Watch: Q&A with Dan Kleban, Co-Founder, Maine Beer Company

Dan Kleban, co-founder of Maine Beer Company, is proving that doing what’s right is more than a motto, but actually it’s a competitive advantage. From leveraging solar panels to build brand loyalty to launching a pragmatic policy blueprint, Kleban argues that the clean energy transition isn’t about sacrifice; it’s about lower bills, local jobs, and winning the global race.

Catch up on the highlights below and watch the full interview here.

On the philosophy behind Maine Beer Company:

“My brother and I kind of, looked around and at what was going on, we said, there’s gotta be a better way to run an economy. You be a better way to run a business. And so we started Maine Beer Company with a pretty simple motto of ‘Do What’s Right’… and maybe most appropriate for this conversation is we were gonna be part of a climate solution and not part of the climate problem.”

On why solar is a brand investment:

“It’s a fairly busy road that we operate on that I get comments out in the community like, ‘wow, like, holy crap, like that’s a pretty impressive solar array for you guys.’ And I can’t help but think that that it engineered goodwill to our brand. I think, and at the end of the day, it’s hard to quantify, obviously, but I’m pretty certain we sold more beer because we made that investment decision. So it wasn’t just about the energy savings. It was also about just showing what kind of company you were and that you gave a shit.”

On the core of his new policy blueprint:

“I put out this blueprint because I think this is really an issue about lowering energy bills, it’s about affordability for people. Electrons that come from wind and solar are the cheapest ones we’re going to find. And it’s about jobs. It’s about creating good paying jobs here in the United States. These are jobs that can’t be AI’d away in most cases.”

On the need for permitting reform:

“At the end of the day, I think we just need to make sure that we kind of have a neutral kind of approach that doesn’t prohibit certain energy sources or artificially benefit other sources over another. But at the end of the day, we need to make sure that things are, projects are brought online, they’re brought on quickly. And when they’re brought on or when a promise is made by government that gives the green light to a developer that the government can’t go back.”

On why candidates must focus on “pocketbook” issues:

“I think for too many years, decades actually, something that’s annoyed me as a small business owner that’s trying to be out there proselytizing the benefits of transitioning to a clean energy economy is that it was all about sacrifice. The messaging was: you had to give something up in order to make you know, the planet better, or, you know, it was going to be more expensive for you. That’s just not true. I think we have to talk in terms of any candidates who are able to talk in terms of how this transition is going to lower electricity bills for folks, that this is going to create jobs in their backyard.”

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