Green Hero of Chicago-Lisa Elkins: Redesigning Chicago’s Sustainability

All around the nation there’s a buzz in the air. No, it’s not regarding the scandalous affair of South Carolina Governor Mark Sanford. Nor is it about the unexpected death of legendary Michael Jackson. No. The real buzz—the buzz that haunts our dreams and drains our bank accounts is the constant reminder of our failing economy. I know, sick of it yet? But, good news, there just might be a simple solution in sight. GreenWerks’ latest Green Hero of Chicago, Lisa Elkins, shows that going green can also mean saving green.

Owner of the innovative and environmentally responsible architectural company, 2 Point Perspective, Lisa Elkins works to combat the environmental issues as well as homeowners’ economical woes by designing more sustainable buildings that can cut energy bills in half. As an accredited LEED professional, she can insure the proper and most efficient design of your home or business. Having lived in both San Francisco and London, two cities with very modern understandings of the planet and our personal responsibilities, Lisa brings alternate ideas to enhance Chicago’s green community. She wants Chicagoans to think differently as she did stating, “Once you learn what your business is doing to the environment, you want to change it.”

“There are huge impacts—LEED research has helped prove it,” she claims in response to consumers’ resistance to environmentally sustainable living. With today’s struggling economy, people are finally starting to make the smarter decision: “people are more willing to invest in their home—it’s smart right now, who knows where the stock market will lead you, but investing in homes is proven savings,” Lisa urges.

As far as green being the new black, Lisa shoots down this idea that sustainable design is a mere fad. As education spreads, “more people are getting interested,” she claims with a definite display of confidence. “Enough people are making a shift that soon everyone must make the shift—it is not a fad.”

Currently working on a green restaurant and GreenChoice Bank, Lisa not only looks to offer more sustainable building practices but also offers a fresh and modern style to her spaces. She demonstrates an aesthetically appealing design that is bright and welcoming while telling its inhabitants and visitors of its natural origins.

Lisa urges Chicagoans to look out for the Green Exchange, an environmental building and marketplace that is currently being built. She explains its crucial impacts on Chicago’s green community as it will be a much needed meeting place for Chicagoans looking to get involved in their local environment as people will actually be able to see these sustainable practices put into effect. For Lisa, no buzz of a fallen pop star or even a dwindling economy is bigger than the hopeful prospects of Chicago quickly getting a little greener.

GreenWerks has chosen various environmental activists/enthusiasts of Chicago that we will be featuring every Friday for the next few weeks. These people were chosen based on their ongoing dedication to impact Chicago’s green community. We will be highlighting some of the people that we, at GreenWerks, feel need to be recognized and appreciated in our newest blog series GreenWerks Green Heroes of Chicago.

Green Hero of Chicago-Jen Khatchatrian: Mom on a Mission

“Where are your recycling bins?” five year old Jack asked a Starbucks employee.

“Oh, don’t worry. We keep them in back,” the employee claimed.

“Well, you should really display them so people can recycle,” Jack fired back.

“Good idea, we’ll be sure to do that,” the employee responded.

Jack followed up on the employee’s words on his next visit to Starbucks only to find that no recycling bins had since been displayed. Marching up to the same employee he encountered last time he inquired as to where they were yet got the same response with the same lack of enthusiasm.

On Jack’s third visit to this Starbucks location he again found no recycling bins so he rushed to an employee’s side demanding some kind of bin be displayed. Resigning to the child’s persistence, an employee made a makeshift sign over a trash can claiming “RECYCLING” thinking this would alleviate the situation and ease Jack’s demands. As expected Jack followed up on his newly created recycling bin only to discover it was no longer there. Why is a five year old more educated and environmentally responsible than adults? It only makes sense that this persistent and eco-friendly boy was the son of environmental activist and our green hero Jen Khatchatrain.

At GreenWerks, we are not only interested in green paints, kitchen models, and solar paneling, but we are also interested in the expansion of Chicago’s green community. It is for this reason that we have identified and awarded a few local Chicagoans with the most prestigious honor of being a GreenWerks Green Hero. These people have displayed outstanding efforts to positively impact Chicago’s green community so in our minds they’re the modern heroes of today’s biggest battle—the battle for sustainability.

Many Chicagoans lack direction in their environmental endeavors…How can I manage my family and work while being responsible for the environment? How do I find time? What do I do first? The answers to all these questions lie in Jen Khatchatrain, a green navigator in Chicago.

Jen makes her name known through her countless blogs such as ecochicoraganizer.com where she divulges anything from interesting green tips to fun and interactive activities to do with the family while being mindful of the planet. She created Chicago Green Families that aims to allow families to be together outside and enjoy the beautiful (and free) simplicity of the city. Convening a couple of times a month, this group takes part in various environmentally friendly activities that promote sustainability and family fun including anything from making art out of used materials or planting food in the Edible Garden at Lincoln Park Zoo.

Jen has even adopted two beaches that she regularly monitors as if they were her adopted children. She removes every single piece of trash from the beaches every week. Jen urges Chicagoans, “We need to change our practices at the beach.” Having found syringes, beer bottles, and countless cigarette butts that will end up washing into our water, she is determined to change Chicagoans’ view on their own personal responsibility for their actions. “This is more than picking up trash, it’s education, grasping our impacts—it’s showing stewardship,” Jen declares.

What makes Jen a GreenWerks Green Hero is not only her ability to serve but also her exceptional ability to inspire. Through her countless “green networking” outlets Jen’s mission is “outreach, inspire, connect, act” and with her rock-on attitude she adds a fresh enthusiasm to Chicago’s green community.

Yet she needs your help. There’s a pivotal piece missing to this green puzzle and that’s a little taste of reality. “What’s missing” she claims, “is mainstream America seeing people walk the talk.” She explains her personal experience with a “green resistance” as people are unsure of such new practices—such practices that aren’t familiarized well enough in the media. Jen stresses that the real obstruction in seeing the Chicago’s full potential for sustainability is that “we need to see everyday green, we need to see real people doing green.” She outlines that this will be the challenge for the next couple of years, as we must face the drama of navigating through mainstream America.

“This is a movement about awareness and consumerism.” Jen points out. It’s about simple daily choices. “We must rethink where we put our dollars in this controlled burn.”

In Chicago, we have numerous resources and opportunities to make a difference, so grab hold of them. Take a Chicago Corp Conservation Class. Attend a Chicago Green Family Event. Or even more simply, follow Jen’s advice and simply “get on board with personal responsibility!”

We honor Jen for her endless efforts to navigate Chicagoans in the right direction. For her this is all about inspiring people to impact the greater good—it’s not for celebrity—it’s for future generations. People resist this “green movement” as they may be hesitant with any change, yet people like Jen aren’t here to intimidate and look down on newcomers, they’re here to teach, “we call ourselves ‘olive’—not yet green” Jen admits, “we’re not perfect.”

GreenWerks has chosen various environmental activists/enthusiasts of Chicago that we will be featuring every Friday for the next few weeks.  These people were chosen based on their ongoing dedication to  impact Chicago’s green community.  We will be highlighting some of the people that we, at GreenWerks, feel need to be recognized and appreciated in our newest blog series GreenWerks Green Heroes of Chicago.

White House Gets a Little Greener Thanks to a New Veggie Garden

The White House is a symbol of this country’s strength and power as it’s the central nervous system of the nation. What would be more symbolic in today’s green movement than to have a sustainable and all natural vegetable garden on these grounds? Displaying a productive and efficient resource for food in this hub of power would demonstrate that this is the definite direction the country is going in. First Lady Michelle Obama jumped at this idea as she made a landmark change to this capital landmark.

“I want to make sure that our family, as well as the staff and all the people who come to the White House and eat our food, get access to really fresh vegetables and fruits,” Obama said.

Mrs. Obama is looking to provide a healthy, fresh, tasty, and sustainable resource of vegetables and herbs including spinach, peas, squash, fennel, and possibly berries and mint in the future. Using her celebrity and power for good—she hopes to inspire Americans to hop aboard the new modern lifestyle as being not only environmentally friendly but also providing a solution to the nation’s ongoing battle with obesity.

Gardening in pure first lady fashion, Michelle, donned in pink pants, a striped tank top, and a matching floral cardigan, teamed up with a local elementary school to help her harvest the newly sprouted vegetables this week. Over 90 pounds of produce have been collected not including the immense amount of herbs harvested as well. So far, the garden has proven to be quite the success as rainy weather and weekly weed management, along with a fortunate lack of interest from the Obama’s dog, Bo, has allowed the garden to flourish.

In order to show that harvesting your own vegetables can not only be fun but also delicious, the first lady hosted a small cooking lesson followed by an outdoor picnic to give her elementary school gardeners a gift for all their hard work. Mrs. Obama took a knife to the newly picked lettuce demonstrating to the kids how simple and delicious it is to prepare your own fresh salad as they decorated cupcakes with berries (a healthier alternative to frosting).

So what’s next for the White House (or should we now say the Green House)?

Mrs. Obama is now looking into making her own honey by housing her own beehive on the White House grounds, “My kids aren’t very excited about the beehive,” she said. “But we’re going to try to make our own honey here.”

Whether Michelle Obama is harvesting spinach or monitoring her beehive, she will always be promoting community values, healthier alternatives, and greener practices—now that’s what we want to see as the symbol for America.

Oak Park Remodeling Photos

These are some photos from a second floor gut rehab of a Oak Park Bungalow. The final project came out specular! We will be sure to add some more photos to the photo gallery soon.