Earth Day 2020

Though every Earth Day is a great time to reflect on what we as individuals and our society as a whole have accomplished in order to lesson our footprint on the planet for future generations, this Earth Day marks an extra special one. This is the 50 year anniversary of the first Earth Day Celebration!

It gives us at New Day Solar a great opportunity to reflect back to our roots. My name is Brandon Carlson and I am an owner and electrical contractor at New Day Solar. I want to tell you about my father and the values he holds in regard to the world around us.

My father, the President of New Day Solar, Scott Carlson, began working within the solar electric industry in the late 1980’s. While working in maintenance for UC Riverside’s Natural Reserve System, he was asked to find a solution for power on one of their remote sites. After countless hours of research and phone calls around the country, Scott was able to secure some used solar modules from the government, purchase some golf cart batteries and design a custom ground racking system out of scrap metal to provide enough power to run a small structure used for a research facility. Later that same year, he was asked to build a similar system on a different reserve managed by UCR. It was at this point that Scott fell in love with photovoltaics! At that time, before solar was as popular as it is today, only a handful of individuals within the United States were installing solar electric systems. Scott continued to install solar systems. Over the next few years, as equipment became more available and new manufacturers began offering more solar products, many within the industry would reach out to him. 

As a child, I remember him flying to Japan to meet with the CEO of Kyocera and it was not uncommon for engineers from major inverter manufacturers to come to our home. I remember frequently speaking to engineers from all over the world as they came to our house to discuss design ideas and test a new inverter out in the Southern California weather, then coming in to eat dinner with us.My father taught classes for homeowners, inspectors, and firefighters in his garage, discussing the basics of the technology and what to look for. My parents would discuss pleasantries with designers, fabricators, and engineers alike. The goal between them and my parents was simple, per my father, “I want to bring solar to the people… install quality, affordable solar systems, reducing our dependency on oil imports, while providing clean renewable energy for our planet.”

Both of my parents have instilled within me the importance of taking care of the world around me and making change with your own two hands. It’s a lesson that should be taught frequently and appreciated every day. And even more so, today, on Earth Day’s 50^th Anniversary. Every day is Earth Day for our family.  

Happy Earth Day!