George Hershman's term as chair of solar's leading trade group began with optimism and excitement.

He stepped into the role with the Solar Energy Industries Association, or SEIA, in January 2020, when the industry's meteoric rise was all but cemented. Today, we know the tumultuous stretch that quickly followed.

A pandemic, supply chain constraints, and a potentially existential tariff fight made even the "solar coaster" moniker appear ill-equipped to describe the moment. But his tenure also featured a legacy-defining legislative victory in the Inflation Reduction Act.

Hershman joined Episode 66 of the Factor This! podcast to take us inside the critical behind-the-scenes deliberations that helped save solar.

As he prepares to vacate his chairmanship at the end of the year, Hershman defended SEIA’s not-so-subtle spat with the Biden administration in the Auxin Solar tariff fight, shared the organization's own battle to stay afloat, and laid out his vision for the sector's renewed growth trajectory.

That's all next on Factor This!