The Renewable Energy Initiative, a non-profit aimed at increasing public investment in renewable energy, is expanding.

The organization is opening a National office in Denver, Colo., along with satellite offices in San Francisco and Washington, D.C. It’s also hiring 20 full-time staff, moving from an all-volunteer platform to paid personnel, said TREI advisory Board Chairman Ken Beitel.

The organization hosted a special pizza and beer reception followed by a screening of the new documentary Revenge of the Electric Car in Denver, Colo., at the end of November to bring people together and celebrate.

“We’re also expanding our mission,” Beitel said.

TREI started as an initiative to get companies and employees to invest some of the $7 trillion in 401(k) plans in renewable energy.

“Right now about 0 percent of that money is invested in renewable energy companies,” Beitel said. “Our goal is to raise that to 5 percent in the next four years.”

While that was the founding mission of the organization, it’s now also focusing on helping companies and small businesses all over the country to switch from gas-powered cars and buses to electric vehicles and to help them install meaningful solar arrays.

“Many companies are not aware that they are able, right now, to install solar with no upfront cost through power-purchase and solar leasing agreements,” Beitel said. “Once business owners realize they can increase profitability without any expense, it will be easy for them to say ‘yes.’”

The Renewable Energy Initiative aims to make big changes in the way retirement funds are invested and to open small renewable energy company stocks to those everyday investors who are not typically given the option to invest their retirement savings in new energy because the companies are too small and too new to make the cut for most retirement investment firms.

“It will happen through a very aggressive communications campaign,” Beitel said.