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Welcome to The People's Ecochallenge 2025!

Watch the short video below to learn the basics.
You'll be an The People's Ecochallenge 2025 expert in no time!

Ecochallenge.org
The People's Ecochallenge 2025
October 1 - October 31, 2025
Keila Miller's avatar

Keila Miller

ACHS Eco Ambassadors

"I strongly believe our actions have a compound effect. As such, I am committed to working with my team to achieve measurable goals that significantly impact our environment in a positive way. "

POINTS TOTAL

  • 0 TODAY
  • 110 THIS WEEK
  • 1,316 TOTAL

participant impact

  • UP TO
    556
    pounds of CO2
    have been saved
  • UP TO
    1.0
    energy audit
    conducted
  • UP TO
    5,059
    minutes
    being mindful
  • UP TO
    2.0
    donations
    made
  • UP TO
    2.0
    conversations
    with people
  • UP TO
    120
    minutes
    spent outdoors
  • UP TO
    1.0
    tree
    planted
  • UP TO
    805
    minutes
    spent learning

Keila's actions

Food

Donate Food in My Community

I will find out what food programs are in my area and donate food and/or other items that they request.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Take the Pre-Survey

Take the Pre-Event Survey

I’ll take a short pre-survey to share what motivated me to join — and earn 15 points! (If I already took the survey by email, I’ll just mark this action complete to get my points.)

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Waste

Learn About and Practice Sustainable Fashion

I will spend 60 minutes learning about sustainable fashion and begin trying to practice it in my own life.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Simplicity

Research Impact Investing

Using the links provided below, I will research impact investing and determine if it is right for me.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Community

Engage In Active Listening

I will practice actively listening to a friend, family member, co-worker, acquaintance, or someone who I may disagree with in at least 1 conversations.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Nature

Explore a New Trail or Nature Walk

I will explore at least one new hiking trail or nature walk in my area.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Transportation

Stay on the Ground and Travel Differently

Instead of traveling by plane, I will find an alternative way to accomplish the goals of an upcoming trip (e.g., telepresence, vacation locally).

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Nature

Keep a Nature Journal

I will journal each day about my experiences in nature.

COMPLETED 28
DAILY ACTIONS

Simplicity

Eat Mindfully without Distractions

I will eat all of my meals without distractions, e.g., phone, computer, TV, or newspaper.

COMPLETED 28
DAILY ACTIONS

Community

Explore the Community Feed and Connect with Others

I will spend 15 minutes reading the Ecochallenge feed each day and giving high fives or commenting on posts by people who I don't know, but whose content inspires or interests me.

COMPLETED 28
DAILY ACTIONS

Water

Learn About Water Justice

Access to clean water is a basic right, yet not everyone has it. I will spend 10 minutes learning about water justice issues and who is affected.

COMPLETED 28
DAILY ACTIONS

Waste

Check Recycling Near Me

Recycling rules vary by location. I’ll spend 10 minutes learning which plastics my local program accepts. This helps me avoid “wishcycling” — tossing items in the bin and hoping they’ll be recycled, even if they aren’t.

COMPLETED 28
DAILY ACTIONS

Energy

Complete an Online Energy Audit

I will complete an online energy audit of my home, office, or dorm room and identify my next steps for saving energy.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Health

Support Pollution Reduction in My Area

I will spend at least 60 minutes learning about water and air quality issues in my area, how they are impacting human and environmental health, and how I can help.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Nature

Plant Trees

I will plant 1 trees in my community, public parks, or backyard.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Participant Feed

  • REFLECTION QUESTION
    Nature
    How is planting trees good for your mental, physical, and spiritual health?
    Keila Miller's avatar
    Keila Miller 10/28/2025 4:54 PM
    • Book Lover 📚
    We desperately need trees for our survival. They are crucial for reducing toxins and purifying the air. They give shelter and food to so many creatures, including us. They protect the soil from erosion and pollution build up; which helps to protect our water system. They create micro ecosystems for special species to thrive in. Aesthetically, they create breathtaking sceneries that allow us to find solace in. The list can go on…

    It’s good for my health because it connects me to nature and allows me to give back in a positive way. Trees give us so much more than we give them. The simple act of planting one is a beautiful way of acknowledging and honoring their enormous contribution to life.
    Read More
  • REFLECTION QUESTION
    Health
    What environmental factors affect human health in your region, and how do they affect it?
    Keila Miller's avatar
    Keila Miller 10/28/2025 4:43 PM
    • Book Lover 📚
    In my immediate local area, the biggest concern is soil and ground contamination primarily caused by glass manufacturing waste, including toxic metals, arsenic, cadmium, lead, and boron. The contaminated soil was used as fill in times past and has been of concern is specific locations, including several parks and at the high school. What was encouraging though was that our local area has been cleaning up the contaminated places. Currently, they plan to finish up by Spring of 2026. I’ll be keeping an eye on this now that I’m aware of it!
    Read More
  • REFLECTION QUESTION
    Food
    Why do you donate food? How does it connect to your values?
    Keila Miller's avatar
    Keila Miller 10/28/2025 4:27 PM
    • Book Lover 📚
    The truth is I don’t donate food to charities or institutions that are organized to support the local community in this way. This was my first time doing so and I’m glad I did. It helped me find new resources to give to and to direct people to. The people collecting the donations were friendly and approachable too; which was encouraging to see.

    I usually keep food donations closer to home by giving them to some of my neighbors. There are a number of elderly neighbors in my neighborhood. Some are not as old but are on the higher age group. So I like to give them extra fruits and veggies from our backyard during the summer and fall. In the winter and early spring, I give them any extra baked goods or sourdough bread we’ve made. Sometimes we purposefully make extra food just to give away to neighbors, family, and friends. It’s a special way to connect with others and to share from our heart and home. Meaningful connections are important to me so this is an easy way to apply my values. I find it helps to bring down walls and allows for open exchange too!
    Read More
  • REFLECTION QUESTION
    Energy
    What most interested or surprised you about your own energy footprint? What changes did you make or will you make?
    Keila Miller's avatar
    Keila Miller 10/28/2025 4:01 PM
    • Book Lover 📚
    What surprised me most was how easy it is to implement actions that reduce energy footprint at home. There were quite a few actions I was already aware of and have been implementing. Others are on the to-do list, like sealing all draft areas in the attic. However, before reading on how to perform an at-home energy audit, I was fully expecting to read about complicated ways of saving energy. Quite the opposite! I mean some are lengthy in performing as they require several steps. But there are many easy ones. It has inspired me to encourage my family and friends to read up on it for themselves too. Sometimes the only reason we don’t take action is because we think it will be difficult to do. Having simple steps that are clearly laid out can help to remove some of the intimidation that may be associated with not making change while also making it easier to take action.
    Read More
  • REFLECTION QUESTION
    Simplicity
    How might impact investing help you better live your values?
    Keila Miller's avatar
    Keila Miller 10/23/2025 7:32 PM
    • Book Lover 📚
    Mainly by helping me to invest in companies or institutions who are actively and positively using funds to make a change in specific areas that I myself value. However, if I were to get involved with impact investing, I would do extensive research on each company to make sure I was not investing into greenwashing. Currently, I prefer to vote with my dollar and “invest” into various forms of sustainable change by purchasing primarily from manufacturers and companies who are actively making an impact through ethical, social, and environmental practices.
    Read More
  • Keila Miller's avatar
    Keila Miller 10/19/2025 6:38 PM
    • Book Lover 📚
    Today was a perfect day for a hike. The air was warm with a mild chill. The wind was gently blowing. It was refreshing indeed. My family and I explored a new trail within the Finger Lakes Trail. We have explored some of the spots in this area before but not all of the trails. Our favorite was revisiting the fire tower.

    Here are some pictures…

    Read More
  • REFLECTION QUESTION
    Community
    What was it like to actively listen to someone? How did both people and the conversations benefit from active listening?
    Keila Miller's avatar
    Keila Miller 10/19/2025 6:21 PM
    • Book Lover 📚
    One conversation was pretty pleasant. The other one not so much. They happened on different days, about a week apart. In the first conversation, there were 3 of us. The whole conversation was easy to have. Each person shared their perspective on the topic we were on. We each listened to the other and asked questions to understand. As I listened to each of them, I was pleased to hear their ideas and opinions. It helped me to understand why they felt what they felt and also added valuable information to my knowledge base. It seemed like we all understood and respected each other more for sharing our thoughts.

    The second conversation was me and another person. In contrast, to the people in the first conversation, this person was intense. They weren’t yelling or anything, but they wanted me to have the same viewpoint as them. I listened to them and let them explain their viewpoint and why they felt how they did. I stayed calm and collected the entire time, even when they asked questions to challenge me—not to understand me. I told them multiple times I didn’t want to argue. In the end, I had to respectfully end the conversation because they kept trying to impose their views on me in a toxic way. I walked away feeling sad and a bit heavy because it really didn’t have to go that way if both of us could’ve simply been open-minded and respect the other’s view. However, on a positive note, it reminded me how important it is to practice active listening, to make it a point to try to understand someone’s viewpoint, to accept that we’re going to see things differently, to evaluate our own perspectives and make sure we’re being open-minded, and to do our part to educate ourselves in the areas that we are not familiar with.
    Read More
    • Mary Hanks's avatar
      Mary Hanks 10/19/2025 8:33 PM
      • Pet Parent 🐾
      Kudos to you for remaining calm and patient with the person from the second conversation. Sometimes it's simply not possible to have a civil conversation with someone, especially if the other party won't listen or is overly forceful.
      Read More
  • REFLECTION QUESTION
    Transportation
    What was your process like for restructuring your trip? How can you avoid more air travel in the future?
    Keila Miller's avatar
    Keila Miller 10/19/2025 5:36 PM
    • Book Lover 📚
    This month we had two different trips lined up. One was for attending a Sean Rowe concert in Vermont. Instead of making it a two day trip where we flew in on the day of and flew out the next day, we decided to turn it into a family trip by car since we’re only one state over. We took a route that would take us to one of our favorite places in NY, the Adirondacks, to hike some mountains and enjoy the beautiful outdoors. Then we headed over to Vermont for the concert and explored their natural resources too. Then we headed home through one of our other favorite places in NY, the Catskills, to hike some of the rolling hills and enjoy the culture of the place.

    The next trip was for my son who had a game competition in Milwaukee, WI. It was just him and I going. At first it seemed like the simplest solution would be to fly there and back. However, we talked to some of the other people who were attending and found out that some of them were driving. In the end, we carpooled with two other people who planned to drive there. Not only did we reduce our carbon footprint, we also reduced the total cost, shared expenses, and got to know each other better and in meaningful ways!

    To avoid air travel in the future, I will look at carpooling where possible. The sustainable and social benefits are wonderful. I also will continue to choose vacations and explorations that are closer to home—in my own state or neighboring states. There are many places my family and I have yet to experience in these areas, even place that are just a few counties away from me!

    Here’s a picture of one of the mountains we climbed, Noonmark Mountain. It had a 360 degree view at the very top. This is one section of it.
    Read More
  • REFLECTION QUESTION
    Waste
    How can you express your personality, creativity, and values in ways that don't require fast fashion or buying more clothes and accessories?
    Keila Miller's avatar
    Keila Miller 10/19/2025 4:55 PM
    • Book Lover 📚
    One way would be to make something new from something old. I do this quite a bit for interior and exterior home decorating but not so much with clothing. Other ways would be to mix and match pieces to create a fresh look, do a clothing or accessory swap with friends to exchange pieces we’re tired of wearing, and embellish clothing pieces in a classy way using various forms of embroidery. I’ve been wanting to dive deeper into sewing and embroidery, so this would be a great way to start!
    Read More
    • Mary Hanks's avatar
      Mary Hanks 10/19/2025 8:50 PM
      • Pet Parent 🐾
      Clothing swaps are so much fun! However, these days most of my friends wear different sizes than I do. I even have a hard time finding people to take the clothes I can no longer wear. I should really try to work more incorporating the belts and scarves I've had for years into different looks like you suggest.
      Read More
    • Keila Miller's avatar
      Keila Miller 10/19/2025 6:42 PM
      • Book Lover 📚
      Thank you for sharing this, Ray! What a neat idea. 😄 Like you, I also need to find cool vintage shops!
      Read More
    • Ray Taylor's avatar
      Ray Taylor 10/19/2025 5:16 PM
      You should totally take up embordering! Maybe even make a side Hussle out of it! I recently sold a $5 that someone embroidered it making Lincoln wear a cowboy smoking a cigarette. And I sold it immediatley for $50 as soon as I posted it.


      Back on track I agree: accessorize! and going to an used clothing store. Vintage is all the hype right now. I've found a lot off great clothing on eBay. So it doesn't contribute to fast fashion. But it does contribute to green house emissions because it is shipped. Luckily Portland has so many used vintage clothing stores. So I need to get out more and find more cool vintage shops!
      Read More
  • Keila Miller's avatar
    Keila Miller 10/11/2025 6:01 PM
    • Book Lover 📚
    “What’s one small win you’ve had so far in this Ecochallenge?” I wouldn’t categorize it as small, but I would say it’s finding ways to be involved in my community. Up to now I’ve felt lost with knowing how to get more involved in my own community. For the past week, as I’ve been reading the feed, reading article links embedded in the various tasks, and doing my own research, I’ve thought of new ways I could get involved personally and professionally.

    Today helped me even more. I spent the first half of the day in a nearby community where all of these community resources and advocacy opportunities exists. It’s one of my go-to communities. There’s a bittersweet experience in driving there to find the resources I wish were in my own community. However, today my mind and heart were looking for simple ways I could create similar community resources back home. I still have some processing to do, but I see solutions and feel inspired to improve my community by joining existing resources and by implementing others in my own way.
    Read More