Pro-family farms.
Pro-renewables.
No trade-off required.
What We Do
We advise on project agreements & policy design to help family farmers thrive through solar & wind investments. Renewable energy projects that credibly demonstrate positive impacts for the local community of family farmers — not just the farm landlord hosting the project — earn project support and reduce the risk of cancellation. We draw upon political science, energy project finance, & farmer viability to provide quantitative analysis and help stakeholders cultivate this common ground.
Our work centers on helping clients design Farmer Benefit Plans & Trusts — a framework for utility-scale renewable energy projects that:
Establishes a Farmer Benefit Trust, governed by local farmers who direct energy project revenue to farming community benefits such as equipment shares or joint processing facility;
Protects tenant farmers & neighbors from land price changes;
Increases farmland access & number of local family farmers, by enabling beginning farmers to access setbacks, solar agrivoltaics, or farmland easements;
Lowers electricity bills for farmers and the host community by collaborating with rural electric coops; and
Enhances the agricultural character of the community with Farm-to-Table events, Buy Local programs for hospitals & other institutions, and Future Farmers of America and 4H programs.
Background
Common Acres Advisory was founded by Aliza Drewes, who has served as a senior energy advisor at USDA Rural Utilities Service and the National Governors Association. She founded Rural Investment to Protect our Environment and directed programs for Community Alliance with Family Farmers, securing over $90 million in pilot and grant funds to advance family farm economic and environmental outcomes.