Paul de Block

Bureau of Planning and Sustainability

"Simplify and refocus"

POINTS TOTAL

0 TODAY
0 THIS WEEK
475 TOTAL

participant impact

UP TO

360

minutes

of additional sleep
UP TO

80

minutes

spent exercising
UP TO

60

minutes

spent learning
UP TO

170

minutes

spent outdoors
UP TO

80

minutes

not spent in front of a screen
UP TO

573

pounds of CO2

have been saved

Paul's actions

Nature

Forage for My Food

I will use the 'Learn More' resources below to find where I can forage for my own food locally.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Transportation

Choose a Carbon Offset

If buying a plane ticket, I will also buy a carbon offset.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Nature

Spend Time Outside

I will replace 5 minute(s) each day typically spent inside (computer time, watching television, etc.) with quality time outside.

COMPLETED 0
DAILY ACTIONS

Nature

Practice Gratitude for Earth

I will spend 1 minute(s) each day outside, practicing gratitude (prayer, meditation, journaling, etc.) for Earth and the nature surrounding me.

COMPLETED 0
DAILY ACTIONS

Health

Healthy Sleep

Effectively working for sustainability requires self care! I will commit to getting 30 more minute(s) of sleep each night to achieve at least 7 hours per night.

COMPLETED 12
DAILY ACTIONS

Simplicity

De-Clutter My Home

I will de-clutter, clean, and donate or recycle unneeded items in my home.

COMPLETED 0
DAILY ACTIONS

Nature

Go for a Daily Walk

I will take a 5-minute walk outside each day.

COMPLETED 0
DAILY ACTIONS

Participant Feed

Reflection, encouragement, and relationship building are all important aspects of getting a new habit to stick.
Share thoughts, encourage others, and reinforce positive new habits on the Feed.

To get started, share “your why.” Why did you join the challenge and choose the actions you did?

Paul de Block 10/23/2019 4:07 PM

Hi all - make sure to answer your reflection questions. Not only are they thoughtful questions to ponder but they also give you 15 points each. :-)

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REFLECTION QUESTION
Nature Practice Gratitude for Earth

Kathleen Dean Moore says that a sense of gratitude leads to a sense of moral obligation. Do you agree? How do we cultivate a sense of gratitude as individuals, and as a society?

Paul de Block 10/23/2019 3:56 PM

I'm not sure I experience it as moral obligation but I do feel greater connection when giving (and receiving) gratitude. I think the best way to cultivate gratitude in our culture is for each of us to make practicing gratitude a priority.

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Paul de Block 10/23/2019 3:40 PM

Thanks to Julia for leading this year's challenge! You are appreciated!!!

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REFLECTION QUESTION
Nature Go for a Daily Walk

How do you experience your neighborhood or city differently when walking instead of driving?

Paul de Block 10/23/2019 3:36 PM

I love walking this time of year. No better way to experience the changing of the season.

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REFLECTION QUESTION
Health Healthy Sleep

Consider how many hours of sleep you get now. How would you like to shift your sleep patterns? What are you finding works for you to be successful in this action?

Paul de Block 10/23/2019 3:35 PM

With three young kids it's hard to find time in the day to get things done. I find myself taking full advantage of the time after they go to bed but at the expense of a full night's sleep. I've found that if I'm strategic about my time, I can still get a few things done but also get to bed earlier. A list of need-to-do vs like-to-do helps me use my time wisely.

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REFLECTION QUESTION
Nature Spend Time Outside

Rachel Carson said that we need the beauty and mysteries of the natural world for our spiritual and emotional development. Does that ring true for you? What are the implications for a culture that spends most of its time indoors?

Paul de Block 10/23/2019 3:27 PM

Spending time outside, rain or shine, always improves my mood. My wife and I have made it a priority for our whole family to be outside almost every day.

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REFLECTION QUESTION
Nature Forage for My Food

People are motivated to forage for many different reasons: as a source for food, a means of income, to connect with nature, to participate in cultural tradition, transmitting specific ecological knowledge, or as a means of stewarding local and native plant populations. What is your chief motivation for foraging?

Paul de Block 10/23/2019 2:52 PM

Been reading a couple of great books on foraging edible wild plants. Definitely check out the author, Samuel Thayer.

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REFLECTION QUESTION
Simplicity De-Clutter My Home

How can you prevent yourself from accumulating more things in the future?

Paul de Block 10/23/2019 2:47 PM

My commitment to decluttering and reorganizing at home has been the most satisfying outcome of the ecochallenge for me. A great exercise to think through what's really important in my life.

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REFLECTION QUESTION
Transportation Choose a Carbon Offset

A round-trip flight from New York City to Los Angeles emits just over 1.5 tons of CO2—per person. That’s a lot of carbon! What can you do to reduce the number of flights you take per year?

Paul de Block 10/23/2019 2:42 PM

I have a work trip planned next month that requires a plane ride. I just purchased my first carbon offset through BEF and it was super easy (and inexpensive).

Read More