It is only fitting that Brighten Solar Co. has its headquarters in Santa Barbara, the town where Earth Day was founded in 1970. An acknowledgement and celebration of all things blue and green, Earth Day was a civilian call to action born out of environmental assault: the Santa Barbara Channel’s infamous oil spill in 1969. This ten-day disaster purged about 15,000 cubic meters of crude oil, causing devastation to the area’s beaches, marine life, and local economies. It stirred public support for environmental activism and intervention around the country, and over time, Earth Day has become an international reminder that we all share the same planet and natural resources.

A single day to acknowledge all the wonders and riches of our planet hardly seems like enough, so April has become globally known as Earth Month. (Personally, Earth Year seems more appropriate to us, but one step at a time.) This year’s main theme for Earth Month was plastic pollution, a pervasive problem clogging up landfills and wreaking havoc on marine ecosystems around the world. Plastic is made of oil, so its production is further widening the pockets of big oil giants and increasing the demand to drill. In the solar industry, we are fighting the demand for oil and other fossil fuels by converting homes and businesses into self-sufficient producers of energy, but we’re not ready to stop there. Here’s what we’ve been up to to celebrate Earth Yea- …Month.

Lauren and Marine joined other environmentally-minded businesses in Solvang to celebrate Brighten’s enrollment in the Green Business Program of Santa Barbara County. The program dives deep into all facets of our business operations to reduce waste, conserve resources, and incorporate environmental mindfulness into our company culture. We were thrilled to receive our certification and will continue to seek ways to reduce our collective carbon footprint. It was also nice to see other businesses of all shapes and sizes involved in the program, including Marborg Industries, Keller Williams Realty, the Good Lion Bar, and the Santa Barbara Natural History Museum and Sea Center. Several municipal departments are also certified, including the City of Santa Barbara Waterfront and The Carpinteria-Summerland Fire District. Congratulations and kudos to all the other organizations who have taken it upon themselves to conduct business with respect to our environment! 

We hope other businesses in our community will consider becoming certified as well. If you are interested in learning more about the program, click here or contact Frances Gilliland: coordinator@greenbizsbc.org.

To help us “green up” our culture, we have launched a Sustainable Action Competition for all of Brighten’s employees. Every time a staff member does something sustainable, they are able to log it into a smartphone app to receive points. At the end of the month, the leader will be awarded a prize to help them continue their efforts, such as a reusable cutlery set or a bus pass. Categories in the competition include transportation, reusables and plastic alternatives, plant-based food, and company operations. Lauren is sending the team a “Green Tip of the Week” for small ways we can make our lifestyles more sustainable. 

Our team set up shop at Alameda Park in downtown Santa Barbara for the Community Environmental Council’s Earth Day Festival, and it was another great year. We had a fun game to show kids how their iPads and video games can be powered by the Sun at our Passport stop, we danced to great music and ate amazing sustainable food, and enjoyed the company of other businesses and community members who are taking sustainability seriously. We even brought along a household battery demo to show homeowners how they can stay protected during outages…

All in all, we had a very busy and exciting Earth Month indeed. We had so much fun that we have decided to continue the celebration of our planet, indefinitely. 🙂