Harvesting the Sun Twice: The Promise of Agrivoltaics

Harvesting the Sun Twice: The Promise of Agrivoltaics

Senthilarasu Sundaram, Professor, Teesside University

The global challenges of climate change, land scarcity, and food–energy security needs to be addressed through integrated and sustainable solutions. Agrivoltaics (APV) is one such approach to use of land for crop cultivation and solar power generation to “harvest the sun twice.” By optimizing sunlight distribution, agrivoltaic systems reduce heat and water stress on crops, enhance agricultural productivity, and generate renewable electricity on the same land footprint. Beyond technical efficiency, agrivoltaics represents a socio-economic opportunity to empower rural communities, diversify farmer incomes, and accelerate the transition toward net-zero emissions. By integrating engineering, agricultural science, and socio-economic perspectives, the APV system demonstrate the potential of agrivoltaics to deliver carbon-neutral farming, address energy poverty, and strengthen climate resilience. The results so far are promising: agrivoltaics are not only produces renewable energy but also supports climate-resilient agriculture and creates new income streams for farmers. For rural communities, this means more than technology—it means stability, empowerment, and a way to be part of the net-zero journey. Ultimately, agrivoltaics is about rethinking how we use sunlight. Instead of choosing between food and energy, we can have both. It’s an innovation whose time has come—and one that can reshape the future of farming.

Professor Senthilarasu Sundaram is leading Sustainable Energy Materials at School of Computing, Engineering and Digital Technologies, Teesside University, UK. He is an expert in sustainable energy materials with a passion for creating environmentally friendly technologies that serve both energy needs and ecological preservation. His research spans perovskite and thin-film photovoltaics, building-integrated energy systems, solar thermal storage, flexible solar devices, wastewater remediation, and low-carbon heating technologies.