Go Green: Local Family Lives Sustainably

For Christine Bailey-Clar, the green seeds were planted many years ago. "I spent a lot of time with my grandmother," she says. "She was the earliest recycler I knew of and it made sense to me."

Three years ago, this family of six moved out to Farmington where they could take their ideas of living sustainably to a whole new level.

"We kind of knew we wanted to live a different kind of life. We wanted to learn how to live off the land and how to provide for ourselves," Bailey-Clar says.

So they started planting. A small garden has now spread to over 4,000 square feet. They also have fruit trees and collect rain water to keep it all growing. They even got some chickens that will produce organic eggs come fall.

"The structures were here. But the majority of the things we've done is stuff we picked up off the curb," says Keith Clar. He says several barns have been transformed using things like old telephone poles and tools.

One of the most important lessons this family wants others to take away from this experience is that it doesn't have to be hard. Even something as simple as drying clothes on the line can help save energy."

"I don't think a lot of people really pay attention to the effect they have on the planet," says Michael Clar. "By living sustainably, we can help reduce that impact, slow it down a bit if enough people jump on bandwagon and reverse it."

Whether it's unplugging electronics when they aren't in use, or buying in bulk to avoid large amounts of packaging. This family is setting an example they hope others will follow. "We want people to understand that it's not hard, and we're from the city born and raised," says Bailey-Clar.