Life & Work with Céline Chouteau of Highland Park

Today we’d like to introduce you to Céline Chouteau.

Hi Céline, can you start by introducing yourself? We’d love to learn more about how you got to where you are today?
I often feel like my journey has been guided as much by intuition and emotion as by intention and a lot of work. I began in Paris, studied at La Sorbonne to become a Secondary French School Teacher first, was then a candidate to the “CAPES of documentation” (Certificate of aptitude for secondary school teachers) and the “Agrégation de lettres modernes”. While I was working part-time at Parisian Libraries to pay my rent in Paris, I became certified Librarian in Youth Services for a few years before I finally became a School Library Media Specialist in Secondary School Education for the French Ministry of National Education, surrounded by books, ideas, and young minds. Over time, I became deeply moved by environmental issues—the beauty of nature, but also its fragility. I started creating projects for my students around biodiversity, climate change, and sustainability, showing films like Home, The 11th Hour, and organizing exhibits that could awaken something in them. I didn’t just want to teach—I wanted them to feel, to care.

In 2006, I followed a dream that didn’t fully make sense at the time and moved to Los Angeles. Everything happened very quickly, almost like a fairy tale. I found a position at the Lycée Français de Los Angeles, where I continued developing environmental programs, built a sustainable library collection, and led creative projects like “Environment and Film.” But inside me, something bigger was growing. I had already chosen a vegan lifestyle, and I knew I wanted to create a place where all these values—respect for the planet, for animals, for health, and for culture—could exist together.

The idea of my own school became almost an obsession, but it was not easy. It took seven years of perseverance, doubts, and challenges. I had to start from nothing—walking through neighborhoods, leaving flyers on doorsteps, not knowing if I would have enough families to continue. There were moments when everything felt uncertain. But I believed deeply in what I was building.

In 2012, Phoenix Global Green School was born. I started with just a handful of children. Today, after 14 years, it has grown into a beautiful, multilingual, eco-conscious community. Every day, I see children planting seeds, picking fruit from the garden, cooking together, speaking different languages, and discovering the world with curiosity and joy. Those small moments feel incredibly powerful to me.

When I look back, I realize this journey has always been about love—love for nature, for children, and for the possibility of a better future. If I have inspired even a few people to see the world differently, then everything was worth it.

We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
It definitely has not been a smooth road. In many ways, the challenges have been as defining as the vision itself.

When I decided to create my own school, I was starting from nothing—no network, no financial backing, and a concept that was very new at the time. A fully vegan, environmentally focused, multilingual preschool was not something people immediately understood. I had to spend a lot of time explaining, reassuring, and sometimes convincing families that this approach was not only viable, but deeply beneficial for their children.

My first year was especially difficult. I didn’t know anyone in the neighborhood, so I would walk from house to house leaving flyers, hoping families would be curious enough to come visit. At the same time, I was dealing with an extremely stressful housing situation, not knowing if I would be able to keep the space from one month to the next. There was a constant feeling of uncertainty.

There were also cultural challenges. Coming from France, where mindsets around food and veganism can be more resistant, I often had to navigate skepticism—not just from families, but sometimes from within the educational community itself. Finding the right team who truly understood and believed in this unique vision was another challenge.

But through all of this, I never really considered giving up. I believed deeply in what I was building. Each family that joined, each child who started to love vegetables, each moment of connection with nature—it gave me the strength to continue.

Looking back, I see that the road was difficult, but also incredibly meaningful. Every challenge shaped the school into what it is today and strengthened my commitment to creating something that truly matters.

As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about what you do?
My work is really about creating a different kind of education—one that connects children to the world in a meaningful, conscious, and joyful way. At Phoenix Global Green School, I specialize in early childhood education that integrates environmental awareness, multilingual learning, and a plant-based organic lifestyle into everyday experiences. It’s not something separate from the curriculum—it’s the way we live each day.

What sets my work apart is that everything is interconnected. Children are not only learning languages like French, Spanish, and Mandarin, but they are also gardening, cooking, observing wildlife, and understanding where their food comes from. They pick fruits from the trees, prepare meals together, and naturally develop respect for their health, for animals, and for the planet. We prepare all meals from scratch using USDA organic, seasonal ingredients sourced from local farmers’ markets and our own garden. We’re not just educating children—we’re shaping how they live, how they eat, and how they care for the world.

I think I’m most known for creating a space that feels both like a school and like a home—peaceful, nurturing, and deeply intentional. But just as important, we include families as an essential part of our program. Throughout the year, we organize many community events—performances, a Mother’s Day Garden Tea Party, Halloween parades, art exhibits, French book fairs—moments that bring families together and create a strong sense of connection and shared experience.

Families often tell me that their children change in beautiful ways: they become more independant, more curious, more open, more connected. Seeing a child who didn’t like vegetables begin to enjoy them, or hearing children sing in multiple languages without fear or accent—those are incredibly powerful moments for me.

What I’m most proud of is that I stayed true to my vision, even when it was not easy or widely understood. Creating the first vegan preschool in the United States and growing it into a strong, loving community over 14 years has been a deeply meaningful journey. But beyond that, I’m proud of the impact—the families who carry these values into their daily lives, the children who grow up with awareness and compassion, and even the educators who have been inspired to create their own schools.

For me, success is not just about what we build, but about what continues to grow beyond us.

How do you think about luck?
Luck has definitely played a role in my journey—but not always in the way people expect. I’ve experienced both moments of incredible alignment and periods of real challenge.

There have been difficult times, especially with staffing. During the pandemic, I had to start almost from scratch and carry much of the work myself because it was hard to find people willing to work in this kind of environment. More recently, events like the Eaton fire caused outdoor damage to the school that is still not fully repaired. These moments test you—not just professionally, but emotionally.

There are also ongoing challenges in helping people understand my philosophy. Some families are looking for something that appears perfect—very clean, controlled, almost like a protective bubble. But in reality, that “perfection” is often a sanitized, toxic environment that disconnects children from life itself. Children need to touch soil, explore outdoors, take small risks, and experience nature fully. Without this connection, we risk creating adults who are detached from the earth—and potentially disconnected from themselves, which can affect well-being later in life.

At the same time, I feel very lucky. I trained and met incredible teachers—native French, Spanish, and Mandarin speakers and artists, musicians, singers, dancers—who bring authenticity, culture, and passion into the classroom. I’ve also found families who truly connect with the vision and trust the process, and that makes all the difference.

In the end, I think luck shows up when you stay aligned with what you believe in. Even through challenges, I’ve been able to continue building something meaningful, and that, to me, feels like the greatest kind of luck.

I would like to dedicate this article to my father, who recently passed away. He taught me a love for nature and gardening, and was a model of courage and resilience. His strength lives on in me, guiding me as I follow my own path.

Pricing:

• Full-day preschool program: $2,400 per month
• 2 Days: ​$1,590/month
• 3 Days: $1,995/month
• Summer camp: $520 per week
• Flexible & Extra Care Options

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.phoenixglobalgreenschool.org
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/phoenixglobalgreenschool/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100054302208760#