Guest Blog: Soaking Up the Savings ThisSummerBy Ronnie Das8/31/2011

Fun, Sun and Some Energy Conservation:

Begin by setting yourself in a beautiful Bonita as we find ourselves on the roof reaping the rewards of

radiant heat by installing 20 solar modules. On a hot summer San Diego day solar advantages are the

clear choice for accepting our most plentiful readily accessible energy source: the sun.

Solar Modules use radiant heat to create DC electricity - your neck uses that solar energy to create

sunburns. Quick Tip: When installing panels remember to use sunscreen and a hat to cover yourself as

much as possible . As for me, a readily unprepared lifestyle gave way to my present circumstances, on a

roof with no direct shade because the machine we are installing has the sole purpose of capturing heat. I

guess as an ex would say “Should've got the hint,” but I got through it and had some fun in the sun as I

learned about a sustainable energy solution for San Diego.

Fun fact: The Earth receives more energy from the sun in 1 hour than is used in the entire world in 1

year. It would take roughly 0.3% of the world's land area to supply all our electricity needs via solar

power.

Bias and pride aside, San Diego is setting the scene as pioneers in solar power standards. In June 2007,

San Diego was selected as a Solar City by the U.S. Department of Energy because of its commitment to

adopting solar technology at the local level.

Nationally, San Diego is ranked 4th for producing and using environmentally preferable green energy (US

EPA 2007). To put 4th in perspective the renewable energy reductions of carbon dioxide emissions is

equivalent to planting 40,187 acres of trees. The sustainable energy efforts from our city adopting

photovoltaic systems saves nearly $170,000 annually.

Kyocera, which is an international conglomerate, has a solar module manufacturing plant in Kearny Mesa,

which provides jobs in the growing energy industry. No other time in history has energy been more

important than now, and San Diego has clearly established itself in fostering alternative energy to provide

choices locally, nationally, and internationally.

Energy has become the forefront of every presidential campaign for 2012, and coupled with an economic

strategy, focusing on job creation has become the leading topic in today's political landscape. Outside of

politics, increases in energy prices make traditional sources of power less obvious as the standard choice

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for consumers. Brighten up to the high standards of the solar industry in sunny San Diego.

Solar is a sustainable solution for San Diego, but so is energy conservation. Energy Conservation is the

key to energy independence and what you don't know doesn't get managed. Check your electric bill to

keep it in check instead of paying a premium price for wasted electricity. Keep kids involved as electric

monitors help teach them valuable lessons in energy conservation, saving money, and sticking to good

habits. Teaching toddlers (and ourselves) to take the time to turn off TV's, lights, and other electronics is

a great way to be part of a sustainable solution. Powerstrips are energy efficient, and a safe, easy way

controls for kids to save power during the day.

If your slightly more technical, be sure to solve the age-old question, how many of you does it take to

change a light bulb? Incandescent lights can be switched to low-cost (<$3,at any home improvement

store) or no-cost (trade program with SDG&E) energy-efficienct lighting choices (ex. CFLs, LEDs). Energy

Star qualified lighting use less energy, and produces about 75% less heat than incandescent lighting, so

you'll feel real cool as you save money.

Hopefully you can start saving with several of these sustainable solutions as you soak up that sun this

summer in San Diego.

How Can I Help? Episode 4: Solar Diego featuring Bill Clinton, Independent Energy Solutions, Baker Solar

Electric Inc, SDG&E, County of San Diego Operations, and California Center for Sustainable Energy. Find

out more on how to use natural energy to light up your life on our official website

http://howcanihelpsandiego.com/?page_id=989

Catch All New Episodes of 'How Can I Help?' Fridays at 6:00 PM on ITV – Channel 16 in San Diego.

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Behind the Judges Table @ theSD County FairHomebrew Competition

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Judging entry #104 out of 181!

By Ronnie Das | 2 Comments

It s a beautiful day in Del Mar, with the sun beating down on the joyous crowds of the San DiegoCounty Fair. Amongst the unique eats, novelty nutritionist nightmares, and carnival createdentertainment, the big local buzz around the grounds came from Sunday s Homebrew Competition.With 818 entries, this was one of the largest single day beer competitions in the world!

I volunteered as a judge by signing up at the lastQUAFF meeting, and was randomly assigned toCategory 13: Stouts, along with 7 other judges.This year there were 81 entries in this category,and around #39 I had forgotten most of what I dplanned to write for this article. As a former porterponderer though, I found the Russian ImperialStouts to be quite to my liking thanks to the slightlyburnt notes.

Here s what I found out about Russian ImperialStouts after volunteering to judge the Stoutcategory – inspired by brewers back in the 1800sto win over the Russian Czar, this is the King of Stouts, boasting HIGH alcohol by volume and plenty ofmalt character. Low to moderate levels of carbonation with huge roasted, chocolate and burnt maltflavors. Often dry. Suggestions of dark fruit and flavors of higher alcohol are quite evident. Hopcharacter can vary from none to balanced to aggressive.

So not only was I drinking a truly un-American beer on this 4th of July weekend, but now I knew mypiece of toast hours earlier and some saltines provided were really not going to help. So, I made theadult, rational decision and pulled out some taxi money from the ATM before getting to work.

In the end, the Top 5 in Category 13: Ken Schmidt,

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2 Responses to “Behind the Judges Table @ the SD County FairHomebrew Competition”

“The 2011 Gold Medal and Best in Show was Poor Man s IPA beer made byPizza Port of Carlsbad, California.”

That was for the commercial competition. The best of show winner for thehomebrewing competition was Bob MacKay with an English Dark Mild.

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The winners in the Stout and IPA categories

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In the end, the Top 5 in Category 13: Ken Schmidt,Jess Rothrock, David Vogel, Randolph Lewis II,and Stephen Waterman. The best of show winnerfor the homebrewing competition was Bob MacKaywith an English Dark Mild.

The beers were unbelievable and being a judgewas an amazing experience. It s hard to hold off asmile when I say it was hard work because it wasso much fun. Being such a small part of this event,I d really like to give my sincerest gratitude to thehardworking organizers.

Ronnie is a craft beer enthusiast and host of How Can I Help? San Diego, a TV show and websiteresource dedicated to sustainable practices. The next episode, Planting Plants, airs tonight at 6pm onITV Channel 16. The episode on green breweries, including interviews from NHC, airs next Friday the15th at 6pm.

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Guest Blog: Banking On Yourself With Business Basics6/22/2011

By Ronnie Das

A seductive, gold-digging temptress struts through a mansion filled with the sound of champagne glassesclinging and artificial laughter from the surrounding guests at this definitively awkward dinner event. Herglowing smile becomes a sinister smirk as the crowd stares at her in utter disgust.

The elephant in the room at this event is her recent marriage to a man easily four times her age with a largefortune, who happens to be the man of the hour. Today is his birthday. However obvious this woman'sintentions, he gains no pity from the crowd - this ruthless business behemoth could write the books on lying,cheating, and stealing (which he did and sold as part of a pyramid scheme in 1981).

His historically deceptive nature has isolated him from any meaningful relationship, so he flaunts his wifemore like an object more than a person and parades around town with this sham of a marriage in an attempt toinvoke envy. This old man sits alone, uninterested in the facade of friends, drinking to forget work andworking to forget home, slowly letting the warm champagne hit his lips.

Now, ever wonder who the lucky second husband to this woman is, after the old guy dies and she gets themoney? Life's about opportunities, and every business is an opportunity. Freedom comes with success andfailures, but they are the direct consequence of your own actions as opposed to a third party or employer. Youhave the ability to pursue your own definitions of success and failure to become either a lonely billionaire orrevered role model.

When I first started my company I would excitedly tell a friend about my new venture. Inevitably, the firstquestion out of there lips after I discussed my grand idea was “So, what are you doing for work?” Although itseems inconsiderate the reasoning behind asking such a bold question is justifiable.

The truth is that it takes real guts to be your own boss, many small businesses fail in the first three years and asteady paycheck is a great leash. It is only when we inspect that leash that we find on the other end can be avery unstable owner. Big businesses have failed in the past few years and a steady paycheck can become apink slip.

An entrepreneurial spirit should not to be taken lightly. Many people say follow your dreams, do what youlove, but how many of those same people are miserable every Monday, drinking bad coffee and sitting in acubicle at a place they hate. IF you want to begin to take control of your own life and contribute to society

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with your own creative, innovative, expression of your unique talents, take the steps to start your ownbusiness. The process is quite simple.

A business begins with an idea, not an MBA from Harvard or a million dollar investment. Create yourbusiness in two steps. Filing a fictitious business name statement and a proof of publication.

A Fictitious Business Name Statement, which registers your companies name, is a simple form availablethrough the County of San Diego. The cost of filing this form is $30.00, with $5.00 for each additional name(up to 3) you would like to register as well. Also note that each additional owner of your company is $5.00 forany names you register. Now that you've registered you have up to one month to begin the publication process.

The publication process involves an approved newspaper or magazine making your company “public” for thefirst time and officially registered. This service can cost anywhere between $10 and $100 dollars so be sure tolook around - the basics of what you want are a proof of publication sent to the county by the publisher and acopy to be sent to you for your records. And that's it; you've begun the process of profit and personal gainwith your own company. Good luck!

Article Courtesy of Ronnie Das, Senior Production Manager of RDF Productions. For more information aboutRDF productions, visit their website. Ronnie Das' television show "How Can I Help?" is airing Fridays at 6:00pm all summer on the San Diego County of Education's ITV - Channel 16.

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Guest Blog: Reducing Waste to Increase Sustainability5/4/2011

By Ronnie Das

Do you ever wonder what the teenage version of yourself would do in any given situation thrown at you?Maybe he would demonstrate some fearlessness and break you through that mental wall you've built oroften times he might be reckless and crash you into a very real wall. But regardless of whether yousecretly house an inner rebellious bad boy or a sweet school boy, the process of maturing takes personalmanagement to control, regulate, and enhance your life. Similarly, a government needs to constantly re-examine its policies to make sure a good idea does not become a financial nightmare. A perfect example ofa good theory turned bad policy is The People's Ordinance of 1919 which continues to provide free refusecollection for certain San Diego residents.

In a time when only 70,000 people lived in San Diego and mostly organic trash (such as various types ofproduce as well as meat and leaf litter) was collected for a fee by a private company to be sold to hogfarmers, the idea of the government providing a free service and selling the “trash” to pig farmers was aprofitable and environmentally sound policy. Now here we are in 2011 when E-waste and plastics aredumped into landfills outside Miramar Air Force Base. That bumpy car ride along the 52-freeway is a resultof trash decomposing at different rates. Now, instead of gaining a profit from selling organic waste tofarmers, the city spends $37 million dollars a year to collect and dispose of trash in our environment.

Also, citizens who do not receive no-fee trash service must pay a private hauler to collect and dispose oftheir trash, in addition to supporting the no-fee service received by others through their contributions tothe City’s General Fund. All the while, the 304,000 San Diego recipients of the no-fee service never see abill and are generally unaware of the true cost of this service. Under this ordinance there is no limit on theamount of waste the City will pick up without charge from an individual household, so there is no incentiveto reduce waste if you are the lucky ten percent of the city.

The old saying, “don't cry over spilled milk”, does not apply to the way we should perceive throwing outour trash. Reducing our waste is a positive and crucial step towards creating a sustainable future. A landfillreleases harmful emissions into the atmosphere that can travel anywhere. The operation of a landfill itselfcauses noise, dust, and bio-aerosol emissions as well as very real risks to water, and our precious watersupply. Watercourses include everything from the ditches located near the landfill, to the rivers andstreams miles away. Rain will wash over the landfill, allowing debris, but more commonly, toxins, to washinto these watercourses. As a resident of San Diego who loves the beach, I find this unacceptable.

Let's face it, San Diego is beautiful. We have a choice to either discourage people from entering by makingour city undesirable, or preparing for future growth with increasing efficiency, conservation, and recycling.

Creating a more equitable policy , as well as providing economic incentives for the Mandatory RecyclingOrdinance to achieve its goal of full compliance would be a great policy to pursue, but an opinion isworthless without the action to make it priceless. The true goal should be reducing waste in whatever wayspossible (recycling, composting, construction waste diversion, etc.) so we do not destroy San Diego'sbeauty. And for that, I encourage everyone in San Diego to take action. Reduce waste to increasesustainability and decrease your footprint to enhance the environment. Its elementary my friends Recycle,Reduce, Reuse to help create a better tomorrow, today!

Article Courtesy of Ronnie Das, Senior Production Manager of RDF Productions. For more information aboutRDF productions, visit their website.

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ANN FEISTER - SDGLN STAFF WRITERApril 6th, 2011

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VIDEO: Ask not how San Diego can help you, but how youcan help San Diego

“The more integrated we are with our community, the less likely we are toexperience colds, heart attacks, strokes, cancer, depression, and prematuredeath of all sorts.” — Robert D. Putnam, Harvard professor and author of“Bowling Alone: The Collapse and Revival of American Community.”

SAN DIEGO -- Numerous studies have proven that being actively involvedin community projects and groups can vastly reduce the risks of manyphysical ailments. In addition to helping stave off illness, volunteering mayvery well be the key to preserving our environment.

Helping your community doesn’t have to cost youhundreds of dollars or eat up all of your sparetime. The show “How Can I Help San Diego” isspearheading a grass-roots effort to helppreserve the beauty that is our beachfront oasis.

Ronnie Das and crew have all volunteered theirtime to help raise awareness on issues thatshould be important to every San Diegan.

“Population growth will reduce our naturalresources,” said Das, who studied environmental systems at San DiegoState University and worked with the city of San Diego EnvironmentalServices Department before venturing into the world of environmentaleducation. “Landfill use and air pollution will rise with population while ground water supplies will be depleted.”

“How Can I Help San Diego” is not meant to guilt viewers into helping, but it’s intended to be used as a tool to assist peoplein making choices that work for their lifestyle and budget. The show simply examines what is, and what could be, the rest isup to us.

“Getting the right people in the right places to build partnerships,” is the overall vision for the show, Das said. “Publicprograms need volunteers and we all have different skills and assets that we can use to help.”

The show itself is an act in volunteerism, Das explained. “The cost of tape and our time are our only expenses. It’s cool tobe frugal. And we get to use our own innovation to make things work on the fly.”

The topics to be featured on the show are diverse and cover a wide range of new and existing ideas to help conservenatural resources. With over 100 ideas for topics they want to cover in San Diego alone, the “How Can I Help San Diego”crew are as busy as ever.

In the first season, the show will cover organic farming, solar power, water quality, sustainable landscaping, erosion controland environmental policy.

The key to what makes “How Can I Help San Diego” different from other environmental shows already out there is that theshow intends to show us how we can help now.

“Some of these shows tell us that in 2050 we’ll all be driving cars fueled by hydrogen, that’s great, but what can I do today?”Das said.

Simple everyday things that we can all try to be conscious of will make a big impact if we can all band together and work asa team.

“Remember that we are living in a desert,” Das said. “Shorter showers, turning off the water while brushing your teeth andsustainable landscaping,” are just a few of the easy tips that Das and his team are trying to implement to save the SanDiego that we all know and love.

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Remembering that these perks aren’t self-sufficient is something that can easily be forgotten when you’re out frolicking in theocean, at the zoo or in the park.

Our health and our environment are closely related and taking actions now to preserve both can save us from having to takedrastic actions in the future. It’s always easier to perform preventative maintenance checks over time than to have to rebuildthe entire body/environment once it’s been destroyed. What if the answer to our maladies isn’t working more, but workingless and volunteering more?

To get involved in volunteering, check out HERE. The website has a feature that allows you to input your volunteeringinterests and see what organizations in the community match your skills and interests. “How Can I Help San Diego” will bepremiering on ITV in April, and you can watch clips from upcoming shows on the website now.

“How Can I Help San Diego” will be premiering on ITV in April, and you can watch clips from upcoming shows on thewebsite now.

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Ronnie Das University of California, San DiegoAnn, Thank you so much for this article. I was just working on our website and I re-read the article,it feels like forever ago, and it was still this year. We recently submitted our Season Finale forconsideration in the Sundance Film Festival after being invited. I'd love to do another interview ifyou'd be interested.

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