Pursuing the Dream of a Sustainable Life

At 9:00 on a brisk autumn morning in rural Illinois, Jill Schutts and her son, Ely, bundle up and trek from their old farmhouse to the out buildings. While Schutts takes Joe on a tour of the hen house and feeds their small flock of free-range hens, Ely grabs a piece of firewood and works at cracking the thick ice on top of the goats’ watering trough. For this family, living sustainably is far more than a platitude; it’s a habit of daily life.