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In 1999, my family’s cab company was invited by then San Francisco Supervisor Gavin Newsom, to test a clean air taxi. My father, a thirty-year veteran cab driver who also suffers from respiratory problems, determined that after driving a typical ten-hour shift in a compressed natural gas vehicle he was more alert and did not feel the typical cab driver malaise. We decided our company would participate in the first clean air taxi program in San Francisco. It was through this program that I was introduced to people at the Bay Area Air Quality Resource Board, San Francisco Airport and The City and County of San Francisco, most notably, Rick Ruvalo. Rick is now doing clean air work in Thailand.

In 2004, I had the opportunity to work on World Resources Institute’s Eradicating Poverty Through Profits Conference in San Francisco, where I was introduced to C.K. Prahald, the author of the book, The Fortune At The Bottom of The Pyramid. I am now reading the book for the second time. This conference exposed me to a group of people committed to doing work on a global scale. The conference chairman was Bill Kramer, a dedicated individual with whom I enjoyed working with on the conference and share a friendship to this day.

The commitment of people like Rick and Bill made me realize there is good work to be done and all it takes is the desire. I thank Ode for providing a forum for like-minded people to share their stories and I am proud to be a part of this community.

In 1999, my family’s cab company was invited by then San Francisco Supervisor Gavin Newsom, to test a clean air taxi. My father, a thirty-year veteran cab driver who also suffers from respiratory problems, determined that after driving a typical ten-hour shift in a compressed natural gas vehicle he was more alert and did not feel the typical cab driver malaise. We decided our company would participate in the first clean air taxi program in San Francisco. It was through this program that I was introduced to people at the Bay Area Air Quality Resource Board, San Francisco Airport and The City and County of San Francisco, most notably, Rick Ruvalo. Rick is now doing clean air work in Thailand.

In 2004, I had the opportunity to work on World Resources Institute’s Eradicating Poverty Through Profits Conference in San Francisco, where I was introduced to C.K. Prahald, the author of the book, The Fortune At The Bottom of The Pyramid. I am now reading the book for the second time. This conference exposed me to a group of people committed to doing work on a global scale. The conference chairman was Bill Kramer, a dedicated individual with whom I enjoyed working with on the conference and share a friendship to this day.

The commitment of people like Rick and Bill made me realize there is good work to be done and all it takes is the desire. I thank Ode for providing a forum for like-minded people to share their stories and I am proud to be a part of this community.