A little bit about myself..

Sorry guys/gals I probably should have started this with a little intro. on me, the person writing this blog! Well here we go...

My name is Sustainable Steve. I try my best to do my part to live within my means, protect the environment, and support socially just causes. I am an International Business and Marketing major at Cal Poly Pomona and I'm studying Science, Technology, and Society for my minor. I have done a lot in the business world for my age, I was the president of the largest social club on campus, Ridgerunners Ski and Snowboard Club, this past Summer I worked with NASA on two development projects reviewing the viability of a couple UAV technologies, and currently work for Cal Poly as a technology and innovation screen, I am also starting a business. I am learning though, just like you! One of the reasons I am so excited about sustainability is that there is so much we have yet to learn. It is a burgeoning field and developments are made every day. Some cool projects I have been involved in and concepts I have learned include:

Solar Water Heater- Heats 3 liters of water in 15 minutes using solar energy

I made this myself. You can see the light rays bouncing off of the parabolic mirror (made of mylar) and onto the copper pipe. All that is needed is a container for the water and a pump (electric or manual) to circulate the water. It will heat water up to 150+ degrees in 15 minutes (+/- 5 minutes depending on the temperature) it WILL work on cold days and wind is NOT a factor. How cool is that?!

Watershed Restoration- 3 Month Project on Restoring Big Dalton Creek 


Yes! Surprisingly enough we do have streams and rivers all throughout Southern California. Unfortunately many of them are walled up in concrete culverts or dammed up to provide water for the region and allow for more suburban development. There are many problems with these practices because the water supply is often contaminated with fertilizers and pesticides which then runs to the ocean..It's such a tricky issue otherwise known as a "wicked problem".

Here is a picture of Big Dalton Creek in Glendora ,CA near Glendora Mountain Road, which is a majorly fun ride, whether in a car, on a bike, or longboard ;).

Low-Cost Tijuana House

This is a Master's thesis project for the Lyle Center of Regenerative Studies at Cal Poly Pomona. All rights belong to them and I did not build this house but it is a great representation of the philosophy of the center and sustainable practices overall.

It is currently fully built and the features include: custom built for the Tijuana climate and environment which is very steep and hilly, being built into a hillside also provides free additional insulation, and speaking of insulation the design features walls that are built with re-used plastic water battles full of water to provide more thermal mass.

In Summer having a high thermal mass is advantageous because it takes longer for the house to heat up and  the bottles can be removed at night to allow for cool air to flow. In the Winter time the bottles hold in solar heat and then the plastic bottles can be removed to bring heat to other parts of the house.

The house incorporates other cool features like a roof top garden, inexpensive retractable awnings, and inexpensive interior shades, but I think the coolest feature of the house is that it is made of papercrete.


Papercrete is a relatively new innovation in construction material. It is essentially news paper mixed with concrete. It is a crucial innovation because in desert like climates like TJ there is a need for insulation from heat and especially the cold desert winters. Papercrete keeps people warm when it's cold and cold when it's warm for a fraction of the price of regular insulation AND it gives new life to what is currently perceived as a "waste product". Now that's what I call regenerative! Another cool thing about papercrete is that it's incredibly light weight for the amount of stress it can withstand. Check it out!

Imagine the decrease in shipping costs and building costs if we all used papercrete! The only issue is that research has not be fully explored on the effects of moist climates, so for now papercrete is best suited to very dry climates, which most of Mexico and Southern California is comprised of. Good news for So-Cal housing markets!

Anyways, until next time everyone!

Thanks for reading!

-Sustainable Steve


My Source for the information on papercrete and the Tijuana house: http://www.csupomona.edu/~pmlaroche/rdocs/LaRocheTijuana126P.pdf
It's a quick read and will give you a lot more details!