Tom Reed considers himself a "start-up guy" not a politician, in fact he's been on the Inc. 500/5000 List 3x for different startups, but moving to Serenbe offered a unique opportunity to lead "start-up city" of Chattahoochee Hills as mayor. Ask yourself, How do you thrive financially while mindfully preserving? How many developers live in the city they've built? Imagine creating such an amazing quality of life that you're willing to stay, and your children and grandchildren live there too. That's the message Tom has taken forward in developing Chattahoochee Hills, and working with other mayors to revitalize and preserve the beauty of south-Metro Atlanta.

People + Organizations Mentioned

The Blue Eyed Daisy

The Inn at Serenbe

Capri Blue Candles

Inc 500/5000

John Graham

Congress for the New Urbanism

Chattahoochee Hill Country Alliance

City of Palmetto

Bob Simpson

CH2M Hill

Bouckaert Farm

Aerotropolis Alliance

Deana Holiday Ingraham

MARTA

Step off the treadmill of life and book a stay at the Inn at Serenbe. Use code Serenbe Stories when you book online or over the phone and receive 10% off your stay!

Today through October 12, order a copy of Start In Your Own Backyard and you'll receive a tote bag, keychain and signed bookplate from Steve Nygren.

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Ned and Janice Peek were the first people Steve Nygren met when he moved to Chattahoochee Hills, and their table was the first he went to when he needed help protecting their shared rural paradise. Rodney Peek, their son, was on the first City Council after Chattahoochee Hills was incorporated, and his children are the 7th generation in their family to be born and raised in Chattahoochee Hills. The Peeks and Steve look back at a time when the Nygrens were the "city folk" moving next door, and tell stories about life in the country.

Step off the treadmill of life and book a stay at the Inn at Serenbe. Use code Serenbe Stories when you book online or over the phone and receive 10% off your stay!

Today through October 12, order a copy of Start In Your Own Backyard and you'll receive a tote bag, keychain and signed bookplate from Steve Nygren.

Get a Start In Your Own Backyard Book Bundle Today
Pre-Order from your favorite bookseller, send in your receipt and we'll mail you a book bundle as our gift.

Today's guest, artist Tom Swanston, is regarded as Serenbe's first artist-in-residence, though he was a Serenbe resident before there was an official program. In fact, Tom was an integral figure in creating AIR Serenbe, which is the artist residency division of the Serenbe Institute. 

In this episode, Tom regales us with stories about finding his own farm south of Atlanta, what it was like to find his calling in the arts, and how Serenbe has inspired him to be the artist he is today.

Step off the treadmill of life and book a stay at the Inn at Serenbe. Use code Serenbe Stories when you book online or over the phone and receive 10% off your stay!

Today through October 12, order a copy of Start In Your Own Backyard and you'll receive a tote bag, keychain and signed bookplate from Steve Nygren.

Get a Start In Your Own Backyard Book Bundle Today
Pre-Order from your favorite bookseller, send in your receipt and we'll mail you a book bundle as our gift.

Chad Epple says he's been a civil engineer since he started building tree houses as a kid. As the VP of Southeastern Engineering, he brought a creativity and willingness to join Steve in changing the rules to design Serenbe the way neighborhoods were built 75 years ago. In this episode, Chad and Steve look back at a time when Serenbe was only woods and remember what it was like to work with the land to maintain Serenbe's natural beauty while adding in modern infrastructure. 

People & Organizations Mentioned

Biomimicry - The design and production of materials, structures, and systems that are modeled on biological entities and processes.

Bouckaert Farms

Boulder Creek

Chattahoochee RiverLands Project

Flight Path: The River Beneath the World’s Busiest Airport

Gabion Bridge - Gabions are wire mesh baskets/boxes compactly filled with rocks or soils. ... These rock-filled baskets are often used as retaining walls for highly erosive materials, bridge abutments and outlet aprons.

The Hill Restaurant

Mado Hillside

Old 4th Ward Park

Photogrammetry - The science of making measurements from photographs.

Proctor Creek

Professional Engineering Licensing

Smith Hanes Studio

Southeastern Engineering

Dr. Phillip James Tabb

Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) - A drone is an unmanned aircraft or ship that is guided remotely or autonomously. UAV stands for Unmanned Aerial Vehicle, something that can fly without a pilot onboard.

Step off the treadmill of life and book a stay at the Inn at Serenbe. Use code Serenbe Stories when you book online or over the phone and receive 10% off your stay!

Today through October 12, order a copy of Start In Your Own Backyard and you'll receive a tote bag, keychain and signed bookplate from Steve Nygren.

Get a Start In Your Own Backyard Book Bundle Today
Pre-Order from your favorite bookseller, send in your receipt and we'll mail you a book bundle as our gift.

On this episode of Serenbe Stories we talk with Robert Rausch, the man who created the works of art that are Serenbe's street lamps, sidewalk benches, bike racks, and even trash cans. We talk about Robert, Steve Nygren, and famed landscape architect Ryan Gainey collaborating to create Serenbe's original branding, and how Robert and Steve have continued finding ways to bring art and creativity to community, turning the ordinary to extraordinary.

Step off the treadmill of life and book a stay at the Inn at Serenbe. Use code Serenbe Stories when you book online or over the phone and receive 10% off your stay!

Today through October 12, order a copy of Start In Your Own Backyard and you'll receive a tote bag, keychain and signed bookplate from Steve Nygren.

Get a Start In Your Own Backyard Book Bundle Today
Pre-Order from your favorite bookseller, send in your receipt and we'll mail you a book bundle as our gift.

When Dennis Creech started Southface, energy wasn't even a part of the environmental conversation. He knew it would be one of the most significant issues our society would face, and in this episode he talks about the positive effects of green building and how Atlanta is leading the nation in reducing energy and water demand. Dennis also tells us about the Kendeda Building for Innovative Sustainable Design on Georgia Tech's campus, and how it's changing the global conversation on conservation.

Definitions, People + Organizations Mentioned

Green Prints

Ray C. Anderson

Rocky Mountain Institute

1996 Summer Olympics

Energy Star Certification

EarthCraft

LEED

Homebuilders Association

Howie Frumpkin

Bosch NetZero House

Agnes Scott College

Emory University

GA Tech

U.S. Department of Energy Better Buildings Challenge

Split Incentive- Split incentives are a barrier to the deployment of energy efficiency measures in buildings. Split incentives occur when those responsible for paying energy bills (the tenant) are not the same entity as those making the capital investment decisions (the landlord or building owner).

Living Building- A living building generates all of its own energy, captures and treats its water, and operates cleanly and efficiently in harmony with nature.

Net Positive- A business standard aiming to provide restorative and positive impacts on people, planet, and society. 

Equity in Building Design- Diversity in design and consideration in public spaces including restrooms, private activity spaces for nursing mothers and safe public spaces for school-aged children.

Kendeda Fund

Kendeda Building

Southface

Step off the treadmill of life and book a stay at the Inn at Serenbe. Use code Serenbe Stories when you book online or over the phone and receive 10% off your stay!

Today through October 12, order a copy of Start In Your Own Backyard and you'll receive a tote bag, keychain and signed bookplate from Steve Nygren.

Get a Start In Your Own Backyard Book Bundle Today
Pre-Order from your favorite bookseller, send in your receipt and we'll mail you a book bundle as our gift.

We are so glad that the Nygrens incorporated art into Serenbe, and today's guest was a major part of making that possible. Today we talk with John Graham, the founding executive director of the Serenbe Institute is engaging the metro Atlanta area, and the future of art and culture in this community.
 
Definitions, People + Organizations Mentioned

Sandra Storrar

Garnie Nygren

Janice Barton

Serenbe Fellows

Tom Swanston

Gail Foster

Daren Wang Decatur Book Festival

Phyllis Bleiweis

Mark Mykleby

Biophilic Institute 

Acton Academy at Serenbe

Chattahoochee Hills Charter School 

South Fulton Area Initiative 

Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport

Grady Hospital 

MARTA 

Florida Philharmonic

Serenbe Institute

Midtown Alliance 

Tomlinson Graham Group

Seattle Symphony Orchestra

Oregon Symphony Orchestra

Dallas

Blue Eyed Daisy

Shelton Stanfill

Atlanta Symphony Orchestra

Tom Tomlinson

Woodruff Arts Center Symphony Hall

Atlanta Ballet

Terminus Modern Ballet Theatre

Kennesaw State University

AIR Serenbe

Step off the treadmill of life and book a stay at the Inn at Serenbe. Use code Serenbe Stories when you book online or over the phone and receive 10% off your stay!

Today through October 12, order a copy of Start In Your Own Backyard and you'll receive a tote bag, keychain and signed bookplate from Steve Nygren.

Get a Start In Your Own Backyard Book Bundle Today
Pre-Order from your favorite bookseller, send in your receipt and we'll mail you a book bundle as our gift.

In today's episode, we talk with UGA professor Alfie Vick about eating plants, taking biophilic principals to all communities, environmental ethics and his deep understanding of the Southern Native American tribes. He talks about how their history, culture, and practices are an example in living a balanced life in-tune with nature. Alfie also talks about the thousands of native plant species in Georgia and designing natural spaces such as the Children's Garden at the State Botanical Gardens in Athens, Georgia and Serenbe's own medicinal garden and he's also working on a future Serenbe neighborhood.

Definitions, People + Organizations Mentioned

Creek Nation

Choctaw

Chickasaw

Seminole

Atlanta BeltLine

Auburn University Rural Studio

Koons Environmental Design 

Richard Louv

Smithsonian Institute

Bob Quinn

UGA Office of Global Engagement

Woodland Era

Nature Deficit Disorder

U.S. Research Geological Survey

Mado

University of Georgia College of Environment & Design

Georgia Botanical Garden

Green Build Tour

LEED

ECOS

Chattahoochee Hills

Chattahoochee NOW

Chattahoochee River 

Shannon Kettering 

Kerry Blind

Fulton County Economic Development 

RFP

Ethnobotany

Cherokee Nation

William Bartram 

Thomas Peters

Trail of Tears

Step off the treadmill of life and book a stay at the Inn at Serenbe. Use code Serenbe Stories when you book online or over the phone and receive 10% off your stay!

Today through October 12, order a copy of Start In Your Own Backyard and you'll receive a tote bag, keychain and signed bookplate from Steve Nygren.

Get a Start In Your Own Backyard Book Bundle Today
Pre-Order from your favorite bookseller, send in your receipt and we'll mail you a book bundle as our gift.

You might not see the connection between biophilic design and national security, but today's guest outlines how communities like Serenbe are imperative in our global defense strategy. We're excited for you to hear Monica Olsen and Steve Nygren's conversation with Colonel Mark "Puck" Mykleby.

Puck talks about meeting Phyllis Bleiweis and coming to Serenbe, where he bonded with Steve Nygren over biophilia and pushed for the establishment of the Biophilic Institute. Puck also talks about the economics of sustainability and how his company, Long Haul Capital Group, is putting dollars toward propelling walkable communities. As he says, our smart growth at home can become our smart power abroad.

Definitions, People + Organizations Mentioned

Serenbe Fellows

Phyllis Bleiweis

Congress for New Urbanism 

Special Operations Command at the Joint Chiefs of Staff

Admiral Michael Glenn Mullen 

Captain Wayne Porter - The National Strategic Narrative

Congresswoman Jane Harman 

National Security Act of 1947 

Department of Defense

Central Intelligence Agency

George Frost Kennan

Biophilic Institute

Alexis de Tocqueville 

The New Grand Strategy

Charles Darwin's Survival of the Fittess

The New America Foundation 

Case Western Reserve University 

The New Grand Strategy 

Adam Smith

Long Haul Capital Group

Oregon Museum of Science & Industry 

Water in Flint, Michigan

Rodale Institute's SE Research Center

Children & Nature Network

David W. Orr

Step off the treadmill of life and book a stay at the Inn at Serenbe. Use code Serenbe Stories when you book online or over the phone and receive 10% off your stay!

Today through October 12, order a copy of Start In Your Own Backyard and you'll receive a tote bag, keychain and signed bookplate from Steve Nygren.

Get a Start In Your Own Backyard Book Bundle Today
Pre-Order from your favorite bookseller, send in your receipt and we'll mail you a book bundle as our gift.

On today's episode we're talking with Chef Nicolas Bour, who was at The Farmhouse during its early years nearly a decade ago before opening the famed Iris restaurant in Atlanta. He has worked in restaurants across the country, and even cooked for President Barack Obama for the first inaugural gala. Chef Nic is now back at Serenbe as the Executive Chef and VP of food and beverage over all Serenbe restaurants. We'll talk about his journey back to Serenbe, his deep relationship and passion for fresh food, sourcing and local farms and the future of culinary in Chattahoochee Hills.

Definitions, People + Organizations Mentioned

InterContinental Hotels

Willard Hotel

Martin Luther King Jr.'s I Have A Dream Speech

Carla Bruni

Nicolas Sarkozy

France

Elizabeth on 37th

Plaza Hotel

Loews Coronado Bay

Halsa

Serenbe Farms

Sharko Farms

Decimal Place Farm

Rodale Institute

Robert de Niro

President Barack Obama

Michelle Obama

Humphrey's (San Diego)

Aulani Resort (Hawaii)

Chef Masaharu Morimoto

Iron Chef

The Hill Restaurant

Iris

Garnie Nygren

Woodward Academy

Angie Mosier

LEED

Chattahoochee Hills

John Graham

Pepper Bullock 

Step off the treadmill of life and book a stay at the Inn at Serenbe. Use code Serenbe Stories when you book online or over the phone and receive 10% off your stay!

Today through October 12, order a copy of Start In Your Own Backyard and you'll receive a tote bag, keychain and signed bookplate from Steve Nygren.

Get a Start In Your Own Backyard Book Bundle Today
Pre-Order from your favorite bookseller, send in your receipt and we'll mail you a book bundle as our gift.