![\"Kyle](\"http:\/\/news.utoledo.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2009\/04\/webkyle-smitley-horzontal.jpg\" "\\"webkyle-smitley-horzontal\\"")
<\/a>Kyle Smitley shows off a shirt made by her eco-friendly company, barley & birch.<\/p><\/div>\n
She was an environmental geoscience and philosophy major at DePauw University and is now a full-time UT law student.<\/p>\n
Smitley has been operating the business since 2007. All of the clothing is made in the United States using 100 percent certified organic cotton and water-based inks.<\/p>\n
\u201cOrganic clothing is important because conventional cotton today uses 25 percent of the world\u2019s insecticides, seven of the 10 top ingredients having been noted by the Environmental Protection Agency as having carcinogenic properties,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
According to Smitley, using organic cotton results in healthier soil, food and water. \u201cBasically, using organic cotton is just one piece of the eco-friendly puzzle,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
Every facet of barley & birch is carbon neutral. The company does this by offsetting all emissions created by production and shipping and working with manufacturers that are largely powered by solar energy.<\/p>\n
\u201cFor instance, we might plant a certain number of trees in order to offset emissions produced by delivery trucks or the printer,\u201d Smitley said.<\/p>\n
She said the brand is really starting to take off with recent celebrity support. Stars including Jessica Alba and Sheryl Crow have dressed their children in barley & birch.<\/p>\n
Socially, barley & birch donates 30 percent of its profits to organizations working to improve the environment and global community.<\/p>\n
Smitley said the key to balancing both student and business responsibilities is extreme time management. \u201cI do a lot of multi-tasking,\u201d she said. \u201cIf I get a break from class, I am e-mailing on my iPhone while making a call on my regular cell phone. I try not to work during classes, but sometimes it\u2019s impossible.\u201d<\/p>\n
She said the company is named after two symbolic things in her childhood. \u201c\u2018Barley\u2019 represents the barley fields around where I went to school, and \u2018birch\u2019 represents the birch trees that surround my family\u2019s lake house and in the front yard of my childhood home.\u201d<\/p>\n
Her company recently was added to the National Green Pages, which is the United State\u2019s premier listing of environmentally and socially responsible businesses.<\/p>\n
Smitley said the National Green Pages has been a helpful tool because she is able to network with other eco-friendly companies and get outside advice on certain aspects of her green business. \u201cIt\u2019s like having 1,000 mentors,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
According to Smitley, there are so many easy ways to make a difference in the Toledo area; these include buying local products and bringing your own bags to the grocery store.<\/p>\n
\u201cUT students should get out and experience the community by volunteering an hour a month at the animal shelter, soup kitchen or wherever,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
Her goal is to build the business in order to make a difference in the world and dedicate legal services to nonprofit organizations.<\/p>\n