About us

My name is Philippe Lévêque. For 13 years, I worked in investment banking. Today, with the Ecofrugal community, I help people get together with colleagues, neighbours or friends to share what works and move forward together on the enjoyable, empowering path of the ecological transition.

2008, the turning point

I was working at Merrill Lynch at the time, convinced that we needed to go much further on the ecological transition. But I could also see the reluctance and the obstacles. A very simple object put me on the right track: the sparkling water maker, which lets you make your own sparkling water and do without plastic bottles. I realised that some solutions tick all the boxes: good for the planet, for your wallet and for your quality of life.

For 3 years, I listed them, and I decided to turn them into a book with the help of my neighbour, a graphic designer I had met at my building's neighbours' party.

2012, Le Guide Ecofrugal

I self-published Le Guide Ecofrugal, under the pen name Philippe Green, and left finance. My idea was simple: teach solutions rather than guilt. The book was republished in 2015 by Marabout.

The word eco-frugality is not about deprivation. Frugality means meeting your needs with economy of means, as Epicurus already suggested. It's not about giving up pleasure, but about telling the essential from the superfluous. Because sacrifice doesn't last. To change, you need to get something out of it: savings, health, peace of mind, and often more connection with others. It also helps break out of the spiral of consumerism and individualism, which AI is accelerating today.

Evenings that changed everything

After the book came out, I went to present my solutions in people's homes, where they invited their friends and neighbours. These were the Ecofrugal Gatherings. Very soon, I hardly spoke at all: the guests took over and talked about what they did at home.

When we talk about what we do and what we love, we are legitimate, we are proud, and we inspire others.

I sold two or three books per evening: financially, it didn't add up. But something precious was happening. These gatherings simply needed to exist without me, everywhere, at anyone's initiative.

2018, Mon Atelier Ecofrugal

We launched the platform with the support of ADEME (the French Agency for Ecological Transition) and Valdelia, with a first workshop on zero waste. The principle: a facilitation booklet guides the group step by step, without an expert, in one hour, often over a lunch break. Everyone shares what they already do, or what they would like to try. It's more like a neighbourhood party than a conference.

This format answers what I call the glass wall: we often think that acting for the environment is complicated, time-consuming and expensive. When a colleague explains how she repaired her phone, or a neighbour what he gained from cycling to work, the wall comes down. As Gandhi said, "example is not the best way to convince, it is the only way".

Most workshops take place at work, often at lunchtime between colleagues, which makes the workplace the unexpected "third place" of the ecological transition. According to our July 2024 survey, 57% of participants adopt new habits in their private life and 43% at work. Discover our impact

Since then

• 2020: Ecofrugal Project obtains the French ESUS approval (Solidarity Company of Social Utility), and the Zero waste junior workshop is born for 9 to 14 year olds.
• 2021 to 2024: new workshops arrive: Responsible digital, Energy saving, Water and Biodiversity in partnership with Orange, and Mobility.
• October 2025: new edition of Le Guide Écofrugal by Éditions Leduc (in French), with a foreword by Fabrice Bonnifet, enriched with feedback from the community. Discover the book

And tomorrow?

More than 10,000 people have already taken part in a workshop, and more than 1,000 Ambassadors bring them to life all over France. That's a lot, and it's still not enough. If the neighbours' party brings together millions of people every year, why not us?

I don't believe in guilt as a force for change. I believe in the power of example, in the joy of doing things together, and in the idea that we all hold solutions.

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Philippe Lévêque, and the Ecofrugal Team