A mechanical engineer from Tesla Solar visited Carlmont on Feb. 9 to teach students the benefits of clean energy and how Tesla is making a difference in the green industry.

The speaker’s name was Richie Rasor and he is currently working for Tesla Inc. in their Engineering Management division. In Rasor’s presentation, he told his backstory and how he got to the position he is in today, as well as what Tesla is doing to help the environment.

Rasor, originally a Carlmont student, chose to become an engineer because in school, he always loved math and science. He embraced the eco-friendly side of his profession and worked as a photovoltaic designer, which is a solar project engineer, for Solar City out of college.

“I saw helping the environment and ultimately the future of this beautiful world we live on as a must, so that is why I went to work for Solar City and Tesla,” Rasor said.

After working as a photovoltaic designer, Rasor worked with Give Power to help deliver power to people without it all over the world.  Then Rasor went to work for his current employer, Tesla Inc. The company is based on sustainable energy and has three main fields: transportation, energy utilization, and creating a Tesla ecosystem.

Rasor explained how Tesla Inc. is trying to reinvent houses by building solar panels into roofs and making the whole house run on a Tesla battery.  Tesla Inc. uses lithium-ion batteries which are much more eco-friendly and sustainable than diesel. Rasor taught students the importance of what Tesla Inc. is doing and how students can be more environmentally aware.

“I learned that Tesla is making clean energy which will be more and more needed in the following years with global warming and the low amounts of fossil fuels left,” Sebastian Bessoudo, a sophomore, said.

Tesla’s goal is to encourage other companies to come out with their own green energy products that will help the environment, making the world a cleaner place.

Rasor claims that solar power is the future and he encouraged all students that went to the meeting to think about how they could be more eco-friendly in their own lives and how they could inspire others to do the same.

The meeting was well received by students, who had good things to say about it afterward.

“The presentation had an overall positive tone to it and helped many students understand the work and effort Tesla actually does,” Tim Kraemer, a sophomore, said.