Urban homesteaders

They grow their own vegetables and fruit in their tiny city gardens and, when possible, the neighbors' yards, too. In a waste-reducing crusade, they compost everything imaginable, reuse bath water in the toilet and grab all the rain their barrels can hold.

They've started raising backyard chickens, goats, rabbits and quail – not as pets but for food. (The manure benefits compost-making, too.)

These are people who have put into action a goal shared by thousands of other Americans: To be more self-sufficient and earth-friendly.