Ask the Experts: Living a Greener Lifestyle

Ask the Experts: Living a Greener Lifestyle

by LeeAnna Tatum

Photos provided by: Kimberly-Carr Home Designs

Husband and wife team Michael and Heather O’Sullivan are the owners and founders of Kimberly-Carr Home Designs, a company created to help people live a greener lifestyle. Their company is a reflection of their personal commitment to an environmentally-conscious life.

Though admittedly still a far cry from the socalled “zero waste” lifestyle, the couple have made significant strides in their own home to reduce waste in general and, more specifically, to reduce the use and waste of single-use plastics.

I met with them to discuss their journey and to glean some tips that we can all put to use in our own journeys toward a more sustainable lifestyle. Following are some questions and answers from these green living experts.

What are a few simple changes we can begin making today toward a greener lifestyle?

If you haven’t already done so, Heather suggests eliminating single use water bottles and straws. Reusable and portable water bottles are readily

available as are reusable straws. “These are simple changes that I think most people can adapt to,” she said.

Energy efficiency - use your appliances during offpeak hours. Don’t run the water while brushing your teeth. Simple, common sense measures.

Buying from local farmers is not only good for CO2 footprint, but it’s better for your community, better for your bodies to eat organic.

Grow some of your own food. Take a gardeningclass. Make use of resources from the local UGACooperative Extension.

The textile industry is a very dirty industry - there are things used that are detrimental to the environment and the people who work there. Seek out companies that offer transparency and are working to reduce the environmental impact and protect their workers. Heather also suggests that buying second hand is a great way to reduce waste and pollution.

What have been the most challenging changesyou have made and what did you learn throughthe process that you wish you’d known sooner?

“We always try to look for used items as much as possible.”

Around 2018, National Geographic released the article stating that only 9% of all US recycling is actually recycled. Back in the late 90s when recycling began, plastic was marketed as being recyclable, so there was a sense that using plastic wasn’t so bad.

It was disheartening to know that recycling isn’t solving the problem.

“It’s a lot harder to look at what you’re purchasing and make choices based on that. Packaging that is not plastic… it’s hard to make that shift. I wish that I had known sooner and could have made that switch sooner to keep from having consumed so much plastic.”

We participate in “Plastic free July” to make an effort to focus on reducing our use of plastic.

“I think ‘Plastic Free’ being a name for a movement has kind of scared some people off. So, every year, we pick one new thing that we’re not going to use anymore and switch to a reusable.”

As part of that process in the course of a normal day, I used my note function on the phone to note everything I touched that was plastic. There is a place for some plastics but not everything needs to be made from plastic.

It’s hard to avoid plastic especially in food packaging. But that packaging can be washed and reused.

As Michael explained, “the fruit that we get for our smoothies comes in a plastic bag, but we wash that out and keep it and reuse it. It works perfectly well, you don’t have to go out and buy new plastic when it’s already there in your hands.”

There are products out there that are reusable and can replace many types of single use plastics like plastic wrap and sandwich bags. Stasher bags

are made of silicone, we’ve had our first set of 5 for 5 years and still use them. Khala Cloths are a brand of beeswax coated cloth wraps that can replace plastic wrap, they are both reusable and biodegradable.

“We have and make and sell reusable bags for the produce at the grocery store, and even we forget sometimes to take them”, Michael admits. So, keeping them at the door or in the vehicle is a great way to make sure you have them with you when you get to the store.

What do you think is the biggest hurdle for people to start living more sustainably?

“I think overwhelm is a big part of it,” Heather says. When presented with images of massive amounts of plastic in the ocean or other overwhelming images, it can make one just want to look the other way. The other issue is that it’s hard to understand how as an individual what you do can possibly matter.

Just take it one item at a time.

Fight perfectionism and be real about it. You may not be able to achieve “zero waste” but you CAN reduce your waste.

“There’s a perception that going green costs money,” Michael explains, “Khala Cloths cost money - it’s cotton, it’s beeswax, it’s labor - it cost money. But it’s an upfront cost. We have not bought plastic wrap in 4 years, so you recoup that cost over time.”

Some people say that going green costs a lot of money. What are some inexpensive, DIY ways to go green?

We take bath towels that have become frayed and cut them up and use them in place of paper towels and napkins. They are perfectly fine, they are washable, there’s no added expense. And it reduces the need to buy single use paper items with plastic packaging.

There’s a second use for a lot of things.

We use our yard and grow things that we can use. We grow bamboo which we use for our reusable straws and we also grow our own luffa.

You can make your own detergents and household cleaners. There are lots of instructions online for making them.

I see that you guys own an Electric Vehicle. What would you say to someone who is thinking about buying one?

We bought our electric vehicle used a couple years ago. It’s a 2013 Nissa Leaf. There is battery degradation that takes place over time which limits the amount of miles it can go. The newer vehicles have addressed that issue and can go further.

We use it as an about town kind of car. Heather takes it to work everyday and we use it to run errands and it’s a fantastic car. All we do is plug into a 120 volt outlet during off-peak hours and it costs literally dollars a month to use it every day.

We get 50 city miles on an 80% charge (the batteryis not charged to full capacity to protect the life ofthe battery).

There are few maintenance issues. It’s saved a lot of money in gas and lowered our carbon footprint immensely over the last few years.

We love it and highly recommend it.

What’s next...?

One of our big goals is to sell this house in a few years and get in a tiny home somewhere and live off-grid. We’re really excited about that and researching that and trying to figure out how to make that happen.