who says though that individuals can’t make a positive change right in their own communities? three women share their journeys to living a more sustainable lifestyle. read on to hear their stories, from their inspiration to how they incorporated these alternative changes into their lives. 

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arlington, virginia, resident fidan karimova, 33, is on a personal journey to live a plastic-free and zero-waste lifestyle. she will be the first to admit that it can be intimidating and says, “you can’t be perfect all the time, but making little changes, at least, slowly gets you to where you need to go.” 

karimova was inspired by a book she read in 2017 called “zero waste home: the ultimate guide to simplifying your life by reducing your waste,” written by bea johnson. since then, karimova has incorporated these switches into her life and says it “saves money and saves a lot of plastic going into the trash and filling up our landfills.” 

many of these changes center around products used in her daily life. in her bag, she always has a reusable cup, bamboo utensils, and a cloth napkin because although paper towels are easier to recycle than plastic, “it adds up” she says. 

she uses a refillable deodorant which allows her to keep the plastic encasing and reuse it, instead of purchasing a brand new product over and over. her floss comes in a glass container with the string itself shipped in compostable packaging. additionally, her lotion and shower products come in reusable containers. even her phone case is compostable! 

at home, karimova uses dishwasher drops that come in a paper box and wool dryer balls to replace disposable dryer sheets. in terms of wardrobe, karimova is in the process of shifting to a closet of only 50 clothing items. this feat has been difficult in a world where fast fashion brands mass-produce cheap quality and low priced items. 

these are small switches in the sense that anyone can choose to spend their money on them, but they require effort and research to get there. by being conscious of where she spends her money and avoiding single-use items, karimova says, “i’m ensuring that our environment stays cleaner longer.” 

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kristy halvorsen, 42, had lived in florida her whole life. while working as a firefighter-paramedic in 2015, she had a dream of traveling the world. not wanting to wait until retirement for her adventure, she created a five-year plan to downsize her home and move into an airstream full-time.

then, one year into the plan, “i just suddenly realized we don’t have to plan everything and life kinda has our backs and we can be more in the moment,” halvorsen said. her vision ended up only taking two years before she was out on the road. 

her portable home attaches to her truck and lets halvorsen to stay at national parks, campgrounds, and friends’ driveways. this lifestyle allows her to lower her water and electricity use and her total cost of living. halvorsen also had solar panels installed on her trailer to give her power when off-grid. she’s since realized, “i don’t need more than the sun gives me…it almost forces you to be more cognizant and more conservative.” her trailer holds just 60 gallons of water — but that lasts her, one person, about three weeks. 

“i’m a drop in the bucket. i’m sure there’s many more people living like me out there. the more there are, the less impact we have, the smaller the footprint,” she said. 

“one of the biggest things i’ve seen in the journey is we need so much less than we think,” she said. through her time on the road and her new habits, halvorsen has noticed just how much stuff we buy — whether from the grocery store, shopping, or even buying souvenirs on vacation. she said she wishes she could cut her already tiny closet in half, but admits it’s hard to get over the very human worry that we might “need it someday.” 

halvorsen acknowledges that this lifestyle isn’t for everyone, but encourages even those who aren’t living on the road to aim for a more gentle footprint. now in her third year living full-time in the airstream, she has become so close to nature and says, “(i) don’t want to waste things; hurts my soul.” 

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karen mcmanus, 62, and rich mcmanus, 68, haven’t lived on land for the past five years. quite literally, their home is on the water, in a sailboat with 300 square feet of living space. they moved to their energy-efficient boat, named free spirit 2, to travel during their early retirement. this new living situation quickly taught them to reevaluate the way they used their space, what they owned, and how they used electricity and gasoline. 

free spirit 2 provides the mcmanus’ an environmentally friendly way to travel and is a more affordable way to live in pricey washington, d.c. the sailboat has solar panels which provide most of the power they use, with the option to run a generator for air conditioning. karen mcmanus says, “it’s not like an apartment where you can just flip a light switch.” on cloudy days she says they are especially cautious of their usage. 

with limited living and storage space on their boat, prior to moving the couple got rid of an entire closet of clothes and donated extra kitchen supplies. they’ve since even switched to e-books over physical copies. (they quickly become damp and moldy on a boat.) but their life on the water also has been cheaper in a few ways for them. the daily cost of living, including boat slip fees, are relatively cheap. but maintaining a boat and doing repairs can add up fast. 

mcmanus said living on a boat leads you to become more aware of your environment, since there’s no escaping the weather changes. she stays very attuned to how the weather and seasons change — and how they impact the tide. mcmanus said she and her husband enjoy living at a marina, and have met people from many different walks of life. 

she says she also has become more mindful of how much waste ends up in our waterways. “how much trash i have picked up out of the ocean, made me very aware of our society’s use of plastic. also, no longer a fan of helium balloons,” which she said she’s found miles offshore floating in the ocean. 

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in almost every facet of life, people can make product or lifestyle switches that are better for the planet. from changing the place you call home to not eating animal products, buying reusable products, shopping for sustainable clothes, actively protesting, picking up trash, and more. the more people that make these smaller-scale changes, the bigger the positive trend that can result. as halvorsen said, it’s all “a drop in the bucket” toward a livable future. 

almost exactly a year ago, i made the decision to switch to clean beauty products. on a random september morning, i quite literally stumbled into the cosmetics crisis and my soon-to-be favorite store, take care, for the first time. i liked the lip gloss. i went back again when i ran out of my favorite mascara. then again and again and again. the more time i invested, the more inspired i became to learn more about the impact of my most beloved brands. it didn’t take much digging to learn that the beauty industry is bigger — and badder — than i had ever imagined. from 2018 to 2019, the beauty industry grew nearly 6%, generating around $320 billion in retail sales. 

i sat down with take care founder becky waddell to talk about our shared love of makeup, her inspiration for the shop and my quest to makeover my beauty routine for the better. i was most curious to get her expert opinion on what the term “clean beauty” really entails, as its use is diverse and debated. in waddell’s eyes, clean beauty is the creation of affective cosmetics without causing harm. the product selection she curates in her shop exemplifies this, as she strives to help customers new and old choose cosmetics that can “transform something that is aesthetic into something that supports our wellbeing.” 

defining clean beauty also meant confronting one of the biggest obstacles i came across in my journey: greenwashing, or attempts by companies to convince buyers that they are doing more to protect the earth than they are. large makeup brands have hopped on clean beauty as a trend; but often call products “clean” or “natural” when they have floral packaging… as opposed to actually being eco-friendly. this practice is more than just misleading. 

as it turns out, huge consequences come in really small cute packages. zero waste europe reports that the global cosmetics industry produces more than 120 billion units of packaging every year.. most of which cannot be recycled. this means that even the most innocent of plastic shampoo bottles is likely to end up in landfills or the ocean where it will take 400+ years to decompose. environmentalist ellen macarthur claims that if we do not make a change, there will be more pounds of plastic than fish in the ocean by the year 2050. pretty scary right? 

there is some good news too. these scary problems have emerging solutions. brands like rms are innovating to reduce harm throughout their products’ lifecycles by using packaging made from 80% post-consumer recycled fibre and manufacturing using 100% wind power. another leading company, kjaer weis, has created packaging that can be refilled and reused. although such undertakings can be costly for companies — which in turn drives up prices — waddell offered me a new approach: a change in the way we think about how we consume. she calls for a more intentional approach to shopping, encouraging people to buy less things that means more. the industry still needs to make massive strides in terms of accessibility: it is my hope that one day it will be expected that all products do more good than harm. in the meantime, don’t toss your plastic moisturizer bottle just yet! however, when you are looking for a replacement i’d encourage you to invest some time into learning about more sustainable options… in trying something new, you might just find something really beautiful.

many western people think of seafood as one category: fish. as jessica gephart, an environmental scientist and professor at american university said in an interview, “we talk about it (seafood) as one group in the same way we might talk about chicken or beef, but really it represents 2000 species that are captured or cultivated around the world.” 

seafood is more than fish

the term seafood refers to a diverse array of organisms from fish to cephalopods (octopus, squid, cuttlefish, etc.) to algae (phytoplankton, seaweed), among others.

we often limit our seafood choices to only fish, leaving the rest of the sea in a tank. 

how can we expand the conversation around seafood — and why should we?

ole mouritsen, physicist and professor of gastrophysics and culinary food innovation at the university of copenhagen, answers, “it’s a matter of elevating people’s knowledge of what seafood is.” 

mouritsen’s exploration of cephalopods and algae began as an interest in japanese cuisine. his curiosity led him to years of research surrounding these organisms and their role in food systems. he has worked alongside scientists and chefs to explore the nutritional compounds and flavor found in these species. in his recent paper, a role for macroalgae and cephalopods in sustainable eating, mouritsen claims we should look further to octopus, squid, seaweed and other aquatic organisms for a lessened environmental impact and greater health benefits. his research calls for a change to “consume marine food in a more diverse and insightful manner, including eating from lower trophic levels and limiting bycatch and waste” (mouritsen & styrbæk, 2018, p. 2). by consuming these compounds at the source, we are able to maximize the nutritional value of these foods. typically 90% of nutrients are lost as they move up the food chain through consumption. marine seaweed is on the lower end of the food chain, and dense in micronutrients. cephalopods are generally on a higher trophic level, while still retaining much of their nutrient density. when we eat the organisms towards these lower trophic levels (compared to large fish, cows, pigs, etc.), we consume the richest nutrient components, with fewer calories. 

role of cephalopods & algae in a nutrient-rich diet

raw, boiled, fermented, alive, fluorescent, it’s all edible, mostly.

beyond their delectable flavor, these two types of organisms provide omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids. the human body cannot synthesize these nutrients on our own, so we must seek them out in our food. micronutrients including iodine, iron, copper, zinc, and selenium are also found in many species of cephalopods and algae. all of these nutrients are essential for our health and brain function (mouritsen & schmidt, 2020).

beyond nutritional value, one of the huge strengths of seafood is the diversity, explained gephart. not only are there over 2000 species of seafood organisms, but they are “found in all climatic belts on the planet and they can be harvested in the wild or farmed in aquaculture” (mouritsen & schmidt, 2020, p. 2). 

umami

mouritsen highlights in an interview that when it comes to diet “taste comes first — after that you can talk about nutrition, health, calories, and sustainability.” the central component of mouritsen’s research related to seafood is the umami flavor found in cephalopods and algae. umami, is considered “the essence of deliciousness” (mouritsen, 2016, p.8). found in a variety of cephalopods and algae, “umami may be a part of the solution to provide healthier, less caloric and more satisfying meals” (mouritsen, 2016, p.8) — while adding the same delicious savory flavor we’re used to. the umami-rich seafood plays the role of an alternative to salt or sugar. replacing additives with seaweed and other umami-rich foods can “reduce the fat content by up to 30%… and reduce salt intake up to 50 % without reducing while retaining palatability” (mouritsen, 2016, p.8). this work has also involved experimentation with the use of umami as seasoning for vegetables in an effort to make a plant-based diet more palatable for omnivores.the craft of preparation

the reason most americans find cephalopods and seaweed unappetizing is the texture. cephalopods get their texture from collagen, which makes up their muscular structure. in his research, mouritsen speaks to the value of proper preparation, describing for example how improperly prepared squid can transform from a subtle, tender dish to a rubbery, greasy mess. japanese cuisine offers models of how to handle these meats. we may look to their example, mouritsen believes, to see “as with other types of meat this can be handled by culinary insight, craftsmanship, and scientific knowledge”(2020, p. 3). for these more uncommon types of seafood, it will take culinary insight and public communication for them to find their way onto western grocery store shelves.

looking to the future

feeding the growing human population will require culinary innovation. mouritsen notes that in order to meet our needs, “we would have to use all the resources of mother earth,” including cephalopods and algae — even if it takes some getting used to. seafood represents an under-utilized, sustainable alternative to more expensive, carbon-producing food products. mainstreaming seafood — in all its variety — will make the world easier to feed. 

when it comes to food you can’t really force it. it takes a long time. it probably took a long time for americans to learn how to eat pizza.” -ole mouritsen

works cited

mouritsen, o. g. (2016). deliciousness of food and a proper balance in fatty acid composition as means to improve human health and regulate food intake. flavour, 5(1). doi:10.1186/s13411-016-0048-2

mouritsen, o. g., & schmidt, c. v. (2020). a role for macroalgae and cephalopods in sustainable eating. frontiers in psychology, 11, [1402]. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2020.01402 

mouritsen, o. g., & styrbæk, k. (2018). cephalopod gastronomy – a promise for the future. frontiers in communications, 3, [38]. https://doi.org/10.3389/fcomm.2018.00038

rowan kunz, an art teacher, ceramist, and photographer, stands apart from the trendy hgtv tiny home dwellers because living tiny means more to her than a small physical footprint. from the french doors that open up her living room to the woods around her, to the composting toilet that goes back into her garden, she lives within a self-sustaining system to become an active part of her surroundings.

she created a space where the outdoors is no longer a separate entity like traditional ways of living often shape it. she is transparent about the fact that it takes hard work, but to her, living intentionally doesn’t mean doing what’s most convenient. it means doing what is healthiest for you and your environment.

kunz, her husband, their german shepherd, and their cat live an incredibly fulfilling life on the beautiful wooded land that provides for them and that they have given back to. kunz embodies a true environmentalist by demonstrating how intentional living extends beyond the four walls of her self-built tiny home in the catskills.

separated by miles of ocean and a 2-hour drive, or a 50-mile hike, through the jungle, guna yala and kalu yala are two of panama’s most sustainable communities.

guna yala, part of the san blas islands in the caribbean, and kalu yala, a commune in the interior jungle, differ drastically in not only their locations, but also in contrasting heritages, culture, and history. what the two do share in common are beliefs and practices that revere the environment.

the guna people, one of the country’s eight main indigenous groups live on the guna yala islands as an independent province off the coast of northeast panama. more than 360 small islands make up the guna archipelago, but only about 50 are actually inhabited and many of which welcome tourists.

the stark contrast between mainland panama and guna yala is apparent even before setting foot on the islands. the water, astonishingly clear and filled with marine life, combined with white sands and palm trees make the perfect vacation spot. what is not immediately apparent, however, is the deeply rooted culture and traditions of the guna people who consider the islands sacred.  

according to aresio valiente lópez, a guna environmental lawyer and professor fighting for indigenous rights, one distinguishing characteristic of guna yala is their right of self-government as an autonomous province. 

a major component of the guna culture is the unique relationship with their environment, which can be seen through much of the artworks and traditional clothing made by guna people.

“most of the native american communities in the americas are very, very close to the land and to the mountains and to the sea and to the environment in general. the kuna people are not far from that,” said diwigdi “diwi” valiente, a 28-year-old guna environmental activist and entrepreneur.

while some aspects of guna cultural beliefs regarding the environment may align with the western concept of sustainability, they are not the same given their contrasting origins, usages, and connection to their respective cultures.

“there is supposed to be one prophet – similar to jesus – that taught us how to behave like humans,” valiente said, “we have this religion and way of thinking where we not only have the mother earth, but also the (father) sun.”

delfino davies, museum guide on the guna yala city island of carti sugtupu, explained that the dual aspect of mother and father is one of the most central aspects of guna religion. couplings are present everywhere in guna life and culture; all places and objects are assigned either female or male.

davies describes this coupling pattern that shows up distinctly in molas, the guna’s traditional artwork sewed into a square of cloth, later made into clothing for guna women. molas typically have a geometric element to them and reflect designs from guna legends and culture.

the guna’s distinctive cultural beliefs are closely connected to their beliefs about climate change, or in some cases, lack thereof.

valiente explains that many guna do not have opinions about climate change, simply because they don’t have sufficient access to information on the topic. many people in guna yala also don’t consider issues caused by climate change to be anything more than fluctuations in the weather, though they are seasonal witnesses to the increasing flooding linked to sea level rise as glaciers melt in polar regions.

“here, in the islands: there are months when the islands get completely flooded. you have water up to your ankles. imagine living for a month like that. there (are) people that still believe that’s because of nature itself,” valiente said.

abelardo “tito” nuñez davies, 40, who resides on small pelican island island with his mother and nephews, notes matter-of-factly that his family’s guna island is shrinking. the house, once in the center of the place, now flanks the sea. “what can i say? we’re here because of the grace of god.”

nuñez also explains that although he and his family have had to temporarily relocate to nearby islands during big storms, they haven’t even thought about permanently moving.

valiente sees climate change through a different lens as his people are disproportionately affected by it. “it’s super frustrating. it’s even worse because you try to explain (to) people climate change and they don’t understand it because they are not causing it,” he said.

“panama doesn’t produce anything; we are a country of service. a country that did not contribute to climate change at all.”

panama, as a developing country, does not hold much historical responsibility for the human-induced climate change present on the planet today given the country’s almost nonexistent role in industrialization. panama is slowly becoming more developed but is still largely a country of service, with tourism as one of its biggest industries.

the tourism industry in guna yala has boomed so much in recent years to the point where it now contributes 80% of their income. this large percentage begs the question of how sustainable tourism can be in the long run.

developing tourism options based on the mainland and seeking new directions for the economy are critical, said lópez, the guna environmental lawyer. he explains that the guna congress recently created a mixed enterprise in which people can buy shares for the first time. “before, all the enterprises that the congress had were private, but now they created a transportation company that’s 60% owned by the institution and it’s 40% available… for sale for everyone.” now the island residents will receive benefits from profits of all the boat traffic to the islands, he noted.

however, many guna hold strong ties to their beliefs and are not easily subjected to change from outside influence.

“a lot of people tend to go and sort of pass judgment on them like ‘oh their towns are so dirty and stuff,’” says panamanian architect ricardo arosemena. “but my response to that is: they could keep living exactly like that for a million years and they wouldn’t destroy anything and the way that we live — maybe you don’t see any garbage but we just destroy everything.”

“i mean, we have a culture that survived colonization from the spaniards. we are much more than the caribbean. and that’s something that we have not been able to explore and take advantage of as much as we could,” valiente said.

valiente is different from many other guna. he works in mainland panama with a primary focus in the sustainability industry and he also studied hospitality management and international business tourism at the césar ritz college in switzerland.

currently, valiente works with bodhi hostels, a business whose mission is to “inspire and encourage sustainable ways of living and travel.” valiente and his business partner, allan lim, recently opened up a new hostel location in kalu yala, a growing eco-city in the panamanian jungle.

keeping kalu yala’s mission in mind, lim and valiente incorporate sustainable practices into the creation and maintenance of their new hostel. in addition to using solar energy, “we try to apply all the cleaning practices that are organic: we use vinegar and water to clean,” lim said. the partnership also hires only local panamanians to work in their hostels.

in the words of the town’s ceo and creator, jimmy stice, kalu yala was founded with the intention to “build a new town that proves that civilization can live in a socially and environmentally responsible way.”

kalu yala’s mission is similar to the cultural beliefs of the guna people, in that both are environmentally conscious and structured around a sense of community. the eco-city’s name actually has guna origins, kalu meaning “house of spirits, and yala meaning “land” or “mountain.”

although kalu yala is very modern and the guna culture has been present for centuries, valiente is a bridge between these two communities, being the first guna person to work at kalu yala, but hopefully not the last.

just like in the guna islands, there are clear signs of tourism booming in kalu yala. in addition to the new bodhi hostel, there also are plans to build permanent residences in the eco-city.

“we’ll start introducing the small houses which will allow for people who want to sleep on a real mattress so $150 nights is also inclusive, just like $13 a night is inclusive,” stice said.

in addition to the small houses, kalu yala plans to build larger charleston-style homes and attract permanent residents as well.

“so i think we’ll be back up to 200 people by the end of next year,” with interns and staff, stice said. with guests and hotel tourists, he anticipates a community of about 300. “and then we’ll actually introduce home sales in 2020 or 2021, and we’ll start adding maybe 50 full-time residents a year based on that.”

with all this new construction and development in kalu yala, it will be interesting to see how the community can still incorporate their sustainability values into these plans, and what they will do to potentially offset their emissions.

it’s the time of year for orange leaves, cooler days and celebrating the new harvest season. along with the harvest comes a string of food-centric holidays. so with some oktoberfest celebrations still to be held, plus halloween and thanksgiving festivities on the horizon, it’s also the time to consider the water footprint of your food.

of course, some classic fall foods require more water to produce than others. the pork in that oktoberfest bratwurst for example, takes 576 gallons of water to produce per pound of meat. there’s always the option to settle for a beer instead of meat, but 86 gallons of water are required to produce just one pint sized glass of beer.

extrapolating values from the above national geographic article and a chart from ecology.com, a single pumpkin pie requires about 458 gallons of water. that does not include spices, which account for 1% of the global water footprint. with poultry taking a toll of 293 gallons per pound of meat, a 16 pound holiday turkey comes with 4,688 gallons of virtual water use.

even in the production of apple cider, roughly 13 pounds of apples are used to make just 1 gallon, consuming 1,560 gallons of water in the process. fortunately, pumpkin carving and cooking is relatively safe when kept simple. production of pumpkins and other gourds or squashes only requires 44 gallons of water per pound. similarly, if you bake your apples rather than drink them, the water footprint shrinks to 117 gallons per pound.

don’t forget the mashed potatoes, candied sweet potatoes and baked yams either. root vegetables carry a significantly smaller water footprint with potatoes taking up 38 gallons of water per pound of potato. carrots need only a miniscule 26 gallons of water per pound.

because meat and dairy take the most water to produce, be mindful that even a small amount in an otherwise water-light recipe results in a large footprint.

(image at top: pumpkins and other squash require 44 gallons of water per pound, which is actually one of the more water-light foods. source: kam abbot/creative commons)

this bike rack is a great example of the future of natural building on our planet. cob is made from a combination of straw, sand, water, clay, and earth. it can withstand rainwater, seismic activity, and fires; in any environment, it will be durable. cob homes can be uniquely designed, naturally keeping the home cool in the summer and warm in the winter. natural builders of the upstate has created cob pizza ovens, green homes, and green playgrounds across the upstate, showing that this natural, abundant, and inexpensive building material can indeed be used to lead a comfortable life while simultaneously reducing carbon footprint. 

elisa edmondson is a senior communications studies major and poverty studies minor at furman university in greenville, south carolina. elisa is an avd videographer/storytelling fellow at the david e. shi center for sustainability, an interdisciplinary hub for sustainability at furman. 

the dc ddot has partnered with the washington area bicyclist association to provide bicycle and pedestrian safety training in dc elementary schools.

biking is a healthy, convenient, cost-effective, and environmentally friendly way to get around and commute to work each day. in our nation’s capital, there are over 100 miles of bike trails and bike lanes making traveling by bike simpler and safer.

a $45.8 million dc bicycle master plan is also underway and nearly complete. the plan includes many improvements to the biking infrastructure and programs about biking safety and awareness for dc residents, especially children.

of the 51 largest u.s. cities, the district tops the list for highest per-capita funding for cycle and pedestrian facilities and education spending approximately $9.82 per resident.

“i have made it clear i want the district of columbia to be the most sustainable, walkable city in the nation, said mayor vincent c. gray.”

biking is also an integral part of the 20 year sustainable dc plan. the plan calls for an increase in the “use of public transit, biking, and walking to 75% of all commuter trips…”

while producing the video, julia and i found many people were very knowledgeable about the environmental importance of biking. we met an environmental lawyer, a man who taught sustainability awareness in africa and was testing out an 18 mile bike commute, and a father showing his son the importance of biking who had served on various regional boards dealing with the new transportation plans.

most people, however, were not very aware of any plan but noticed an increase in biking lanes and acceptance of bikes on the roads.

there has been an upward trend in commuting by bicycle (3.2% in 2011 to 4.1% in 2012) in dc and most surrounding regions and the future looks bright with smart investments in biking and high awareness by local residents.

however, the numbers still have a long way to go until they can compete with nations like the netherlands where approximately 30% of all short trips are by bicycle. 

john perrino is a senior majoring in political communication at the george washington university. julia blakely is a senior majoring in journalism at the george washington university.

a seed is a modular classrom that meets all 20 imperatives of the living building challenge and is composed of 3 modules, with a core module that houses all of the systems and components the classroom needs to be self-sustaining. these modules can be shipped anywhere in the world. once they arrive at their site, they are rooted in place and the seed becomes immediately functional. in many cases, just the seed core will travel to the site, and sprout! collective (the non-profit currently building the protoype seed – www.thesproutcollective.org) will work with the community to design and build the outer modules of the seed on site, out of local materials.

every seed comes with a seed packet – a curriculum package that allows the seed to become a living laboratory for its students. data collection and commissioning of its net zero water and energy systems and components are part of the children’s daily studies, as is urban agriculture that is also an integral part of the learning space; materials research on healthy non-toxic products used to construct the classroom; and studies into the carbon footprints of buildings and where the seed stacks up. all seeds will have the ability to connect with one another in our seed-patch to share their lessons learned and the student’s innovative lessons and ideas.

by providing a learning space that can be placed anywhere in the world and teach children about the importance of caring for and restoring our planet, we are creating a new normal for the next generation of leaders and doers. the environmental health and social well-being of our planet is in their hands. we know that once a seed is planted, many amazing and inspiring things will sprout from within its walls. we can’t wait to watch it happen.