2018 Women in Real Estate and Construction Services: Husna Anwar, Bright Power

Name: Husna Anwar

Title: Project Manager, On-site Generation

Company Name: Bright Power 

Years in your current field: 2

What professional organizations or associations are you a member of? I am a member of Sigma Pi Sigma, the national physics honor society, and the American Physical Society. 

What was your greatest professional accomplishment in 2017? 

I’m really proud of the work we’re accomplished for Settlement Housing Fund. Since I started at Bright Power, I’ve designed, managed, and am now overseeing the installation of a 705 kW solar PV system across 14 buildings of the New Settlement Apartments complex in the Bronx. We’ve installed about half of the system to date, with the rest to be completed this year. To have been involved in each piece from the project’s beginning is incredibly rewarding. And to know the solar PV will aid in the long-term sustainability and affordability of the community makes it that much more meaningful. 

What was your most notable project 2017?

I designed and helped develop one of New York City’s first community solar projects for a residential Condominium or Cooperative building. Thanks to NY State’s commitment to Reforming the Energy Vision (REV), residents are able to see individual financial benefits of installing solar in their community or on their CoOp building. Through the new Community Distributed Generation program, the energy savings from the solar will go directly to individual shareholders, effectively reducing the disconnect between people and their energy source. The project is due to be installed over the summer and will be a model for future projects in NYC.

If you have had a mentor in your career, who was it and what did they teach you? 

My undergraduate research advisor, associate professor of physics Alexi Arango, at Mount Holyoke College got me interested in solar energy and guided me through three years of research in next generation photovoltaics. I was a sophomore when he began designing and building his own Passive home, which opened my eyes to the lifestyle and infrastructure shift needed in order to truly live sustainably.

What trends are you seeing so far this year in your field? 

There has been a positive shift in the perception of distributed generation among the city’s developers. People have moved away from “show me the value of solar” to “of course let’s add solar, it’s a great idea.” I am also seeing more and more interest in solar paired with battery storage. With a better understanding of the value of solar, energy consumers and providers alike are realizing that adding battery storage to the mix can increase the value of the system as a whole - from usage to the larger financials. Not to mention, the increase in resiliency that storage adds.

When I am not working I am…

Outside playing sports! Or when it’s cold out, like it’s been, I’m cooking, reading or painting.