They say one man's trash is another man's treasure.

A local high school student is putting that motto into practice.

Staples High School senior Oliver Vynerib founded HomeCycle CT in 2023.

The organization acts as a middleman, connecting residents and builders to nonprofits that deconstruct homes.

"My dad is a builder here in Westport," Vynerib says. "He's taken me to some of his projects as I've grown up, and I realized the amount of material being wasted at some of these projects."

Deconstruction is the process of selectively dismantling buildings and repurposing components like windows, toilets and other materials to reduce landfill waste.

Vynerib says up to 20-25% of materials in buildings set to be demolished can be reused.

"It's almost embarrassing what goes into the dumpster and into a landfill," local builder David Solway says. "It's kind of crazy."

Vynerib says over the past two years, his organization has worked on seven to eight properties, helping salvage nearly $2 million worth of materials.

The deconstruction company HomeCycle CT works with is also a nonprofit that supports job training for people who need work.

"Where we are in 2025, we see so many issues with the environment in our world," Vynerib says, "HomeCycle is just the start of steps we can take to make a difference"

If you have a home or building that's set to be demolished soon and want to learn more, email olivervynerib@gmail.com