewable energy through solar panels leased from solar farms.
Hassle-free experience
Forget maintenance, installation, and space worries. Generate solar energy via solar farms, and channel it to your grid.
Get started
Already have an account? Log In
Restart Prototype
Close
Prototype
Test it yourself
Based on these findings, we refined our high-fidelity prototype. Here is our final prototype with the updated flows :
to navigate the prototype.
Restart Prototype
Close
to restart the prototype.
Looking Back
What I'm Proud of
Many people told us they wanted clean energy but felt held back by few barriers. When we discovered Community Solar which overcame these barriers, hardly anyone had heard of it or knew how to get started. To understand why, we conducted thorough research, analysis, brainstorm sessions, and after multiple iterations, we finalized our design.
This project reminded me why I enjoy designing so much. Sometimes a design might not completely solve a problem, but it can give users the confidence to get started. And I am hopeful that our product will help users do this, leading to more future adoption of community solar throughout Indiana.
Lookng Ahead
What I’d Do Differently
If I could do this project again, I would:
Spend more time with low-income users to understand their unique concerns about switching to solar.
Test the concept earlier with real utility bills to see how people interpret credits and savings in context.
Talk to more utility providers to understand their perspective as well as cover larger area.
Conclusion
What's Next?
While I’m extremely proud of how this project turned out, there’s still a lot more I’d like to work on.
Particularly, I’d like to focus on:
Work more on the energy tracking features and reach out to more utlity providers for scalability.
Integrate live data feeds from farms so users can see credits and impact in real time.
Add features that show collective impact and let users set personal climate goals to keep them engaged long-term.
Motion Design
Teaching
Prototypes
Logistics Optimization
Community Impact
Desktop
SolarHive
Helping Users Join and Save with Community Solar
7 mins read
Timeline
8 Weeks
( September 2023 - October 2023 )
mY ROLE
Product Designer
responsibilities
UX Research
0-1 Product Flows
Prototyping
Usability Testing
Tools
Figma
FigJam
Adobe Creative Suite
Notion
Overview
SolarHive, a product concept that makes it easier for renters and homeowners without suitable rooftops to access solar energy through Community Solar.
I led the market research, user interviews, and expert consultation to identify challenges and opportunities for solar adoption. Then I helped translate these insights into a clear design direction, which finally evolved into SolarHive.
We then prototyped key flows and the design in Figma, and then validated them through usability testing to refine our final product.
The Problem
Solar Energy is great, but it’s out of reach for many
Despite growing interest, solar energy is inaccessible to many households as they cannot install rooftop panels due to cost, rental constraints, or unsuitable roofs. There are alternatives like Community Solar, but they lack visibility and easy access.
These are the challenges we started with while designing a solution
01
How might we help users harness solar energy easily?
02
How might we help users discover and understand Community Solar?
03
How might we help users save money on bills and track their savings?
Our Solution
A simpler way to go Solar
SolarHive is an end-to-end community solar platform that lets anyone subscribe to local solar farms, earn credits on their utility bill, and track environmental impact.
No installation. No ownership required.
Below is a feature breakdown.
Step 1
Discover Local Solar Farms
Rent panels from nearby community solar farms.
Farm 1
Greenwood, IN
View Details
Farm 2
Brownsburg, IN
Farm 3
Carmel, IN
Proceed (Farm 1 Selected)
Step 2
subscribe to a plan
Compare plans and choose the one that fits your usage.
$19.99/Mo
Essential Plan
$9.99/Mo
Saver Plan
$29.99/Mo
Premium Plan
Select Plan
$19.99/Mo
Essential Plan
Recommended
150-200Kwh
Estimated Monthly Energy Production
4 Panels
Solar Panels Included in the plan
15%
Estimated Savings on Electricity Bill
Recommended
Farm 1
Greenwood, IN
10000 KwH
Energy Production
10$/Panel
Monthly Cost
Select Credit Amount
$35
Available Credits $45.56
$0
$45.56
Redeem Credits
Cancel
01
Find Solar Farms near you
Browse local community solar farms, see details like cost per panel, energy output, and pick one that fits your energy needs and budget.
02
Link your utility account
Connect your utility account so we can analyze your energy consumption, recommend plans and apply credits to your bill.
03
Compare plans
Compare plans by energy output, included panels, and estimated savings. You can also see how much energy your plan generates over time.
04
Earn bill credits
Once enrolled, earn solar credits based on your farm's energy generation. Redeem these credits to reduce your utility bill.
05
Track your impact
Monitor your environmental impact including emissions reduced, energy offset, and trees planted equivalent.
Initial Problem Discovery
Indiana’s reliance on fossil fuels
This project started in our Interaction Design Practice class, where my team chose to tackle UN Sustainable Development Goal 7 - Affordable and Clean Energy. We chose to work on renewable energy access, especially solar energy, after finding that it only makes up about ~3% of Indiana's electricity generation (EIA, 2024).
Sources of electricity generation in Indiana (GWh, 2024)
Desk Research
Solar adoption remains low
Our desk research revealed us why.
50%
of U.S. homes can’t install rooftop solar due to cost, roof issues, or rental status.
Source:
National Renewable Energy Lab
73%
of Americans agree solar is a smart investment, but lack of knowledge stops them from taking action.
Source:
FranklinWH Energy Surve
Alternative
What is Community Solar?
While researching, we also discovered a model called Community Solar, and this is how it works.
1
Solar Farms Generate Clean Energy
A local solar farm produces electricity and sends it to the power grid.
2
You Pay for a Share of the Panels
As a subscriber, you pay to receive energy from a specific number of panels at the farm.
3
Credits Show Up on Your Utility Bill
You earn credits on your utility bill based on the amount of energy your share produces each month.
User Research
Hearing directly from the people
Community Solar could actually solve all of our problems, but if it already exists, why aren't more people using it?
To find out, we spoke directly with the people we were designing for.
We spoke to
Individual Homeowners
Renters
Apartment Managers
What we wanted to learn
How do people feel about solar energy?
What barriers stop them from taking action?
Have they heard of community solar? Do they understand it?
Key Findings
Insights that emerged
After using Affinity Mapping to analyze the interview data, these are the major findings that came out:
82%
participants had no idea what community solar was.
64%
participants didn’t trust that solar would actually save them money.
73%
found solar marketing too technical and hard to understand.
100%
renters felt excluded because they didn’t own the property.
72%
of homeowners and managers gave up due to cost and complexity.
82%
users had no idea what community solar was.
64%
users didn’t trust that solar would actually save them money.
73%
found solar messaging too technical and hard to relate to.
100%
renters felt excluded because they didn’t own the property.
72%
of homeowners and managers gave up due to cost and complexity.
User Research
We asked the experts
We also spoke with an Energy Expert from AES Indiana, one of the state's largest utility providers. What they shared made a lot of things click.
Qoute
We don’t really push community solar because there’s no profit in it for us, and most of people don’t even know it exists.
Energy Expert, AES Indiana
Summary
Research Summary
We found out that the issue wasn't lack of interest, but lack of clarity, access and trust. Almost all of our interviewees said going Solar was complex and costly. And very few were aware of community solar. So instead of designing to convince more people to go solar, we focused on making community solar more accessible.
Design Direction
How Might We Make Community Solar Seem Easy And Approachable So People Can Find Local Options, Learn About The Benefits, And Join With Confidence?
User Persona
Defining the user
We developed a persona based on our research with renters and homeowners in Indiana who want sustainable energy options but lack awareness of community solar. Maya represents this target group.
Maya Patel, 27
Middle School Teacher
Rents an Apartment
Indianapolis, IN
Bio
Maya cares about the environment and wants to lower her electricity bill. She recently started looking into solar, but found it expensive, confusing, and clearly not made for renters. She’s willing to take action, but only if it’s simple, affordable, and easy to trust.
Goals
Save money on her energy bill
Support clean energy in a way that works for her
Find a solar option that doesn’t require owning a home
Pain Points
Surprised by the high cost of rooftop solar
Gets confused by scattered info about community solar
Doesn’t know who to contact or how to get started
Qoute
"I want to do my part for the environment, but I always thought solar wasn’t really an option for someone like me."
User Journey
Walking in Their Shoes
We also mapped out Maya's user journey trying to switch to solar without SolarHive to identify where users get confused and give up. This showed us specific pain points that we needed to solve in our design.
Starting
Decides to look into solar energy after seeing rising bills and reading about climate change.
"It’s time to finally do something about this."
Starting
Decides to look into solar energy after seeing rising bills and reading about climate change.
"It’s time to finally do something about this."
Low-fidelity Wireframes
Early sketches
We then drew some sketches exploring how SolarHive could address these pain points, with core user flows and features beginning to take shape.
Mid-fidelity Wireframes
Structuring the Experience
We then developed mid-fidelity wireframes to map out the core experience. Here we defined the layout and navigation for tasks like exploring solar farms and redeeming credits. These wireframes ensured our UX addressed Maya's needs in terms of usability and functionality.
Moodboard
Moodboard
Next, we created a moodboard by analyzing apps that focused on energy saving and sustainability to understand how they used color, layout, icons and tone to build trust and convey impact. This helped our visual direction to feel clean, modern, and approachable.
Solarhive
10h
Helping You Join
Community Solar, Simply
Clear and guided access to local solar farms.
SolarHive
Check Eligibility
Takes less than
4 Minutes
Typography
SF Pro Display
Color Palette
#A9EA96
#50A434
#FFFFFF
#000000
+10,000 Hoosiers
exploring Solar
www.solarhive.app
Usability Testing
Testing with real users
Once we had our mid-fidelity prototype, we tested it with 5 users and ran heuristic evaluations using Nielsen's 10 Usability Heuristics.
We asked users to complete two key tasks:
Getting on-boarded on the app, which includes finding and subscribing to a solar plan.
Redeem earned solar credits.
Usability Insights
What we found
Our testing highlighted various areas of improvements. Some of them were:
Users wanted to see plan and farm details before linking their utility account.
The concept of solar credits was confusing, and users wanted it explained more clearly.
Some users wanted to test the app without connecting their utility accounts.
There was no confirmation after redeeming credits, which made users nervous about their money.
SolarHive
Green Energy Made Simple
Connect to local solar farms, rent panels, and effortlessly power your home with clean energy.
Empower Your Savings
Save money on your electricity bill by generating renewable energy through solar panels leased from solar farms.
Hassle-free experience
Forget maintenance, installation, and space worries. Generate solar energy via solar farms, and channel it to your grid.
Green Energy Made Simple
Connect to local solar farms, rent panels, and effortlessly power your home with clean energy.
Empower Your Savings
Save money on your electricity bill by generating renewable energy through solar panels leased from solar farms.
Hassle-free experience
Forget maintenance, installation, and space worries. Generate solar energy via solar farms, and channel it to your grid.
Green Energy Made Simple
Connect to local solar farms, rent panels, and effortlessly power your home with clean energy.
Empower Your Savings
Save money on your electricity bill by generating renewable energy through solar panels leased from solar farms.
Hassle-free experience
Forget maintenance, installation, and space worries. Generate solar energy via solar farms, and channel it to your grid.
Green Energy Made Simple
Connect to local solar farms, rent panels, and effortlessly power your home with clean energy.
Empower Your Savings
Save money on your electricity bill by generating renewable energy through solar panels leased from solar farms.
Hassle-free experience
Forget maintenance, installation, and space worries. Generate solar energy via solar farms, and channel it to your grid.
Get started
Already have an account? Log In
Restart Prototype
Close
Prototype
Test it yourself
Based on these findings, we refined our high-fidelity prototype. Here is our final prototype with the updated flows :
to navigate the prototype.
Restart Prototype
Close
to restart the prototype.
Looking Back
What I'm Proud of
Many people told us they wanted clean energy but felt held back by few barriers. When we discovered Community Solar which overcame these barriers, hardly anyone had heard of it or knew how to get started. To understand why, we conducted thorough research, analysis, brainstorm sessions, and after multiple iterations, we finalized our design.
This project reminded me why I enjoy designing so much. Sometimes a design might not completely solve a problem, but it can give users the confidence to get started. And I am hopeful that our product will help users do this, leading to more future adoption of community solar throughout Indiana.
Lookng Ahead
What I’d Do Differently
If I could do this project again, I would:
Spend more time with low-income users to understand their unique concerns about switching to solar.
Test the concept earlier with real utility bills to see how people interpret credits and savings in context.
Talk to more utility providers to understand their perspective as well as cover larger area.
Conclusion
What's Next?
While I’m extremely proud of how this project turned out, there’s still a lot more I’d like to work on.
Particularly, I’d like to focus on:
Work more on the energy tracking features and reach out to more utlity providers for scalability.
Integrate live data feeds from farms so users can see credits and impact in real time.
Add features that show collective impact and let users set personal climate goals to keep them engaged long-term.
Motion Design
Teaching
Prototypes
Logistics Optimization
Community Impact
Desktop
SolarHive
Helping Users Join and Save with Community Solar
7 mins read
Timeline
8 Weeks
( September 2023 - October 2023 )
mY ROLE
Product Designer
responsibilities
UX Research
0-1 Product Flows
Prototyping
Usability Testing
Tools
Figma
FigJam
Adobe Creative Suite
Notion
Overview
SolarHive, a product concept that makes it easier for renters and homeowners without suitable rooftops to access solar energy through Community Solar.
I led the market research, user interviews, and expert consultation to identify challenges and opportunities for solar adoption. Then I helped translate these insights into a clear design direction, which finally evolved into SolarHive.
We then prototyped key flows and the design in Figma, and then validated them through usability testing to refine our final product.
The Problem
Solar Energy is great, but it’s out of reach for many
Despite growing interest, solar energy is inaccessible to many households as they cannot install rooftop panels due to cost, rental constraints, or unsuitable roofs. There are alternatives like Community Solar, but they lack visibility and easy access.
These are the challenges we started with while designing a solution
01
How might we help users harness solar energy easily?
02
How might we help users discover and understand Community Solar?
03
How might we help users save money on bills and track their savings?
Our Solution
A simpler way to go Solar
SolarHive is an end-to-end community solar platform that lets anyone subscribe to local solar farms, earn credits on their utility bill, and track environmental impact.
No installation. No ownership required.
Below is a feature breakdown.
Step 1
Discover Local Solar Farms
Rent panels from nearby community solar farms.
Farm 1
Greenwood, IN
View Details
Farm 2
Brownsburg, IN
Farm 3
Carmel, IN
Proceed (Farm 1 Selected)
Step 2
subscribe to a plan
Compare plans and choose the one that fits your usage.
$19.99/Mo
Essential Plan
$9.99/Mo
Saver Plan
$29.99/Mo
Premium Plan
Select Plan
$19.99/Mo
Essential Plan
Recommended
150-200Kwh
Estimated Monthly Energy Production
4 Panels
Solar Panels Included in the plan
15%
Estimated Savings on Electricity Bill
Recommended
Farm 1
Greenwood, IN
10000 KwH
Energy Production
10$/Panel
Monthly Cost
Select Credit Amount
$35
Available Credits $45.56
$0
$45.56
Redeem Credits
Cancel
01
Find Solar Farms near you
Browse local community solar farms, see details like cost per panel, energy output, and pick one that fits your energy needs and budget.
02
Link your utility account
Connect your utility account so we can analyze your energy consumption, recommend plans and apply credits to your bill.
03
Compare plans
Compare plans by energy output, included panels, and estimated savings. You can also see how much energy your plan generates over time.
04
Earn bill credits
Once enrolled, earn solar credits based on your farm's energy generation. Redeem these credits to reduce your utility bill.
05
Track your impact
Monitor your environmental impact including emissions reduced, energy offset, and trees planted equivalent.
Initial Problem Discovery
Indiana’s reliance on fossil fuels
This project started in our Interaction Design Practice class, where my team chose to tackle UN Sustainable Development Goal 7 - Affordable and Clean Energy. We chose to work on renewable energy access, especially solar energy, after finding that it only makes up about ~3% of Indiana's electricity generation (EIA, 2024).
Sources of electricity generation in Indiana (GWh, 2024)
Desk Research
Solar adoption remains low
Our desk research revealed us why.
50%
of U.S. homes can’t install rooftop solar due to cost, roof issues, or rental status.
Source:
National Renewable Energy Lab
73%
of Americans agree solar is a smart investment, but lack of knowledge stops them from taking action.
Source:
FranklinWH Energy Surve
Alternative
What is Community Solar?
While researching, we also discovered a model called Community Solar, and this is how it works.
1
Solar Farms Generate Clean Energy
A local solar farm produces electricity and sends it to the power grid.
2
You Pay for a Share of the Panels
As a subscriber, you pay to receive energy from a specific number of panels at the farm.
3
Credits Show Up on Your Utility Bill
You earn credits on your utility bill based on the amount of energy your share produces each month.
User Research
Hearing directly from the people
Community Solar could actually solve all of our problems, but if it already exists, why aren't more people using it?
To find out, we spoke directly with the people we were designing for.
We spoke to
Individual Homeowners
Renters
Apartment Managers
What we wanted to learn
How do people feel about solar energy?
What barriers stop them from taking action?
Have they heard of community solar? Do they understand it?
Key Findings
Insights that emerged
After using Affinity Mapping to analyze the interview data, these are the major findings that came out:
82%
participants had no idea what community solar was.
64%
participants didn’t trust that solar would actually save them money.
73%
found solar marketing too technical and hard to understand.
100%
renters felt excluded because they didn’t own the property.
72%
of homeowners and managers gave up due to cost and complexity.
82%
users had no idea what community solar was.
64%
users didn’t trust that solar would actually save them money.
73%
found solar messaging too technical and hard to relate to.
100%
renters felt excluded because they didn’t own the property.
72%
of homeowners and managers gave up due to cost and complexity.
User Research
We asked the experts
We also spoke with an Energy Expert from AES Indiana, one of the state's largest utility providers. What they shared made a lot of things click.
Qoute
We don’t really push community solar because there’s no profit in it for us, and most of people don’t even know it exists.
Energy Expert, AES Indiana
Summary
Research Summary
We found out that the issue wasn't lack of interest, but lack of clarity, access and trust. Almost all of our interviewees said going Solar was complex and costly. And very few were aware of community solar. So instead of designing to convince more people to go solar, we focused on making community solar more accessible.
Design Direction
How Might We Make Community Solar Seem Easy And Approachable So People Can Find Local Options, Learn About The Benefits, And Join With Confidence?
User Persona
Defining the user
We developed a persona based on our research with renters and homeowners in Indiana who want sustainable energy options but lack awareness of community solar. Maya represents this target group.
Maya Patel, 27
Middle School Teacher
Rents an Apartment
Indianapolis, IN
Bio
Maya cares about the environment and wants to lower her electricity bill. She recently started looking into solar, but found it expensive, confusing, and clearly not made for renters. She’s willing to take action, but only if it’s simple, affordable, and easy to trust.
Goals
Save money on her energy bill
Support clean energy in a way that works for her
Find a solar option that doesn’t require owning a home
Pain Points
Surprised by the high cost of rooftop solar
Gets confused by scattered info about community solar
Doesn’t know who to contact or how to get started
Qoute
"I want to do my part for the environment, but I always thought solar wasn’t really an option for someone like me."
User Journey
Walking in Their Shoes
We also mapped out Maya's user journey trying to switch to solar without SolarHive to identify where users get confused and give up. This showed us specific pain points that we needed to solve in our design.
Starting
Decides to look into solar energy after seeing rising bills and reading about climate change.
"It’s time to finally do something about this."
Starting
Decides to look into solar energy after seeing rising bills and reading about climate change.
"It’s time to finally do something about this."
Low-fidelity Wireframes
Early sketches
We then drew some sketches exploring how SolarHive could address these pain points, with core user flows and features beginning to take shape.
Mid-fidelity Wireframes
Structuring the Experience
We then developed mid-fidelity wireframes to map out the core experience. Here we defined the layout and navigation for tasks like exploring solar farms and redeeming credits. These wireframes ensured our UX addressed Maya's needs in terms of usability and functionality.
Moodboard
Moodboard
Next, we created a moodboard by analyzing apps that focused on energy saving and sustainability to understand how they used color, layout, icons and tone to build trust and convey impact. This helped our visual direction to feel clean, modern, and approachable.
Solarhive
10h
Helping You Join
Community Solar, Simply
Clear and guided access to local solar farms.
SolarHive
Check Eligibility
Takes less than
4 Minutes
Typography
SF Pro Display
Color Palette
#A9EA96
#50A434
#FFFFFF
#000000
+10,000 Hoosiers
exploring Solar
www.solarhive.app
Usability Testing
Testing with real users
Once we had our mid-fidelity prototype, we tested it with 5 users and ran heuristic evaluations using Nielsen's 10 Usability Heuristics.
We asked users to complete two key tasks:
Getting on-boarded on the app, which includes finding and subscribing to a solar plan.
Redeem earned solar credits.
Usability Insights
What we found
Our testing highlighted various areas of improvements. Some of them were:
Users wanted to see plan and farm details before linking their utility account.
The concept of solar credits was confusing, and users wanted it explained more clearly.
Some users wanted to test the app without connecting their utility accounts.
There was no confirmation after redeeming credits, which made users nervous about their money.
SolarHive
Green Energy Made Simple
Connect to local solar farms, rent panels, and effortlessly power your home with clean energy.
Empower Your Savings
Save money on your electricity bill by generating renewable energy through solar panels leased from solar farms.
Hassle-free experience
Forget maintenance, installation, and space worries. Generate solar energy via solar farms, and channel it to your grid.
Green Energy Made Simple
Connect to local solar farms, rent panels, and effortlessly power your home with clean energy.
Empower Your Savings
Save money on your electricity bill by generating renewable energy through solar panels leased from solar farms.
Hassle-free experience
Forget maintenance, installation, and space worries. Generate solar energy via solar farms, and channel it to your grid.
Green Energy Made Simple
Connect to local solar farms, rent panels, and effortlessly power your home with clean energy.
Empower Your Savings
Save money on your electricity bill by generating renewable energy through solar panels leased from solar farms.
Hassle-free experience
Forget maintenance, installation, and space worries. Generate solar energy via solar farms, and channel it to your grid.
Green Energy Made Simple
Connect to local solar farms, rent panels, and effortlessly power your home with clean energy.
Empower Your Savings
Save money on your electricity bill by generating renewable energy through solar panels leased from solar farms.
Hassle-free experience
Forget maintenance, installation, and space worries. Generate solar energy via solar farms, and channel it to your grid.
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Prototype
Test it yourself
Based on these findings, we refined our high-fidelity prototype. Here is our final prototype with the updated flows :
to navigate the prototype.
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to restart the prototype.
Looking Back
What I'm Proud of
Many people told us they wanted clean energy but felt held back by few barriers. When we discovered Community Solar which overcame these barriers, hardly anyone had heard of it or knew how to get started. To understand why, we conducted thorough research, analysis, brainstorm sessions, and after multiple iterations, we finalized our design.
This project reminded me why I enjoy designing so much. Sometimes a design might not completely solve a problem, but it can give users the confidence to get started. And I am hopeful that our product will help users do this, leading to more future adoption of community solar throughout Indiana.
Lookng Ahead
What I’d Do Differently
If I could do this project again, I would:
Spend more time with low-income users to understand their unique concerns about switching to solar.
Test the concept earlier with real utility bills to see how people interpret credits and savings in context.
Talk to more utility providers to understand their perspective as well as cover larger area.
Conclusion
What's Next?
While I’m extremely proud of how this project turned out, there’s still a lot more I’d like to work on.
Particularly, I’d like to focus on:
Work more on the energy tracking features and reach out to more utlity providers for scalability.
Integrate live data feeds from farms so users can see credits and impact in real time.
Add features that show collective impact and let users set personal climate goals to keep them engaged long-term.