Greening Your Home: An Environmental Informational Panel

Lauren Brois, Sustainable Westchester- Lauren is the Director of Building Decarbonization, which encompasses Energy Smart Homes, GridRewards, and Commercial Decarbonization at Sustainable Westchester. Since 2013, Lauren has led community-based campaigns to help Westchester county residents realize energy savings. Lauren is a familiar presence at numerous sustainability initiatives across Westchester County. She is a member of the Bedford 2030 Advisory Board, collaborating on events and projects such as Community Compost and the Moon Dance fundraiser. Lauren has supported the Greenlight Awards, a sustainability competition for local high school students which allows them to showcase their solutions to environmental challenges. Lauren is a highly committed Environmental Educator with a strong record of influencing community behavior and policies through innovative education programs, creative marketing strategies, and strong relationships. She is passionate about environmental stewardship and dedicated to creating a more sustainable world.

Paul Hope, Consumer Reports- Paul is a Deputy Home Editor at Consumer Reports where he covers a variety of topics including the efficiency, performance, and reliability of major home appliances and systems. Consumer Reports is a nearly 90-year-old non-profit organization with roots in product testing and consumer advocacy. Consumer Reports has been at the forefront of advocating for better, safer, and more energy efficient products, and currently provides recommendations and ratings for major appliances, home heating and cooling systems, and automobiles, including electric vehicles.  

Carol Sommerfield, Ph.D., Ardsley Pollinator Pathway- Carol has a keen interest in the natural world and ecology. She started a native plant garden in 1995, well before anyone knew what that was or why it was important. In 2021 she founded and now chairs the Ardsley Pollinator Pathway (www.ardsleypollinatorpathway.org) and since 2021 has performed over 100 free and in-depth native garden consultations for homeowners to jump start their transition to native gardening and sustainable landscape practices. From 2022 to 2024 Carol co-chaired the design and installation of five large public pollinator gardens in the Town of Greenburgh, which are lovingly maintained by dedicated volunteers. Carol founded and chairs the Native Plant and Ecotype Group of Westchester and Connecticut. She is a certified water steward through CRISP (Catskill Regional Invasive Species Partnership) and is the Chair of the Lake Muskoday Lake Ecology Committee where she leads projects to educate and communicate best practices to riparian owners; prevent threats to the watershed ecosystems; and control and eradicate invasive aquatic and wetland plants and animals around this pristine lake in the Catskills. An officer in the Lake Muskoday Homeowners’ Association since 2015 she is also the lake’s Lake Manager working to ensure the short and long-term health of the lake. Carol was a member of the Ardsley Village Climate Advisory Committee and the Ardsley Climate Smart Community/Clean Energy Community Taskforce that worked to earn Ardsley Bronze status in 2022. She is also an award-winning artist (www.frogsleapgallery.com) who most recently earned $15,000 for local environmental, food security, and affordable housing organizations through her solo “Returning” exhibit in the spring of 2023. You will find her painting the land and ecosystems she passionately loves.

Kirsten Kleinman Woodlands Environmental Task Force, NY State Master Teacher in Environmental Science- Kirsten earned her B.S. in Broadcasting & Film with a Concentration in Environmental Science, and her M.A. in Energy and Environmental Studies from Boston University. After careers manufacturing oceanographic data logging equipment and in the environmental non-profit sector, she earned her Teaching Certification in Secondary Earth Science from Queens College. Mrs. Kleinman has been teaching AP Environmental Science, Science Research, and Earth Science at Nyack High School since 2009. She is the co-chair for both the Science Research Club and the Environmental Club. Mrs. Kleinman also involves her students with local science and environmental groups, such as Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory, Keep Rockland Beautiful, and Rockland County Cornell Cooperative Extension. At NHS, she runs the Sunshine Club, supporting teachers in celebration and times of need, promoting school spirit, emcee-ing the Halloween Contest and the Pep Rally. At home, she is the co-chair of the Environmental Task Force at Woodlands Community Temple, promoting an energy efficient, zero-waste policy. In her free time, she enjoys going to The City for the food and entertainment, and singing backup in a local jam band. Mrs. Kleinman is looking forward to strengthening her data science and statistics skills to better support her students in their research and learning goals.

Kathy Evers, Ardsley Pollinator Pathway- Kathy is a relatively new resident of Edgemont, having moved from Brooklyn in 2020. After a busy career as a municipal credit analyst on Wall Street, she is thoroughly enjoying retirement and the opportunity to garden and volunteer in and around her community. Kathy is obsessed with transitioning her traditional 1/3 acre suburban lot to native plants, shrubs and trees. At closing, the yard was 100% grass, non-native ornamentals, and invasive shrubs. After a detailed garden consultation with Carol Sommerfield in 2021, she embarked on her native plant journey! Over the past three years, she has eliminated about 70% of the grass on her property and kept only a path around her very large white oak in the front yard. Currently she has more than 100 different native plants, shrubs and trees on her property - with more to come in 2025! Kathy has been a steering committee member of the Ardsley Pollinator Pathway for the past several years. She is actively involved in helping maintain the two pollinator gardens at Hart’s Brook and Anthony F. Veteran Park in Greenburgh. From time to time she presents webinars on the transition of her property and how others can take steps to incorporate more natives. Kathy is also a board member of the Friends of Odell House Rochambeau Headquarters, and a member of the Garden Club of Irvington. She loves living in Westchester County and appreciates its natural beauty and cultural attractions. Kathy has a lot of support in all of her efforts from her husband Douglas Hillstrom, and has two grown children living (unfortunately) in other parts of the country.