Sustainable Living Photo Gallery

What we do:

The Renewable Energy Center (REC) specializes in helping people downsize and live a more environmentally friendly lifestyle by creating more energy efficient small homes.

How we do it:

We utilize the following,

• Built Better - Not Bigger!
• Structural Insulated Panels (SIPs)
• Solar PV with Energy Storage
• Electric Vehicle Transportation and Charging
• Energy Recovery Ventilation
• Rainwater catchment
• Permeable pavements
• Environmentally friendly practices  

Our Experience:

Renewable Energy Center (REC) has both promoted and worked collaboratively in the Sustainable Energy Field. These experiences include:

Living in a Tiny/Small home community which provided the opportunity to meet other like-minded people and to further refine the lifestyle we ultimately sought. As a result of this precursor experience, we have come together and co-founded Simply Sustainable Villages with the intention of creating the environment that we originally envisioned. We sought our own solutions regarding issues such as leasing vs owning land, addressing adequate spacing between homes, and establishing fair and reasonable community governance practices.

Living and working at a Small/Tiny Home Village in North Carolina provided an awesome learning platform. It was a crash course in unanticipated challenges, ranging from failed rental management programs to inadequate strategies to address aging infrastructure. That said, we learned that- when creating a community or village for small and tiny dwellings- do your research!  With a background in renewable energy research and practice, our team has provided valuable information to others interested in start-up communities and villages in Arizona, Florida, Georgia, Indiana, Louisiana, North Carolina, Ohio, South Carolina, Tennessee and Virginia. 

Let us help you achieve your preferred lifestyle!

Our expertise includes knowledge of:

• Sustainable dwellings
• Small/Tiny House Community Development
• Sustainable Small Homes on permanent, high performance foundations,
• Structural Insulated Panels (SIPs)
• Insulated Concrete Forms (ICFs)
• Radiant Floor Heating
• Energy Recovery Ventilation (ERVs)
• Blower Door Testing/Building Performance 
• Tiny House Living for three years
• Tiny House Transport & logistics
• Tiny House Set-up and installation
• Solar PV and Energy Storage
• Electric Vehicle Transportation
• Prairie Grass for Energy & Wildlife Habitat