GOVERNMENT PROGRAMS

Supporting your Jurisdiction's Climate Action Goals! Educating the San Diego region in partnership with local jurisdictions is integral to our work at Solana Center. Partner with us to meet your climate action goals. We offer educational workshops, webinars, outreach booths, consultations, resource guides, and more to help your jurisdiction communicate important environmental initiatives to constituents, such as diverting organic material from landfills.We support more than half of San Diego's jurisdictions with SB 1383 compliance services. 

Get in touch with our Environmental Solutions team zero.waste@solanacenter.org or call (760) 436-7986 ex. 724

Contracted services include:

A woman in a hairnet and uniform writing in a notepad in a commercial kitchen.

    • Technical assistance to businesses 

    • Edible food recovery inspections to businesses and recovery agencies

    • Food Recovery Business Tier Identification and Capacity Planning 

    • Compliance Education (webinars and resources development)

    • Annual reporting

    • Implementation record keeping

    • Paper procurement

    • Strategic messaging for city website regarding legislation and compliance

    • Creation of compliance letters to businesses

    • Compliance inspections of businesses

    • Awareness and education campaign for residents and businesses

    • Creation of a logo, tagline, templates for all communication

    • Creation of informational videos

    • Educational blog content creation

    • Educational social media content creation

    • Webinars and forums (residential and business-focused)

    • Explain new requirements and procedures (in conjunction with city staff and hauler)

    • How-to prevent food waste and rescue edible food

    • Community outreach booths

    • Helpline support

    • In-person visits to businesses for personalized guidance on waste diversion compliance (AB341, AB827, AB1826, SB1383)

    • Visual waste assessment

    • Staff training on organics recycling

    • Guidance and strategic input on food waste prevention solutions & organics recycling

    • Guidance on setting up food donation programs

    • Creation of Food Recovery Lists and Services

    • Coordination with SD Food System Alliance to create food recovery programs

    • Community Engagement

    • Consultations to businesses

    • Business outreach 

    • Resources development services

For more information about partnering with Solana Center, please reach out to zero.waste@solanacenter.org or call (760) 436-7986 ex. 724

Education

Signage indicating recycling and waste sorting at a collection site, with bins for gray landfill waste, blue recycling, compost, and food waste, along with a variety of fruits and vegetables.

SB 1383 Food Recovery Inspection Training

Solana Center has extensive experience inspecting and providing technical assistance to hundreds of businesses and food rescue organizations. We are proud to have distilled thousands of inspection hours into a digestible format and offer this education via our two part SB 1383 Food Recovery Inspection Training virtual course. Participants will receive deep insights into the Edible Food Recovery aspect of California’s Short-Lived Climate Pollutant Reduction Act (SB 1383).

  • Part 1 introduces relevant aspects of the law and then focuses on edible food rescue requirements.

  • Part 2 takes place over two days and provides comprehensive training for conducting edible food recovery inspections in the commercial sector.

Registrants who attend all 3 days of the training will receive a certificate of completion and have the potential to receive Professional Development hours with SWANA.

If you are interested in participating in the next course please click to enter your contact information below.

Part 1 is available as an On Demand training.

We offer a live session of the SB 1383 Food Recovery Inspection Training several times annually. Check to see if a live full course session registration is available.

Custom Training

Two smiling people, a woman holding a notebook and a man in a black chef coat, standing in a commercial kitchen with stainless steel shelves and appliances.

City Official Training for SB 1383 Compliance

Solana Center's team is well-versed in food waste prevention, edible food rescue, and the processes required for compliance with SB 1383 legislation. To share lessons gleaned from years of hands-on business consultations we have designed a two-part training for city officials so your team can complete SB 1383 inspections without a third party.

Part 1: General training on SB 1383 and how to complete inspections.

Part 2: Training on a specific sector for inspections (i.e. hospitals, restaurants, supermarkets, wholesalers). This segment can be modified and offered multiple times if there is interest in having training done in multiple business sectors.

These educational modules are offered virtually or in person with options to travel nationally.

Additionally, we typically recommend one or more business inspections to be done in collaboration with the training so we can bring those being trained out into the field and make sure everyone is set up for success.

To learn more about this training and how to implement it for your team, please contact kayleigh@solanacenter.org.

Zero Waste Events

A woman teaching children about recycling at an outdoor event, with recycling bins and informational posters.

Solana Center's team offers educational event booths, waste diversion, and more designed to inspire and empower individuals to reduce and rethink waste and become change-makers in their communities.

Learn more about how our zero waste event offerings can benefit your next city event, street fair, festival, etc.

Case Studies

  • A bowl filled with broken bread, apples, oranges, eggs, and other baked goods.

    SDRCC Edible Food Donation

    Solana Center for Environmental Innovation worked with the San Diego Regional Climate Collaborative at the University of San Diego to create a case study documenting work related to SB1383 performed by Solana Center’s Environmental Solutions Team.

    View Case Study
  • Person slicing a lemon on a wooden cutting board over a trash bin in a kitchen.

    City of Encinitas and EDCO

    Solana Center is working with the City of Encinitas and EDCO with how-to guidance for curbside organics pickup for commercial businesses, multi-family dwellings, and individual consumers in Encinitas. Online workshops, resource guides, and outreach explain the benefits of the new curbside recycling program and how to properly participate by diverting organic waste. These resources are creating behavior change.

  • Customers ordering at a gelato shop counter with a menu on the wall and plants around.

    City of Carlsbad

    The City of Carlsbad partnered with Solana Center to offer webinar training sessions, technical consultations, guidance sheets, and more to Carlsbad businesses. These resources provide strategies to reduce waste and help businesses save money while staying ahead of state regulations.

  • RSWA

    RSWA

    Solana Center supported RSWA (Regional Solid Waste Alliance) and its seven member-cities with SB1383 Education and Outreach. Outcomes include Tier 1 and Tier 2 food-generator identification, compliance resource checklists, educational webinars, inspections, and technical consultations. Solana Center partnered in this effort with the San Diego Food System Alliance, which will be driving edible food recovery.

Innovating for the future of the San Diego region

At Solana Center, we are navigating the changing currents of legislation and climate change to help you reach your environmental goals. Our programs are designed expressly to meet your specific requirements, operating environment, and budget. We can help you achieve quantifiable and impactful change.

Learn more about Solana Center's work as a nonprofit working to clean up our waste cycle through education and action:

Recovering Organic Resources Public-Private Collaboration, December 2022 Keynote presentation from WASTECON SWANA (Solid Waste Association of North America)

Testimonials

  • "Thank you for all the information you put together for our [Edible Food Recovery] deliverable to the County. You did an awesome job and it is always a pleasure working with Solana Center. Thanks again!!"

    — Wbaldo Arellano, City of Imperial Beach Environmental Program Specialist II Department of Environmental and Natural Resources

  • "Solana Center [has taken] leadership in the space of food recovery, with a particular emphasis on developing SB 1383 Tier identification, inspections, and capacity building programing. I have really enjoyed working with your team in this space, and I am impressed to see how the Solana Center team has helped shape the way Cities and businesses are implementing food recovery programming."

    — Colleen foster, MELP - City of Oceanside

  • "You have done such a great job putting everything together.  I know it's a challenge to work with so many different entities and Staff from various cities.  But I think that process has resulted in some really good products...and I believe all the work will make a difference to ensure organics recycling and edible food donation gets off the ground."

    — A city staff member, regarding our support services to ensure state legislator compliance.

  • "(Solana Center) has been providing all of this education and has been composting and managing food waste and suggesting things for how people manage their food at home," Blakepear said. "And also helping cities all throughout this county. So we have some real leadership here."

    —  Senator Catherine Blakespear, (previously City of Encinitas Mayor), in reference to Encinitas' shift in the face of SB 1383 ordinances