La Peña Cultural Center is a vibrant nonprofit community cultural center with a global vision that has promoted social justice, arts participation, and intercultural understanding since 1975. Located in Berkeley, California, La Peña is an internationally recognized gathering place that supports a multitude of cultural traditions, progressive movements, and keeps peoples' cultures alive through community events, performances, and classes rooted in Latin American cultural traditions and beyond. They also work with artists to create creative new works and support global grassroots social justice movements through art and activism. 

La Peña says that the nonprofit has, “become the home, hub and catalyst for hundreds of diasporic communities promoting social justice and cultural understanding through the arts, education and community action.” Each year, La Peña hosts over 100 events including concerts, community gatherings, and art exhibits and offers children and adults music and performance classes for the Latinx community in the Bay Area. Additionally, La Peña also offers music, arts, and dancing classes each week where, “toddlers, children, teens and adults study the musical and performance traditions that have nourished struggles of resistance, sustained cultures, and contributed to the well-being of communities,” says La Peña.

Bringing Solar to La Peña

In January 2020, RE-volv staff worked with SunWork to install a 28kW solar system on the roof of La Peña’s building in South Berkeley, California. This solar system will save La Peña more than $170,000 on electricity bills over the lifetime of the system while removing 1.5 million pounds of emissions from entering the atmosphere. With the savings from going solar with RE-volv, La Peña will be able to invest these savings back into their programing, including their music and arts workshops for children and adults, along with their arts and performance events they host throughout the year.