Living the Green Life

There’s a new book out that tells the story of Garden Atriums, what many believe to be the most sustainable housing community in the U.S.

Designed by architect and first resident, Dr. Stuart W. Rose, the Garden Atriums are a cluster of seven homes with virtually zero utility bills, where household water comes from recycled rain, tropical trees grow abundant throughout the house, and huge skylights and solar panels provide power. He has authored a new book about his experience, “Sustainability: A Personal Journey to a Built Sustainable Community” that describes how the project went from vision to reality, and offers a detailed picture of what a sustainable life will look like in the 21st century.

“I am sitting and writing in a home that is quite different from what most homes look like today,” says Rose. “I live in a house that has virtually no utility bills, has a tropical garden in its center that oxygenates and purifies air, and is a joy in which to live.”

The journey from vision to reality wasn’t an easy one, however. Rose and his wife and business partner, Trina Duncan, received rejection after rejection for bank loans, and many doubted the homes’ feasibility. None of that dissolved the couple’s vision. Today, Garden Atriums has succeeded in a time when most real estate has faltered, growing from one home to seven, and from two residents to 15.

“To ease the transition from what’s familiar and comfortable—but clearly not sustainable—to a system that is sustainable and even more comfortable, we need to experience another alternative,” says Rose.  “Not hear about it or read about it…experience it.”

Unlike many chilling accounts raising the red flags for climate change and environmental erosion, the book presents a tangible living solution from a man living out the change. For the first time ever, he lays out the step-by-step process he and his wife took to get there, offering an inspirational yet realistic call to arms.

“Virtually every source sees the trauma signaling the end of one era of humanity, followed by the beginning of a new—and very positive—age of evolution of our species,” says Rose. “And the best news? By committing ourselves to sustainable living, we’ll realize a better quality of living than we ever could have imagined.”