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Groundswell is a non-profit organization based in Washington, D.C. that uses collective buying power to assist people in purchasing clean energy. Groundswell was founded by Will Byrne and a group of friends who had previously worked together on the Barack Obama presidential campaign. To date, Groundswell has helped over 2000 people and organizations switch to 100 percent wind-powered energy.

History
Groundswell was founded in 2009 by Will Byrne and a group of friends who had previously worked on the 2008 Barack Obama Presidential Campaign. The organization operated under two previous names, The DC Project and Weatherize DC, before becoming Groundswell. Groundswell chose Washington, D.C. because it is one of 16 places in the United States where residents are allowed to choose their energy suppliers.

Clean Energy
Groundswell works across the mid-Atlantic U.S. in windpower, energy efficiency, and solar energy. The organization has completed over $10 million in clean energy projects and generated over $1.5 million in community reinvestment. The organizations works with other non-profit organizations to make clean energy accessible to low-income communities and organizations within these communities.

Civic Consumption
In 2012, Groundswell created the Civic Consumption Network. The Network is comprised of other organizations using a similar business model. In 2013, Groundswell hosted the Civic Consumption Summit. Most recently, Groundswell created an internal innovation hub to test ways that the model could be used to address social issues in addition to clean energy, such as hunger, sexism, unemployment, climate change, and income inequality. See Civic Consumption.

Model
Civic consumption works in four stages.
 * 1. Identify a core service without widespread access for people.
 * 2. Pool demand for the service from people and organizations.
 * 3. Leverage collective buying power.
 * 4. Expand access to the service and increase the beneficial social impact.

History
The term first appeared in 2013, in a Fast Company featuring Groundswell co-founder Will Byrne. The model has been most prominently used in the clean energy sector by Groundswell. The organization suggests: One of the core barriers to a clean energy economy is that communities don’t have affordable access to renewable energy. Civic Consumption overcomes this challenge by pooling consumer demand to rapidly grow the marketplace for renewably sourced power.

Civic Consumption Network
In 2013, Groundswell launched the Civic Consumption Network. Since its launch, the Network has engaged hundreds of thousands of people in collective buying practices to address social and economic challenges.

Early Career
Prior to founding Groundswell, Will worked as a journalist in Berlin, Germany before joining Barack Obama’s 2008 Presidential campaign.

Obama for America
During his work at Obama for America, Will utilized online and offline community organizing tactics. It was doing this work that Byrne and his co-founders saw the impact of community organizing in the political sphere. Rather than joining the administration after Obama was elected, Will went on to develop these tactics as a social entrepreneur.

Honors and Awards
Lisa B. Hall Fellow, Concord Academy, 2013
 * Forbes 30 Under 30 Selection; Social Entrepreneurs, Forbes Magazine (December 2012)
 * Global Fellow, Ashoka Innovators for the Public, December 2011
 * Global Shaper, World Economic Forum, 2011
 * Champions of Change, White House Executive Office of the President, 2011
 * Cordes Social Entrepreneurship Fellow (Global), 2010