THE FEDERAL ENERGY REGULATORY COMMISSION ANTICIPATES LARGE-SCALE SOLAR ENERGY PROJECTS TO GROW BY ANOTHER 81,284 MW OVER THE NEXT 3 YEARS, BUT COMMUNITY OPPOSITION HAS INCREASED, WITH NEW LOCAL POLICIES RESTRICTING SOLAR DEVELOPMENTS. OVER THE PAST DECADE, OVER 550 UTILITY-SCALE RENEWABLE ENERGY PROJECTS WERE BLOCKED OR DELAYED ACROSS 28 STATES. LSS SITING DECISIONS FACE WELL-FOUNDED COMMUNITY CONCERNS DUE TO LACK OF TRANSPARENCY IN LOCAL PLANNING, DISTRUST STEMMING FROM HISTORICAL INJUSTICES, MISINFORMATION AND UNCERTAINTY SURROUNDING THE IMPACTS OF RENEWABLE ENERGY PROJECTS, AND LIMITED EFFORTS TO IDENTIFY AND ENSURE COMMUNITY BENEFITS. THIS PROJECT WILL INVESTIGATE WHETHER A REIMAGINED APPROACH TO COMMUNITY BENEFIT MECHANISMS (CBMS) MAY OFFER SCALABLE POTENTIAL TO ADDRESS MANY OF THESE CHALLENGES AND MAY BE MORE FEASIBLE IN PRACTICE THAN DEVELOPERS AND LOCAL OFFICIALS PERCEIVE THEM TO BE. IN PARTICULAR, THE PROJECT TEAM WILL • IDENTIFY FEATURES OF CBMS (E.G., COMPENSATION MECHANISMS, OWNERSHIP MODELS) THAT HAVE THE LARGEST IMPACT ON US COMMUNITY ACCEPTANCE OF LSS AND THE PROCESSES BY WHICH THEY WORK, INCLUDING PERCEIVED EQUITY AND JUSTICE • IDENTIFY THE PROCESSES FOR COPRODUCING CBMS WITH COMMUNITIES THAT HAVE THE LARGEST IMPACT ON US COMMUNITY ACCEPTANCE OF LSS, FOSTER DIALOGUE WITHIN AND ACROSS LSS STAKEHOLDER GROUPS, AND CREATE MORE EQUITABLE SITING AND COMMUNITY BENEFIT PRACTICES • DELIVER A BETTER UNDERSTANDING OF THE EFFECT OF DIFFERENCES IN LOCAL CONDITIONS ON THE IMPACT OF CBM FEATURES AND EFFECTIVENESS OF DIFFERENT PROCESSES OF COPRODUCING THEM • DEVELOP A PROCESS TO BRING DIFFERENT STAKEHOLDERS INTO CONSTRUCTIVE DIALOGUE FOR THE COPRODUCTION OF CBMS EACH OF THESE PROJECT GOALS WILL BE DESIGNED WITH A FOCUS ON DIVERSITY EQUITY AND INCLUSION (DEI) CONSIDERATIONS AND CONSEQUENCES. THIS WILL BE ACHIEVED BY ENSURING ADEQUATE REPRESENTATION OF UNREPRESENTED MINORITIES ON THE PROJECT TEAM, TECHNICAL ADVISORY BOARD (TAB), AND WORKSHOP/INTERVIEW/SURVEY PARTICIPANTS, AND BY BUILDING EQUITY AND JUSTICE CONSIDERATIONS INTO THE EVALUATION AND DESIGN OF CBMS AND STAKEHOLDER DIALOGUE PROCESSES. KEY PROJECT OUTPUTS INCLUDE SEVERAL STAKEHOLDER-DIRECTED FACT SHEETS AND ACADEMIC PAPERS. THESE WILL SUMMARIZE THE RESULTS AND IMPLICATIONS OF MULTIPLE RESEARCH STREAMS. THESE RESULTS WILL SPEAK TO THE FEASIBILITY OF A REIMAGINATION OF SITING PROCESSES AND CBM CONTENTS AND OF NEGOTIATIONS THAT RESPECT CONTEXT-SPECIFIC FACTORS AND SOCIOECONOMIC AND POLITICAL DYNAMICS THAT DRIVE LSS OPPOSITION OR SUPPORT. THE FACT SHEETS AND PAPERS WILL ALSO DESCRIBE CONCRETE WAYS 1) TO CREATE AND ENSURE A MORE EQUITABLE DISTRIBUTION OF LSS SITING AND COMMUNITY BENEFITS, COSTS, AND COMPENSATION, 2) TO BUILD LOCAL CAPACITY FOR PLANNING, ASSESSMENT AND COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT, AND 3) TO CREATE SOCIAL, INSTITUTIONAL, AND MATERIAL INFRASTRUCTURES THAT BUILDS TRUST AND COHESION.