Celebrity-Owned Eco-Friendly Homes That Will Inspire You to Go Green

Monica Gray - June 5, 2023

Going green is all the rage. Access to eco-friendly items and ways of living is easier than ever before. There’s never been a better time to use less plastic, bicycle to work, and limit your meat consumption. But there are other ways to go green too, and that’s by living in an eco-friendly home. Millions of homes around the world burn an unnecessary amount of natural gas, coal, and oil, which contributes to global warming and climate change. Fossil fuels account for 80 percent of the country’s energy use, making homes around the world energy vampires. If there’s one way to help the world, it’s to live in an eco-friendly home. This includes banning single-use plastic, eating organic, locally grown food, using natural products to clean your home, and limiting your energy consumption and replacing it with solar panels. Little changes go a long way, especially when it comes to the environment. We’ve curated a list of celebrities that gone green and have lessened their carbon footprint, and they might inspire you to go green, too.

Gisele Bundchen And Tom Brady

Before their unfortunate split, Gisele Bundchen and Tom Brady took living green very seriously. Specifically at their home in Brentwood, L.A. Their old-world European architectural home has energy-efficient lighting, solar panels on the roof, and rainwater recycling systems. It’s rumored that Bundchen is a global environmentalist. He supports environmental conservation, and when they were constructing the design of their house, said, “From the beginning, we asked everyone involved in the design and construction, ‘How can we make it as sustainable as possible?'” Somehow, he’s managed to find a green solution to his eight-bedroom house and lagoon. We’re starting to believe you can combine luxury and eco-friendliness. In an interview, Tom Brady said, “Gisele and I have eight sisters between us, and there are lots of kids. We built this house as a sanctuary for our family—a place where we can enjoy being together.” Moreover, they have a chicken coop and a garden with peaches, plums, and apples. (Architectural Digest).

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Lisa Ling

You might know Lisa Ling from Planet in Peril, a docuseries dating back to 2008. She’s made headway since then and is the first owner of a carbon-neutral residence in Santa Monica. The eco-friendly home has a LEED Platinum certification. In a 2011 interview, she said, “We buried a 5,000-gallon water tank, we have over 60 solar panels, we do not have any grass — all succulents.” Grass lawns diminish biodiversity and increase greenhouse gases. This is mainly because numerous homes around the world take pride in their grass lawns. Her home also has LED lighting, insulation, passive cooling, an abundance of skylights for natural lighting, zero-VOC paints and finishes, and an EV-charging station. There’s even a waterless urinal, which can save up to 40,000 gallons of water every single year. The best part? Absolutely nothing went into the landfill after building this house, and if there were any unused items, Ling donated them to Habitat for Humanity. Undeniably, the best part of Ling’s home is the giant lamp made from 2,000 up-cycled Chinese take-out containers at her front entryway (The Chalkboard Mag).

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Nikki Reed

You might know Nikki Reed from The Twilight Saga. But just because she’s a vampire-lover doesn’t mean she’s not eco-friendly. Being more sustainable might come from a desire to change how we grew up. At least, that’s how it is for Nikki Reed. The environmental activist said, “I grew up outdoors. We didn’t have a lot of money, so nature was our inspiration and place to play. I bounced back and forth between a crowded residential neighborhood and a tiny Venice home by the boardwalk.” This was the start of her inspiration to change the world and live a greener life. Her jewelry brand, BaYou With Love, practices sustainability. She also cleans almost everything in her home with vinegar, uses an eco-friendly linen brand for her bedding, makes her candles, and repurposes vintage pieces. She washes her laundry on speed cycles, never leaves the water running in the tap, and shops for her vegetables locally. After all, her home screams eco-friendly, and there’s practically nothing in her house that’s not sustainable, recycled, or reusable (Magazine C).

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Alicia Silverstone

Clueless Star preaches environmentalism and eco-friendly practices. She’s been a vegan since 1998, published two vegan cookbooks, and talks about green living in her blog. Her home runs on solar power, and in 2012, the star launched an eco-friendly makeup brand. Silverstone’s main focus is the food industry, and she said, “Our rapidly growing dependence on animals as a food source is one of the greatest threats to the climate.” Her home uses FSC Certified wood, an interior decorated solely with second-hand vintage pieces, and many zero-waste practices to reduce her carbon footprint on the planet. You won’t find any single-use disposable items in her home and washes her clothes with Guppyfriend, which prevents mico-fibers from making their way to the ocean. Her backyard has a vegetable garden, and she feeds her fruit trees with graywater. Her land has native plants, which help contribute to the biodiversity and ecosystem of her home, as opposed to having a lawn entirely of grass. She fills her fridge with organic farmer’s market food, and said, “When you choose organic, you’re voting for healthy soil, nutrient-rich produce, clean water, and ecologically sound farming. As a bonus, since organic foods are grown in richer, purer soil, they contain more minerals than conventionally grown, chemically enhanced foods.” Undeniably, there’s a lot we can learn from Alicia and her home practices (Impacting Our Future).

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Julia Roberts

If there’s one thing you should know about Julia Roberts, is that she lives in a beautiful Malibu mansion that’s better for the environment than your home. Motherhood was her biggest inspiration, and in an interview, she said, “Motherhood is the big reason I started thinking more critically about the environment and global warming.” Even though the 6,000-square-foot home is the epitome of luxury, it’s also eco-friendly. She relishes her tennis court, skate park, numerous bedrooms, and swimming pool, and manages to live green at the same time. The star lives in a custom-built home, and in 2016, bought a house across from her custom-built one, setting her back $7 million. To upgrade her home, Roberts invested $20 million. The home now has energy-efficient appliances, a beautiful lush garden, solar panels, vegetable patches, and two beehives with a view of the Pacific Ocean. She might even go further and get an eco-friendly car, and said, “I have a hybrid car, but I want something that runs on vegetable oil, I think it’s a small price to pay to smell like a french fry.” And it’s not necessarily a bad thing to smell like a french fry, everyone loves french fries! (Daily Mail)

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Bryan Cranston

Even though you’ll recognize the celebrity from Breaking Bad, it doesn’t mean he’s not eco-friendly. He’s one of the most green celebrities in the world and strives to make his home a more environmentally friendly place. His Mussel Shoals beach house is Platinum LEED-certified. It was completed in 2012 and is the first passive-house-certified residence built in Ventura County, replacing the 1940’s era bungalow that previously took its place. The net-zero home has eco-amenities, high-performance doors, high levels of insulation, water-heating rooftop solar panels, radiant heated floors, recycled materials, a rainwater collection tank, and ocean views, just to remind the celebrity of why he has this home in the first place. In an interview, he said, “We know we have succeeded if our guests ask incredulously, ‘This is a green home?’ At first glance, you wouldn’t think it’s an eco-friendly home. He also said, “My wife, Robin, and I want to combine both form and function and show the world that sustainable living doesn’t mean that there’s no indoor plumbing or that it will impinge on a modern lifestyle. We have qualified for the highest level of ‘green’ building in the country, and will strive to achieve the highest level of style and comfort too.” (YouTube).

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Tricia Helfer

Tricia Helfer takes going green to another level with her off-the-grid retreat. She built this solar-powered vacation home entirely out of glass. The Battlestar Galactica beauty’s home is fitted with a rainwater collection system, photovoltaics, masonry heaters, and other green technologies that inspire us to go more eco-friendly. In an interview, the celebrity said, “When I look back at my childhood, when I think back to the days growing up on the farm, I find myself smiling. I was instilled with an appreciation and admiration for the land, family, and honor. My goal is to build a house that respects the land in its entirety — to live in comfort while respecting the very view that I build my deck to overlook.” Furthermore, while her luxury home is located in Alberta, Canada, this tiny getaway promises to go green (Tree Hugger)

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Begley Jr.

This St. Elsewhere and Arrested Development celebrity is into preservation and ecology. To keep up with his interests, he keeps low-impact living and a small carbon footprint. This is something most of us can’t say we do. To take it a step further, he wrote books on going green, owns a reality TV program, and launched a natural cleaning product line. If there’s a green-related trade show, you can bet Begley Jr. will be on it. In 2016, he and his wife built a French country-style, 3,896-foot residence with a chlorine-free pool purified by an ozone system, tiles crafted entirely from recycled bottles, a hardwood floor reused from barns, and fruit trees bearing delicious, juicy fruit right in his front yard. Her home is scattered with native plants. There’s automated lighting and shades for maximum energy efficiency. There’s even a gray water system that recycles for irrigation, and a 10,000-gallon rainwater collection tank. His two-car garage has electric car chargers equipped with solar panels, plus off-street parking for six other vehicles. And of course, he has a LEED Platinum certification, officially deeming his home eco-friendly and “North America’s greenest, most sustainable home.” In an interview, he said, “We’ve shown how most people can make their house efficient in an existing structure, and now I want to show how it can be done from the beginning” (Ventura BLVD).

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Johnny Depp

We could have guessed Johnny Depp was eco-friendly from his pirate appearance and low cost of living on Pirates of the Caribbean. While shooting the film, he fell in love with the Caribbean and once said, “I don’t think I’d ever seen any place so pure and beautiful.” After that, he wanted to make it a goal to live greener to preserve the beauty of some of his favorite places on Earth. He bought a Bahamian Island in 2004 for a whopping $3.6 million and named it Little Hall’s Pond Cay. To make it eco-friendly, he built solar outbuildings and is in the process of making his home hydro-fuelled with the help of hydrogen energy expert Mike Strizki. And because Depp uses so many solar panels in his home, it saves him money. Not that the celebrity needs to think about being on a budget (Digital Spy).

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Edward Norton

Norton isn’t only green on screen in his “Incredible Hulk” outfit, he’s also a huge environmentalist. His main project, the BP Solar Neighbors Program, matches each celebrity’s purchase of a solar-energy home. With each purchase, it provides solar panels for a low-income family home. Its a two-for-one purchase. He’s actively trying to rebuild green space in New York City with a group called Friends of the High Line. He continues to nag Congress about the benefits of green building practices for low-income families, so their homes are eco-friendly and sustainable, even if they don’t have the status of a celebrity (Multihousing News).

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Leonardo DiCaprio

You wouldn’t think that a celebrity as famous as Leonardo DiCaprio would be one of the top environmentalists in the world, in addition to owning an eco-friendly, luxury home. He helped produce, write, and narrate The 11th Hour, a documentary showcasing the detrimental effects humans have had on Earth. But his eco-friendly home, which set him back $10 million, has several green credentials. It’s located in the hotspot of Greenwich Village in New York City. And because he’s a huge fan of health and wellness, he prides himself on his Vitamin C showers, hot yoga rooms, oak floors to help improve posture, and lights that reduce jet lag, which can all be found at the apartment. Naturally, his home uses eco-friendly materials, and he built it with sustainability in mind. We’re not sure who needs these A-List amenities except someone like Leonardo DiCaprio (Elle Decor).

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Adrian Grenier

This celebrity isn’t only going green for himself, but for the planet, too. He owns a solar-paneled home in Brooklyn, New York. His home has insulated walls with recycled denim and is massively energy efficient. Grenier also enlisted Brook Landscape, to help design an outdoor space. He’s been slowly renovating his home to make it greener and more sustainable, considering he preaches green living through his work on the website SHFT. He also hosts “Alter Eco” to help people make minuscule changes to their daily routine to be kinder to the environment. In an interview, he talked about his rooftop garden and said, “I have a little garage that I converted into a carriage house, a guest retreat. It has a succulent green roof, with self-sufficient plants and gravel. They need very little maintenance. But they provide great insulation and prevent water run-off, which is responsible for carrying contaminants within cities to the oceans. A green roof helps to insulate the property better so you don’t need as much air conditioning in summer or heat in the winter.” Consequently, this might just be the inspiration you need to start your rooftop garden. If you live in New York City, Grenier truly believes there’s a lot of potential for green growth (Nowness).

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Cate Blanchett

Homes are not the only energy consumers. Theaters are just as bad, if not worse. This is why Cate Blanchett made an effort to install over 1,900 solar panels into The Wharf Theatre at Sydney’s Walsh Bar. Now, those solar panels provide 70 percent of the theater’s electricity. There’s also a system for rainwater harvesting. Eventually, officials will label the theater as fully carbon-neutral. If you’re going to own an eco-friendly home, that’s the sort of label you want it to have. Her closet houses tons of recycled gowns, and she has no problem re-wearing her red carpet gowns. She preaches style for sustainability and has said, “From couture to T-shirts, landfills are filled with garments that have been unnecessarily discarded. Particularly in today’s climate, it seems willful and ridiculous that such beautiful garments are not cherished and re-worn for a lifetime.” She’s not a celebrity known for buying an overly expensive dress and tossing it out after one use. Without a doubt, she’s a true environmentalist (Forbes).

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Brad Pitt

Brad Pitt is a longtime environmentalist who strives to make more homes in New Orleans eco-friendly. His “Make It Right” Foundation strives to finish 150 New Orleans greenhouses. Each home will have environmental features and advanced engineering to withstand potential, life-threatening floods and winds. He played a role in establishing “the largest and greenest single-family community in the world” by the U.S. Green Building Council. The homes hold a LEED certification. Another part of living sustainably is being a more eco-friendly driver. This why Brad Pitt invested in his energy-efficient car project called Prop 87. Is there anything green this celebrity can’t do? (Whole Roll Around the Globe).

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Julia Louis-Dreyfus And Brad Hall

Julia Louis-Dreyfus went green during a renovation of her and her husband, Brad Hall’s, converted 1930s-era home in Montecito, California. Her husband, Brad Hall, is as involved as she. They made it a point to add several non-polluting items in their green home. There’s solar water heating, energy-efficient appliances, natural lighting, rooftop photovoltaics, a retractable sunroof to draw warm air up and out of the home, and sustainable hardwood. Louis-Dreyfus agrees with Bryan Cranston to make their homes as eco-friendly as possible. In an interview, Brad Hall said, “Having a second home is itself an appalling excess, so we figured if we’re going to do it, we better be as environmentally responsible as we can.'” Even the New York Times is impressed with the structure and called it “a study in haute green, an earnest beachside do-gooder with movie-star gloss.” These celebrities know how to turn luxury into eco-friendly (Tree Hugger)

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Adele

Adele’s $2 million home in Sussex is about to get an eco-friendly makeover. Her home is energy efficient, thanks to the solar panels on her roof. In an interview, an anonymous source said, “Adele’s house is something to behold. Adele is working hard on her eco-friendly home, so she won’t move in for a while. But when she does, she’ll technically have one of the most eco-friendly houses in the area.” Finally, the home will also have its recording studio, so Adele can continue to bless us with her beautiful voice and songs of magic (Capital FM).

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Dave Matthews Band

The Grammy-winning band strives to make our planet a greener planet. They have a mission to plant one million more trees, which could mean there are more trees in your backyard. Biodiesel powers their concert generators. They also offer an abundance of recycling and compost stations. They strive to help build more wind turbines and want to change the way bands tour the world. Venues may use more fossil fuels and cause more pollution than your home. Without a doubt, this is why they want to change the way venues handle concerts. They’re a huge part of the bigger problem and are doing everything they can to make an impact. Equally important, their concerts even have the BamaGreen Eco-Village. This helps teach fans how to reduce their carbon footprint (Variety).

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Jack Johnson

Many women around the world fell in love with Jack Johnson and his banana pancakes. But not only have his lyrics melded into our hearts, but his environmental practices are helping the environment go green. Venues will eventually follow his drafted set of stipulations. For his shows, tour operators need to purchase renewable energy for one hundred percent of the amount used. In regards to the waste generated at the shows, they must recycle at least fifty percent. Every shows much compost and recycling, and the lights must be efficient, compact fluorescents. Considering his home is the stage, he takes eco-friendly wherever he performs. He’s also a big environmentalist for Hawaii. Moreover, he and his wife founded the Kokua Hawaii Foundation to support environmental education in the schools and communities in Hawaii (UNEP).

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Daryl Hannah

The biodiesel queen, Daryl Hannah, has committed herself to fighting for climate change, mountaintop removal mining protests, and animal rights. Her impressive mountain residence has active solar technology, an organic garden, a biodiesel generator, and gray water recycling. She recycled the structure with nontoxic materials. In an interview, she said, “Who wants to live in a toxic box?” It seems like most of us accidentally live in toxic boxes. Naturally, she has a moss-covered stone couch and an alpaca in her front yard. The home is surrounded by exotic plants, giant cacti, and numerous trees. In addition to that, there’s a Japanese soaking tub and high ceilings with views of the coastline (Daily Mail).

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Stella McCartney

As a hero in the fashion industry, Stella McCartney’s home is full of recycled clothing. She doesn’t wear fur or leather, and she makes her designs from eco-friendly materials. The fashion industry is highly polluting, which is why McCartney strives to make it as eco-friendly as possible. In an interview, she said, “I think the reason I have been doing this for my entire career now is really because I care. I don’t want to kill animals; I don’t want to kill the planet. I’m deeply invested in trying to be a good citizen of Mother Earth and a businesswoman and a fashion designer.” She also strives to improve biodiversity through her organic farm. It took her three years to turn it into a Soil Association-certified organic farm. Hopefully, she can spread this fashion knowledge worldwide (Vogue).

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