About Us

About the Organization

Sustainable Lafayette is a network of residents and organizations located in Lafayette, California, about 20 miles east of San Francisco, who are actively sharing ideas and solutions for how to make their homes, businesses, and community more sustainable. Many cities, towns, and counties across the country have created citizen groups to pursue sustainability. Lafayette’s approach is unique–to grow a “network” of residents who are focused on sharing real world success stories and best practices that will contribute to our community’s sustainability.

About our Programs (What We Do)

Sustainable Lafayette started our publishing sustainability success stories on a web site and doing a monthly e-newsletter. Now we are also publishing seasonal tips, hosting educational workshops, publishing a Tip of the Month in the local paper, participating in many local events, promoting local food choices, helping to lead the Chamber of Commerce’s Green Committee, working with Sustainable Moraga to organize Lamorinda Green Drinks and Green Rheem movie nights, and working with the City of Lafayette to help organize Lafayette’s Earth Day celebration and new Green Awards program.

About Sustainability

“Sustainable” means to live in a way that can be continued indefinitely without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs. The essence of this is a stable relationship between human activities and the natural world, which does not diminish the prospects for our children and their children to enjoy a quality of life at least as good as our own. This requires that we take no more from the environment then it can replenish, and give no more then it can absorb. In other words, adopting lifestyles that respect and work within the earth’s natural limits and maintain the health of the eco-system that we all depend on.

About the Board

A Sustainable Lafayette Board of Directors was formed in June 2008 to help expand our activities further. The Board meets once per month to steer the direction of Sustainable Lafayette and collectively has expertise in energy efficiency, transportation, waste reduction, environmental science, sustainable & local food, small business, green gardening, and education. Board meetings are open to any member of Sustainable Lafayette. More about the Board…

About the Founders

Sustainable Lafayette was started by Steve Richard and Bart Carr in early 2007. Steve and Bart were sharing stories about pursuing sustainability over coffee and thought that it might be very useful to share stories across the entire community in hopes of being inspired and learning from each other’s efforts. Steve Richard is a Lafayette homeowner who’s been working to reduce his family’s carbon footprint by 50% since Fall 2006. He’s had his house professionally audited for energy efficiency, made a wide range of changes to conserve energy, and recently installed solar panels. Bart Carr is a Lafayette homeowner who is a solid waste management consultant specializing in organics diversion (composting). Bart also started the Lafayette Bike Network and has worked to promote biking as an alternative to automobiles in Lafayette. Both Steve and Bart are part of Lafayette’s Enviornmental Task Force, which is actively working on measures to reduce the city’s overall footprint, and also involved in organizing Lafayette’s annual Earth Day celebration.