Louie Vignapiano's Blog (12)

Thankfully I live in a City that is very conscious of the environment had has won awards from various organizations for our conservation efforts. Our website http://www.chulavistaca.gov/clean/ shows many of the environmental programs available to our citizens and more are being added. In addition, Chula Vista is home to a wonderful nature preserve that sits on the Sweetwater Marsh. The Chula Vista Nature Center… Continue

For this topic I have much information at my disposal since I am part of the City's disaster preparedness and response. We have plans which are up-t-date for hazards and their mitigation, response to emergencies as well as a recoveery plan. All of these are critical to ensure that any disaster can not only be responded to in a timely fashion, but can recover from a disaster as well. In addition to the plans, City workers are provided with training so that they can effectively participate in any… Continue

In Southern California we are susctebile to both earthquakes and wildfires. I have been through several of each and information is critical. For that reason I am part of the amateur radio network locally that can help get information from one place to another when and where it is needed. I have part of the emergency operations center for several incidents and getting information to first responsers and decision makers is critical. Information is also needed in order to correctly deploy… Continue

While it may seem like progress is very slow toward renewable energy, there is evidence that change is happening. There are websites where you can track solar installations in the USA and the world. I have added 2 links here for your review.

http://www.nrel.gov/features/20100312_openpv.html…

Continue

In the year 2020 I look to see more than 50% of the people off the grid and gerearting their own electricity. This could be a mix of solar and wind production but couold be as simle as having your daily exercise produce and store your own electricity for your use. I would hope that most products are made from recycled products which can be recycled again after their use. In this way the eatrh's resources will not be used up, pollution will be reduced and the Earth can begin to renew itself.

These days we should all be supporting renewable energy, recycling and other energy saving ideas. My house is powered by solar so I use very little energy from the grid. My daughter's school recycles everything they can (cans, bottles etc.) in order to save the planet. I just finished reading an article about the state of Montana, where the building of wind turbines is a fast growing industry. We all can, and should do our part in this effort

In the year 2020 i would expect dinner to consist of items that have mostly been grown within 25 miles of where you are having dinner. Using various techniques such as urban farming, hydroponics, vertical farming, backyard farming and others there should be a large increase in the items on your dinner table that have been grown very close to home.

Several neighbors can get together to discuss what each might provide to the overall cause. Each neighbor can choose to assist by providing certain types of fruits and vegetables so that the entire group will have a variety of nutrients from the many varieties that can be produced. While on your own you will only be able to grow a limited amount of varieties, sharing the resources will make for a better overall diet.

Can Hydroponics be used. The process of growing food without soil is not new and if the soil in your area is not fertile, this may be an option. You can learn more about hydroponis at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hydroponics If the soil is fertile then there are options for growing vegetables and some fruits on a very small plot of land. These are ways that one person or one family… Continue

Ten years from today I will probably still be in California looking forward to my daughter's Junior Year in College. Her generation will be tasked with improving upon (or fixing) what our generation has done. Hopefully in ten years we have been able to fix the political climate in the County such that politicians will actually want to work together to fix problem and not just stonewall issues because they can. If these issues cannot be addressed and fixed in by 2020 then I hope my daughter's…

Continue

Education is the way we can guarantee our place in the future. Teach for America is helping to do that by dedications part of their young careers to teaching young Americans in urban and rural public schools. Sometimes children in inner cities and other urban settings are at a disadvantage when it comes to education. Teach for America is dedicated to helping that segment of the population, which is why i have chosen to follow them on Twitter.

When problems become too big for normal solutions, be innovative. Innovation does not need to mean creating a new thing from scratch. i can be as simple as using existing everyday items or any items at hand to solve a problem. By being innovative you can fix problems regardless of their size.