Participants in the first Sustainability Hack, held April 15, pause for a photo outside the Scripps Ranch Community Center. (photo by Ralph LoVuolo)
Sustainable Scripps Ranch
Since 2009, Sustainable Scripps Ranch has been working with the Scripps Ranch Civic Association to foster growth and environmentally friendly lifestyles throughout the various Scripps Ranch neighborhoods.
Founding member Lynn Owens said their mission is “to build a sustainable community through education, advocacy and application of sustainable practices.”
Whether it’s in reference to water, energy or pollution, Sustainable Scripps Ranch is working to do more for the community.
“People in Scripps Ranch are naturally inclined to help, and they’re naturally inclined to save,” Owens explained.
To her, it only makes sense that the community is becoming more sustainable every day. But this organization did not come together overnight. Owens recalled the origins of the group, telling of a “desire for something closer to home,” because unlike the other sustainability initiatives in San Diego, Sustainable Scripps Ranch is one of the first to be based right here in the community.
“Everyone has good ideas,” Owens said, “They just need to come together.”
Come together they did. While the organization initially focused on water and landscaping, it has since expanded with other focuses including solar energy and even food waste.
“It’s about sharing what we know with everyone else,” Owens said.
Sustainable Scripps Ranch has been benefiting the community since its conception, with one central accomplishment being its exchange and dissemination of knowledge. “This is the stuff everyone cares about. They want to know more, and we can help them,” Owens explained.
One way the organization came together is through its Sustainability Hack, the first of which just happened on April 15. Owens described it as “a community-oriented meet-and-greet.” At these hacks, residents can bring food to share, but the focus is on the information.
“The hack is an opportunity; an opportunity to share ideas and technology for time-saving sustainability,” Owens said.
Sustainable Scripps Ranch plans to have more of these hacks in in which members of the community can discuss how they live sustainably, while also getting to know one another.
Sustainable Scripps Ranch has other events planned for the future. Every month, it hosts Garden Shares, where residents can exchange fruits, vegetables and anything else they have in excess, as a way of avoiding waste and sharing with the community. The organization also works in conjunction with the Scripps Miramar Ranch Library to offer movie showings of environment-related films and discussions. For more information, visit scrippsranch.org/ssr.