Jill is the founder of Inhabitat, as well as a freelance designer and green design consultant based in New York City. She created Inhabitat in the Spring of 2005 as a way to catalog her endless search for new ways to improve the world through forward-thinking, high-tech, and environmentally conscious design. Educated at Brown University, where she received a B.A. in Art Semiotics, and Central St. Martins, where she received an M.A. in Design Studies, she currently resides in New York City, which so far has been good for her obsession with rooftop gardens and vegan junk food restaurants.

Jill can be contacted at: inhabitat@gmail.com

+ Interview in Vogue
+ Profile in Architect Magazine
+ Profile in the Wall Street Journal
+ Interview on PSFK
+ Schoolblog on Archinect

Sarah Rich is a writer and editor working where sustainability intersects with design, architecture, art, food, urbanism, branding and consumer culture.

Sarah is also the Managing editor of Worldchanging.com, and co-editor/co-author of the recently released book, Worldchanging: A User’s Guide for the 21st Century (Abrams, 2006).

Sarah received her BA from Stanford University in Cultural and Social Anthropology, after which time she dabbled in careers as a chef, singer, and fashion designer, before turning to journalism and stumbling into the vast terrain of online media. She continues to publish print work occasionally in such magazines as Dwell, I.D., BusinessWeek, Creative Review, ReadyMade, Innovative Home, and others.

In her work, Sarah is deeply focused on “solutions-based journalism” — an approach that guides her ever-widening lens on sustainability towards innovations, inventions and ideas that assume a better future is possible, and that the power to build it is in our hands.

As a biodiesel driver and former member of the board of the San Francisco Biofuels Cooperative, Sarah is a firm believer in effecting large-scale change through citizen action. She has seen it happen time and again. She regards her work and the work of her colleagues as a 21st century version of Margaret Mead’s ideological legacy — multiplied to the power of the Internet, global communications, and high-speed social networking.

Sarah can be contacted at sarah@inhabitat.com

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Nicki Mellado and Kyle Martin met in Houston while attending the Rice University School of Architecture. They graduated in 2000 and have since been working as design professionals in the architectural community. Both LEED accredited, they actively seek out sustainable design through cutting edge projects, new materials, and technologies. Likewise, they are always looking for new opportunities to broaden their experiences and expand their education, both in and outside the building and construction industry. Currently Nicki & Kyle are living in San Antonio, TX, continually renovating their house, spoiling their two dogs, and enjoying the local music circuit.

Nicki & Kyle can be contacted at nk.inhabitat@gmail.com.

Originally from Montana, Gretchen now resides in Providence, RI where
she commutes by bike and studies Industrial Design as a graduate
student at RISD. As a designer, she is curious about the ways that
the built environment and everyday products can affect daily life,
reflect human needs, and impact the world. She is passionate about
issue-oriented design and especially work which addresses
sustainability and humanitarian concerns.

EMILY PILLOTON - Managing Editor
Emily Pilloton is Inhabitat’s Managing Editor, and Founder of Project H Design, a charitable organization that supports, inspires, and delivers product design initiatives for Humanity, Habitats, Health, and Happiness. She is also a freelance design writer, furniture designer, and nomad “based” in San Francisco. Trained in architecture with degrees from UC Berkeley and the School of the Art Institute of Chicago, she has written for GOOD Magazine, Innovative Home, and ID, and has also taught design theory in Chicago. When she isn’t traveling or emailing, Emily enjoys baking cupcakes and playing trivia board games.

Originally from Malaysia, Adele has been living out of a suitcase for most of her life. She previously resided in Montreal, Canada where she attended art school and graduated with her MFA in Painting and Drawing. When she isn’t aspiring to be Brenda Starr as a print journalist for the East Malaysian press, she is doodling on walls and calling it installation art. Both her artwork and writing have circulated internationally. Her interests, which include sustainable design and socially-communicative architecture, are derivative of her makeshift lifestyle where refuge is found in a permanent state of transience. She currently lives in London, England where she is pursuing her MA in Communications, Media and Cultural Studies on an Erasmus Mundus scholarship.

Jared lives in Seattle and works as an associate at The Cadmus Group, an environmental consulting firm. He works with the architectural community to encourage high-performance building designs and also writes about the green building industry. For over 5 years, he has supported EPA’s ENERGY STAR program and currently splits his time between new building design and consumer electronics. He also is a sustainable business MBA candidate at The Bainbridge Graduate Institute.

Jared grew up in rural Western NY, attended Bucknell University in Pennsylvania, lived in Boston for 5 years, and moved to Seattle in October 2005. He is a sports addict, hopeful guitar and piano player, wine and coffee lover, indie music fan, and avid chef.

Celine combines her interest in design and deep personal beliefs in the importance of environmental and social consciousness with her background in strategy consulting, finance and technology to run Pro’tech’d [say protected]. The company creates eco-friendly, fair trade products with a modern aesthetic. Born in Nairobi, Kenya and a long time Stockholm resident, she now calls New York City home.

JILL DANYELLE - Fashion Editor
Jill Danyelle is a Jill-of-all-trades who has studied art & design, political science & psychology and health & wellness. In addition to degrees from the University of Kansas and Columbia University, she has studied at Parson’s School of Design and the Fashion Institute of Technology. Her interest in design and ecology has led her to investigate methods for creating products which are sustainable without sacrificing aesthetics. She recently completed an online project, fiftyRX3, which combined her creative and ecological interests to explore style and sustainability. Jill believes that creative utilization of resources offers the solution to designing a better world. Her wind powered vehicle of choice is a slow, but stylish, schooner. For more information visit danyelle.org .

Jennifer is a leader in brand and product innovation, and is a founding principal at research design house Risqué Consulting. A former Wall Street analyst and economist, Jennifer transitioned into the design industry upon graduating with an MBA from HEC in Paris. She has held strategy and executive management positions at Organic, Inc., Frog Design, and Fahrenheit 212. A leader in the green design community in NY, Jennifer serves as chapter chair of o2-NYC, and lectures on the topic of sustainable innovation.

+ o2-NYC

Shar is a rabid green capitalist who will stop at nothing to make every dollar in the economy truly green. She has been working in the sustainable building industry for the last eight years, and is the owner of Full Circle Industries, a compostable tree-free disposables distributor. Shar is a LEED™-AP and is currently developing a gold certified new housing development in Chapel Hill. She has recently volunteered as the greening director for Food For Life Global, the largest vegetarian food relief organization in the world, and is a sucker for veggie food. Shar attended The New School for Social Research in NYC in communications and film, and is plotting to shoot films at forty, when she can produce them from 100% green funds. She lives with her partner of 10 years in a green rehab home in the hills of North Carolina, where she drives biodiesel and practices yoga.

We’ve enjoyed covering the surging interest in eco-fashion at Inhabitat – particularly new designers experimenting with bio-based materials and organic sources, produced with green and socially conscious methods. But the next time you covet the latest NaturevsFuture corn-based dress or Linda Loudermilk bamboo and silk trousers, consider this: the majority of a garment’s ecological impact occurs during the washing phase. So with that in mind, this week’s installment of our Green Your Appliances series focuses on your washer and dryer.

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A trendspotter and green marketing strategist, sustainability has been a major part of Cate’s career for the past eight years. Her Design and Eco-Design course at Goldsmiths College, University of London involved designing and building an eco coffin, planning a sustainable meal with George Bush, and imagining what would happen if Greenpeace and Tesco joined forces. Since then, she’s assisted Nokia’s CSR team with their research and strategy, worked on sustainability documents for Unilever and helped a celebrity designer develop an eco-product for Tesco. She can currently be found exploring London town, documenting trends for consultancies around the world and developing a green trend tour of London.

Kate Andrews is a graphic designer, design researcher and freelance photographer living near London, UK. Educated at The Arts Institute at Bournemouth, she holds a First Class Honours in Graphic Design and a Merit Award from The International Society of Typographic Designers. Kate has worked for The Sunday Times Magazine in London, Synectics Innovation Consultancy, has exhibited at Ringling College of Art and Design, Florida and ever continues to write for Roger-Live (Germany) and Artshole (London). As a designer, Kate is passionate about the ways that design and creativity can affect daily life, reflect human needs, and inevitably impact the world.

Bob and Karen Ellenberg have been designing and building homes since the early 70’s. They have built on-site wood frame homes, masonry structure homes, prefabricated modular homes and prefabricated kit homes. They have built in warm humid Southern climates and in high altitude cold dry Southwestern climates. They have built entry level homes and they have built award winning custom luxury homes and are known for their attention to detail. In addition Bob has worked extensively in damage assessment in the aftermath of hurricanes, earthquakes, fires and tornados which has given him additional insight into what really works not only in terms of safety but in repair costs as well. Few designers or builders have such broad hands on experience and knowledge. Bob can be contacted at Bob@casasbybob.com.

After finishing his architecture degree at the University of Monterrey in 2001, he realized that he wanted to focus on sustainable architecture, and knew nothing about it. Foolishly thinking that it would become important in fifteen years time, he packed up his suitcases, left Mexico and headed for Australia, where he studied a Masters in Design Science at the University of Sydney. During his time in Sydney he worked as an ESD consultant and product assessor, looking at everything from the thermal performance of a building, to the environmental impacts of a particular product. Currently working as an architect in Brisbane, he continues in his quest to learn what sustainability is and how to achieve it. He figures that it will take some time, but refuses to make any estimates.

Abigail Doan is a fiber, mixed media, and environmental installation artist based in NYC and Siena, Italy. She has worked and traveled as a documentary film researcher, an art director for digital media and 3D design projects, and as an outreach coordinator for environmental education initiatives. Educated at Princeton University and Purchase College, she has exhibited her artwork in numerous shows internationally and is also a featured artist on Greenmuseum.org, the online environmental art museum. When not writing about art, craft, gardening, and fiber, Abigail is busy getting her hands dirty restoring a 14th century farmhouse in rural Tuscany. She and her husband are using local reclaimed materials while abiding by strict historic and regional preservation codes. She is also currently designing and crocheting air loft “canopy” gardens and is creating a fiber and vegetation based jewelry collection.

Originally from Texas, Tylene received her BA in Architectural Studies and History of Art from Brown University and her MA in the History of Decorative Arts & Design from Parsons School of Design. In 2006, she relocated from New York City to Shanghai, China to establish ArtToursChina, which provides guided art tours and art consulting services to those looking for insight into an always evolving and sometimes baffling contemporary Chinese art scene. When Tylene is not out on one of her walking tours, weaving in and out of moped traffic and avoiding other occupational hazards, she spends her time learning Mandarin, documenting daily life in China’s largest city, and doing her part to make China a greener place to live, one reusable chopstick at a time.

Ali was first captivated by sustainable design while snowboarding past green buildings in Colorado ’s Rocky Mountains . After several years quieting her inner ski bum, she returned to her native Connecticut where she received her BA in Art History from UConn and began a decade-long career as a home improvement contractor. She fused her love of nature and the built environment through graduate studies in Environmental Science at Antioch New England Graduate School and a Master’s Certificate in Sustainable Design from Boston Architectural College. Today, she lives in Germany where she works as a freelance writer and runs the Epona Foundation, a non-profit that provides professional services to organizations working for environmental and social justice.

Piper is a LEED accredited designer in San Francisco with architectural experience ranging from project manager at C. David Robinson Architects to design consultant at Origo, Inc., developing the Best House Ever business model. Trained in Architecture at the environmentally-conscious University of Oregon, she admits to an obsession with materials and resources and thrives on finding new means and methods of sustainable design. She is co-chair of the NCC Emerging Green Builders committee of the USGBC and teaches a class in Sustainable Project Development at the UC Berkeley Extension. She enjoys knitting, running marathons, and the occasional design competition, winning first prize in the Green Dollhouse Competition. She also loves trekking through virgin rainforests in Oregon, Thailand, Malaysia, and Brazil, where she recently fell in love with Ipe trees.

Rebecca is a freelance graphic, product, and eco-designer based in Brooklyn, New York. For the past few years she has divided her time between designing for a myriad of companies and organizing environmentally focused projects and events. Rebecca is the past chair and the current vice-chair of o2-NYC, the New York City chapter of the o2 global network of eco-designers. During her tenure, she co-organized many events including Design:Green, CitySol, and most recently HauteGREEN. Rebecca’s work, collaborations and events have appeared in publications such as Metropolis, Interior Design Magazine, Metropolitan Home, and most recently The London Observer. Rebecca received a BFA in industrial design from the Rhode Island School of Design in 2003, receiving a special award from the school for her commitment to environmental issues.