Columbia focus on solar container

Columbia University will be the anchor tenant for Sol Systems' new solar and battery storage project in the Village of Croton-on-Hudson, with plans to purchase solar credits for utility cost savings and to support the clean energy development. As part of Columbia University's Campus as Lab (CAL) initiative, a team of Mechanical Engineering students in the Energy Track at the School of Engineering and Applied Science (SEAS) conducted an assessment of opportunities for vertical solar panel installation on Columbia’s Morningside Campus with. Computer Aid International first approached Squire and Partners in 2014 for a more cost-effective and enjoyable version of the nonprofit’s original Zubabox, ten of which had already been deployed in eleven locations across Africa. The Fall 2025 Undergraduate Sustainable Development Program capstone team partnered with Columbia University’s Office of Sustainability to design an action-based campus engagement program that translates the goals of Plan 2030 into practical, department-level action. Among the most innovative solutions is the solar power container, a compact and modular system designed to provide reliable, off-grid electricity generation.