After interviewing Kelly Krezek, the Founder and CEO of New Earth Now, on the Going Green Podcast, we were fascinated with her story and wanted to learn more. This time we got to sit down with Kelly and learn more about her background and passion about building sustainable cities.
Tell us a little bit about you and your background:
I’ve always been passionate about making the world a better place, so I became a Developer and Consultant to build regenerative and sustainable communities and cities. My background is in business development, project management, finance, real estate investing, residential remodeling, and sustainability consulting. As I started my path to community development, I traveled the world to locations such as Costa Rica, Bali, and Thailand in search of the best eco-villages I could find so I could learn the best ways to build and operate.
I found that so many people desire to live in a way that is in harmony with the earth and each other, yet still want to have the modern luxuries. That’s why it is my mission to make sustainability luxurious and convenient so more people can easily live alignment with their values and in a way that doesn’t harm the planet. I’ve worked with several communities and retreat centers, there is more info on my website, www.newearthnow.world.
I’m currently working on developing a model for communities with permaculture principles that have homes with renewable energy, edible landscapes, recycled and low-consumption water systems, zero-waste systems, and regenerative materials that last hundreds of years. They will also have new operational systems such as decentralized currencies, co-governance models, clean and efficient transportation, holistic health care, and experiential education systems that integrate individual expression and personal development.
What is a fun fact about you?
I love to be outdoors and do adventurous things like skydiving, wakeboarding, surfing, hiking, skiing, and of course I love traveling as much as possible!
What was your motivation to get into this industry?
I noticed we have so many worldly issues such as poverty, homelessness, hunger, disease, crime, and war and I believe sustainable and regenerative living will help alleviate these systemic problems. The Venus Project’s documentary “Paradise or Oblivion” is what first motivated me to build regenerative environments for people to live. It showed that if we can build cities in a different way, we could solve almost every problem of human suffering on earth. If you haven’t seen it check it out for free on YouTube!
Why do you think climate change and sustainability is such an important topic today?
We can see so much devastation to the environment from living without thinking about how it affects the earth, and humanity is suffering. Living in polluted areas without nature causes many diseases. Businesses are plundering the planet for dirty resources such as oil and coal, yet that is not needed anymore, we can create 100% renewable energy available for the world now. The earth is being deforested which is killing millions of different types of species, creating less oxygen for the world, and it just can’t be continued or humanity might not survive.
There are so many ways to source sustainable materials for building homes rather than deforestation. The earth is in dire need of our attention and contribution to creating a healthy home for all beings. With the devastation of deforestation, pollution, oil and coal industries, GMO’s attributing to species declines, diseases, less oxygen and reduction of vital resources, we need to make a change now more than ever.
What do you envision your industry looking like 10 years from now?
I see many more real estate developers being motivated to create LEED certified buildings and implementing more sustainable features. I see many communities being created around the world and more people joining them. I see cities being redeveloped and implementing sustainable features and renewable resources. I believe there will be a few more sustainable cities in development as well. It’s the natural evolution to build in harmony with nature, and I see regenerative development as the future of building.
What can the average person do to make a difference?
People can do small things like buy organic food, stop buying plastic, recycle, grow a garden, use green cleaning products, or big things like buy an electric vehicle or hybrid, build their house with hempcrete or earth material, or live in a sustainable community. Eating less meat and dairy will greatly reduce greenhouse gases as well. Most of all think about where your products come from and where they are going – trash doesn’t just disappear, it piles up and creates pollution. Think and act with awareness and spread the awareness to others!
What positive changes are you seeing?
So many people now are realizing more than ever that we need to make a change. A lot of people ask me how they can live in a community or create one of their own. People are realizing we can no longer depend on government and big businesses to provide our food, electricity, and shelter. We can live more affordably and have our basic needs taken care of so we can go out and live our purposes to create great things in the world.
I also see a lot of awareness in the mainstream catching on, the 17 Sustainable Development Goals of the United Nations are proof. It’s also great that CA is now requiring solar to be installed on all newly built homes. I love to see so many vegan restaurants and more restaurants with vegan options, more brands that are plastic free, sustainably sourced, and have eco-friendly and compostable items. If you’re inspired to check out sustainable communities, go to www.numundo.org.
What are your social media tags for sharing this content?
Instagram: @kellykrezek
Facebook: Kelly Krezek
LinkedIn: Kelly Krezek
Thank you Kelly for taking the time to talk with Going Green. Be sure to follow Kelly at the links above to learn more about her story.