Ecochallenge.org

2019 People's Ecochallenge

October 2 - October 23, 2019

December Wolf

KEEN HQ

"To view ecology and environmental actions and movements through a lens of racial justice and equity. "

POINTS TOTAL

0 TODAY
0 THIS WEEK
800 TOTAL

participant impact

UP TO

4.0

conversations

with people
UP TO

85

gallons of water

have been saved
UP TO

120

minutes

spent learning
UP TO

15

plastic bottles

not sent to the landfill
UP TO

45

plastic containers

not sent to the landfill
UP TO

1.7

pounds

food waste prevented
UP TO

3.6

pounds of CO2

have been saved
UP TO

15

whole food meals

consumed
UP TO

10

zero-waste meals

consumed

December's actions

Health

Audit Toxic Cleaning Products in my Home

I will spend 15 minutes researching toxic chemicals found in cleaning supplies and personal care products and remove them from my home.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Health

Take Control

Both systemic and personal sustainability are important! I will develop a plan with my medical professionals to achieve my best health and live my life to the fullest.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Food

Whole Foods Diet

I will enjoy 1 meal(s) each day free of processed foods.

COMPLETED 0
DAILY ACTIONS

High Impact Action Track

Talk To My Friends and Colleagues

Community

I will research the social or environmental issues in my community that matter to me and tell 2 friends and/or colleagues each day about what I learn.

COMPLETED 0
DAILY ACTIONS

High Impact Action Track

Learn About Local Environmental Justice Concerns

Health

I will spend 30 minutes researching environmental justice concerns in my region, their causes, and local initiatives to address these concerns.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Food

Watch a Documentary about Food Sovereignty

I will watch 1 documentary(ies) about food sovereignty: the right of local peoples to control their own food systems including markets, ecological resources, food cultures and production methods.

UNCOMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Health

Know My health

I will get my Core Four Biometrics tests (blood pressure, cholesterol, blood sugar and BMI).

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

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

Community

Support Native Communities

I will use the resource links provided and spend 30 minutes learning about the native populations that lived in my area prior to colonization, and what I can do to support those that still exist.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Water

Eco-friendly Gardening

I will plant native species, landscape with water-efficient plants, and use eco-friendly fertilizers.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Nature

Support Local Pollinators

At least 30% of crops and 90% of flowering plants rely on pollinators to produce fruit. I will spend 15 minutes researching which plants support local native pollinators and plant some in my yard.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Community

Volunteer in my Community

I will volunteer 2 hour(s) in my community during the challenge.

UNCOMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Waste

Reduce Single-Use Disposables

Historically, marginalized and low-income communities live closer to landfills, contributing to a multitude of health problems. I will find out how I can limit single-use items and do my best to limit the waste I generate.

COMPLETED 0
DAILY ACTIONS

High Impact Action Track

Zero-Waste Cooking

Food

I will cook 1 meal(s) with zero-waste each day

COMPLETED 0
DAILY ACTIONS

Waste

Use a Reusable Water Bottle

I will keep 1 disposable plastic bottle(s) from entering the waste stream by using a reusable water bottle.

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?

REFLECTION QUESTION
Nature Support Local Pollinators

Why is it important to take care of pollinators?

December Wolf 10/23/2019 4:54 PM

Humans rely on pollinators for food such as nuts and fruits. Most flowering plants rely on pollinators to regenerate.

Read More
REFLECTION QUESTION
Community Volunteer in my Community

What is one thing you can do to help your community become more sustainable?

December Wolf 10/16/2019 4:49 PM

I love buy-nothing groups! Cycling through materials and objects within our neighborhoods."Free" garage sales. Accessibility to repurposed items.

Read More
- Marianne Greco 10/16/2019 5:32 PM
  
  I have "buy-nothing" days for 5 days after payday. On the 6th day I pay my bills and add a little to savings and to help others. At that point there is not much left to fritter away!.
  
  Read More
REFLECTION QUESTION
Food Whole Foods Diet

Michael Pollan states that “it is better to pay the grocer (our edit: or the farmer!) than the doctor.” What are your thoughts on this idea?

December Wolf 10/08/2019 12:42 PM

"Prevention is better than treatment." It makes sense except for the "pay" part. Not everyone has access to whole meals financially; or may live in an area where it's difficult to provide a variety of foods.

Read More
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?

December Wolf 10/07/2019 5:00 PM

I forage for food to keep my food processing skills intact. I learned to make jam, bread, broth, pickles, kombucha, miso, and more while living in an intentional community. It also reminds me of the Ozarks, where my family is from.

Read More
REFLECTION QUESTION
High Impact Action Track Zero-Waste Cooking

In North America, up to 65% of food waste happens at the consumer level. Chef Steven Satterfield advocates for utilizing every part of a vegetable. How can you incorporate using an entire vegetable, including the skins, tops, and stalks during your next meal prep?

December Wolf 10/07/2019 4:07 PM

I feed scraps to our guinea pig! I also save veggie scraps in a container on the counter or fridge. Skins and tops are more difficult--other than composting--but sometimes I use appropriate veggie skins and tops for broth.

Read More
REFLECTION QUESTION
Waste Reduce Single-Use Disposables

Bringing your own bags and containers to the grocery store, and even to restaurants for leftovers, are a couple of ways to reduce your waste. What single-use items (e.g. straws, coffee cups, vegetable bags, plastic bags) do you regularly use? What could be substituted instead?

December Wolf 10/07/2019 4:04 PM

What i use regularly:
Paper bags
Plastic produce bags
What I could substitute:
Bring own bags or make sure to reuse/recycle/compost paper bags; or reuse plastic bags (I use both for animal waste.)

Read More
REFLECTION QUESTION
Waste Use a Reusable Water Bottle

While water bottles are needed for health and safety in certain places, we can do more to reduce the unnecessary use of them. What are the barriers to you using reusable bottles and tap water instead of bottled water? How could you make this a permanent habit?

December Wolf 10/07/2019 2:54 PM

I usually only use bottled water as an emergency source (kept in our car) or when I'm REALLY thirsty and have run to the grocery store or something without a water bottle.

Water bottles can be lost and be expensive to replace-- so that's one barrier.

Not everyone has access to clean tap water so that's a barrier in general. Flint, MI hasn't had water restored without lead for about 3 years. There's many other neighborhoods as well. That's due to environmental racism -- folks who have more income due to inherited resources (Read: white) tend to be served by government infrastructure first.

Read More
REFLECTION QUESTION
High Impact Action Track Talk To My Friends and Colleagues

What makes you feel connected to your neighborhood, your neighbors, or another kind of community in your life?

December Wolf 10/07/2019 2:04 PM

I feel most connected to my neighborhood when there are accessible, shared spaces that can be used with little to no income.

Read More