Meet Your New Business For Good Board Members

2021 is finally here, and there is much to look forward to.

There’s the promising COVID-19 vaccine and a return to some semblance of normal life. We have new local and national elected bodies dedicated to progressive policies that improve representation, access, and opportunity. And a renewed commitment to environmental health is here—both in San Diego and across the nation.

We at Business For Good are especially optimistic for one more reason: our six new board members!

Through the addition of these incredible new board appointees—who are all local San Diego business owners—we feel more equipped than ever to face the challenges ahead of us and continue to drive meaningful change in our communities. 

Without further ado, we are honored to introduce our new 2021 Business For Good board members. We’d like to extend a huge thank you to each of them, as well as each of our current board members, for their generous time and unwavering support. 

Christian Batista 

Business Name: Total Package Professional Services 

What you do and who you work with: TPPS does all things HR & Payroll. This includes HR & payroll audits; HR management; HR consulting (think “phone a friend”!); payroll processing; staffing & recruitment; training; and labor compliance. We work with small to midsize businesses in a variety of industries. Our core values are being responsive, building partnerships, hard work, being real, and having fun. 

The Business For Good policy focus area that resonates with you the most? Homelessness resonates with me the most. The issue is so complex. Sometimes it feels like solutions are crafted without really considering the core needs of those who are experiencing homelessness. I also find that culturally we make a lot of assumptions about the demographics of those who are unsheltered, not realizing that it could only take one or two unfortunate events for any one of us to find ourselves in the same situation. I think there is room for businesses to help advocate for solutions to the larger issue, especially affordable housing and transportation. No question that both are essential needs. 

Why did you want to join the Business For Good board of directors? I feel aligned with the values of the group, and hope that I can help be of service in a way to help advance the mission. 

What do you love most about San Diego? I love living in a place that has great diversity: people, cultures, climate, and neighborhoods. I feel like I discover new places every time I venture out. 

Austin Evans

Business Name: Life Law Partners, LLP

What you do and who you work with: We provide business and estate-planning services to small businesses and those who work with them.

The Business For Good policy focus area that resonates with you the most? As a small-business counsel, my focus is naturally small-business investment. Knowing how important capital and liquidity are to businesses to service, especially in the pandemic we’re currently facing, I’m proud to connect businesses with these investment resources that provide alternatives to saddling them in debt. 

Why did you want to join the Business For Good board of directors? Having served on nonprofit boards before and having a business law background, I’m looking forward to bringing a view to the board that focuses on our four organizational lenses—structural, human resources, political and symbolic. Business For Good is a thriving organization that has so much room to grow. I’m hoping to provide insight that will broaden our membership and increase our influence on the matters that make our small business community in San Diego stronger.

What do you love most about San Diego? The people. The mix of people who are here, whether San Diego natives or transplants, represent the best of who we as humans need to be. They offer hospitality, dedication, and levity. It’s so great to foster connections with other San Diegans, and I can’t wait to meet even more civic leaders in my role as a Business For Good board member. 

Indra Gardiner Bowers

Business Name: 62ABOVE 

What you do and who you work with: We solve our clients’ marketing challenges with creative strategy and results-focused execution. We offer brand strategy, design, advertising, paid media, social media, and public relations services for clients ranging from hospitality/destination, to public affairs, energy, and consumer products.

The Business For Good policy focus area that resonates with you the most? We have been focused on the issue of homelessness in San Diego for many years. For most of the past decade, we worked first with Father Joe’s Villages and then Serving Seniors, which provided an up-close look at the challenges facing our unhoused population. We feel extremely fortunate to live in San Diego and believe we must do what we can to alleviate the experience of homelessness and ultimately end it in our community.

Why did you want to join the Business For Good board of directors? I believe I bring to the board an experienced view toward board governance as well as a positive, can-do attitude toward achieving the organization’s goals.

What do you love most about San Diego? How much time do you have? As a New York City escapee, I have full appreciation for our quality of life. I love cross-border living and cannot wait to get back to explorations of culture, wine, and tacos as soon as we can travel again. Living in an area with such a high concentration of small farmers has been inspiring to me (watch for photos of my urban garden this summer!). San Diego feels like it still has a lot of potential and I believe we can help shape that for the better.

Cindy Lin

Business Name: HOVE Social Good Intelligence

What you do and who you work with: ​We are a social impact tech company working to ​connect people to social impact data. We do this using deep learning analytics to provide ​well researched, ​affordable, and easy-to-understand ​sustainable and ethical information to inspire people to become a force for good. Hey Social Good is one of our products, where purpose-driven businesses receive a full social impact assessment and get listed in our Directory of Verified Social Good businesses. Our Hey Social Good platform, a content and data-driven platform similar to Yelp, helps consumers easily discover these purpose-driven brands.

The Business For Good policy focus area that resonates with you the most? Environmental Health. I believe it is critical to work on environmental health to build a thriving and sustainable city to live and work in.

Why did you want to join the Business For Good board of directors? To help drive progressive policies and inspire more business owners to take part in improving their economic future and livelihoods.

What do you love most about San Diego? The many, many sunny days.

Rachel Lozano Castro

Business Name: The Brink Small Business Development Center

What you do and who you work with: We are an accelerator for tech-enabled and innovative startups hosted by the University of San Diego, which to date has served over 1,000 local small businesses and helped them raise over $70M in capital. I am also the owner of JoinedByRae, a service-based officiating business in San Diego, and the founder of a local giving circle and a family impact investing fund. 

The Business For Good policy focus area that resonates with you the most? Immigration and environmental health. I live in both Tijuana and San Diego. As a bi-national citizen, I am  committed to helping San Diego lead as the values-forward mega-region that it is. We must see immigrants as the amazing contributors they are to a great city and economy. And as such, we need to also make environmental and public health decisions that are good for the entire region. 

Why did you want to join the Business For Good board of directors? I want to participate in and grow networks for good. I’ve always been passionate about bridging the relational gaps that exist for social good. That is why in 2021, I joined two boards of directors, Business For Good, and the national Social Enterprise Alliance to help lend my own relational capital toward the steps that matter. Business For Good helps business owners align their values with collective, thoughtful action, leveraging their sway in their city and region.

What do you love most about San Diego? The neighborhoods. Just walking around and experiencing the distinctness of National City versus University Heights, or Mira Mesa versus North Park. The overlap between feels and vibes makes me love this city. 

Diolinda Monteiro 

Business Name: 5th Dot Studio

What you do and who you work with: My graphic design studio focuses on helping clients tell their stories. Projects range from creating infographics, which explain complicated processes to the general public, to creating intriguing social media and print collateral for internal as well as B2C communications. My favorite workflow includes combining analog and digital techniques to create a more organic look than can be achieved with computers alone.

The Business For Good policy focus area that resonates with you the most? Environmental health. I have a background in Marine and Environmental Science, so this issue is very important to me. There is no downside to maintaining environmental health, and there should be no question concerning its importance. In a tourist destination city like San Diego, a healthy environment is not only vital for our residents, it is also good for business.

Why did you want to join the Business For Good board of directors? I feel very inspired whenever I have conversations with Business For Good members. It is refreshing to be associated with a business community that thinks beyond the bottom line and actively works to drive positive change in our community. I am super excited about taking my involvement with the organization to the next level.

What do you love most about San Diego? I love so much about San Diego! Our outdoor options are amazing, from the beaches to the Laguna Mountains and Anza-Borrego Desert State Park. We have a glorious mix of cultures that provide access to amazing food from around the world. And our several award-winning breweries seal the deal for me.