I have a confession to make. My name is Stacy Hunt, and I’m a serial juror for the international editions of Solar Decathlon. It’s okay, the addiction is self-limiting and mostly benign. :)

That said, I’m in pretty deep at this point. In 2019, I had the opportunity to be a juror at all three international competitions: July in Budapest, Hungary for Solar Decathlon Europe, September in Marrakech, Morocco, for Solar Decathlon Africa, and most recently in Cali, Colombia for Solar Decathlon Latin America and Caribbean.

The international Solar Decathlon movement is alive and well and prospering. There are a lot of new developments in the five international Solar Decathlons being planned in 2018 and 2019.

By Megan Close and Daniel Rubin
Video by Garrett Bourcier and Cody Williams

While the U.S. Department of Energy closes the chapter on Solar Decathlon 2017, our fellow global competition organizers are gearing up for multiple international events. Next year, Solar Decathlon China and the first Solar Decathlon Middle East will take place. In 2019, Solar Decathlon Europe, Solar Decathlon Latin American and the Caribbean, and the first Solar Decathlon Africa will host solar villages inspired by the U.S. competition.

The Solar Decathlon competition now spans five continents – from the United States to Spain, France, Colombia, Morocco, the United Arab Emirates, to China – bringing together collegiate teams from around the world to address some of the most pressing global energy issues of our time.

The Solar Decathlon is proud to announce the newest member of its global family: Solar Decathlon Latin America and Caribbean. On Monday, U.S. Deputy Secretary of Energy Daniel Poneman, Colombia Minister of Energy and Mines Amylkar Acosta, Mayor of Santiago de Calí Rodrigo Guerrero, and Director of Planning of Colombia Tatyana Orozco signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) to collaborate on the development of Solar Decathlon Latin America and Caribbean.