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
Energy
Heat and Cool Naturally
I will naturally heat and cool my house, office, or dorm room by opening or closing my windows, curtains, and blinds, and by using fans.
COMPLETED 7
DAILY ACTIONS
Energy
Upgrade Heating and Cooling Units
I will replace inefficient heating and cooling units with energy saving units.
COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION
Energy
Install an Alternative Energy System
I will install an alternative energy system, such as solar electric systems or solar water heaters.
COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION
Energy
Donate to or Volunteer for Low-Income Solar Initiatives
Whether it's by donating or volunteering, I will research the benefits of low-income solar and find out how I can support low-income solar initiatives in my area.
COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION
Food
Buy From a Farmers Market
I will shop at a farmers market or food co-op to support local farmers and businesses. By doing so, I may be able to learn more about who produces the food I eat and goods I buy.
UNCOMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION
Water
Insulate Water Pipes and Water Heater
I will avoid wasting water while waiting for the shower or sink to heat up.
UNCOMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION
Community
Meet my northerly neighbor
The official task is a daily one, but there's one particular neighbor I've tried to meet but haven't quite yet, so this is just a singular goal to meet him.
UNCOMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION
Simplicity
Replace Screen Time with Other Activities
I will replace 30 minutes of screen time each day with other activities.
COMPLETED 4
DAILY ACTIONS
Waste
Visit a Local Recycling Center, Landfill, or Transfer Station
Seeing where waste goes can change how we think about what we throw away. I will visit a local facility to learn more about the waste stream in my community and share what I learn with others and in the feed.
UNCOMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION
Energy
Sign up for Response Rewards
My utility has a couple of programs to try and shift demand to cheaper times of day. Once I have my battery turned on, I want to sign up for one of the programs to reduce the need to build new natural gas plants to meet demand.
UNCOMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION
Energy
Choose Clean or Renewable Energy
I will sign up for my utility company's clean/renewable energy option.
COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION
Waste
Repair a Broken Item
I will repair at least one item that is broken, but is repairable. This might be items like garden tools, sewing machine, small appliances, electronics, clothing, and more.
COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION
Health
Go Get a Check Up
Regular health check-ups help prevent problems before they start. I will schedule or attend a medical, dental, or mental health check-up to take care of my well-being.
UNCOMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION
Nature
Spend Time Outside
I will replace 15 minutes each day typically spent inside (computer time, watching television, etc.) with quality time outside.
COMPLETED 3
DAILY ACTIONS
Nature
Explore a New Trail or Nature Walk
I will explore at least one new hiking trail or nature walk in my area.
UNCOMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION
Health
Exercise Daily
Daily movement supports our physical and mental health. I will spend 20 minutes each day exercising in a way that feels good to me, such as walking, running, stretching, or dancing.
COMPLETED 3
DAILY ACTIONS
Food
Enjoy a Meatless Meal
Producing 1 kg of beef emits as much greenhouse gas as driving 150 miles, meanwhile, 1 kg of veggies or grains leaves a much lighter footprint! This week, I’ll shrink my climate impact by having 1 meatless meals and/or 0 vegan meals each day.
COMPLETED 7
DAILY ACTIONS
Water
Practice Eco-Friendly Gardening
I will plant native species, landscape with water-efficient plants, and use eco-friendly fertilizers.
COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION
Energy
Use an Energy Meter to Monitor My Use
I will use an energy meter to monitor my energy use and identify opportunities to save power.
COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION
Waste
Advocate For Better Food Packaging Options
I will advocate for alternatives to single-use packaging at local grocery stores, markets, at work, or on campus to reduce pollution in the environment and in local communities.
UNCOMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION
Waste
Go Paperless and Opt Out of Junk Mail
I will reduce the amount of paper mail that I receive by 3.4lbs (1.5kg) a month or 41lbs (18.6kg) a year by opting into paperless billing, ending unwanted subscriptions and opting out of junk mail.
COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION
Community
Attend a local zoning meeting
Attend a local meeting about a rewrite of the city's zoning code to connect with my community, participate in local government, and advocate for a more sustainable city.
COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION
Community
Visit a Sustainability Fair
Attend a community sustainability fair to learn about and from local organizations which are working on sustainability in my area.
UNCOMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION
Participant Feed
REFLECTION
QUESTION
Waste
What did you fix and how did it go? Share a few pics if you can!
My work lends hands-on kits to teachers to use teaching their students about energy. But of course, with everything thoroughly handled by kids, sometimes damage happens! So I got out my soldering iron and repaired three or four alligator clips where the wire had gotten detached from the clip on the end, and then I added on a new wire to a mini solar panel which had one wire broken off so short no one could use it. Since these solar panels were originally donated to us after having been used by our Department of Transportation (yay for secondhand items!) we can't just go out and buy replacements if anything happens to a panel, so I'm really glad I was able to make it useable again!
I just got back from a local meeting about my city's work rewriting our zoning code. I was really glad to see that they were considering factors like housing density, mixed-use commercial and residential, better pedestrian and bicycle infrastructure, and EV chargers. Still, I was glad I was there to remind everyone that (barring natural disasters), all the buildings built from this point forward (not to mention a lot of the currently existing ones!) will still be standing in 2050 when our state is committed to being net zero. So what kinds of buildings do we need to build *now* in order to be ready to meet that goal?
I just watched a webinar about Project Drawdown's new Explorer feature, and it looks awesome! https://drawdown.org/explorer They have dozens of climate solutions listed, with information about how much of an impact they could have and a bunch of additional resources to learn about the solution and how to get involved no matter what level of power you have. I'd highly recommend exploring these solutions yourself, and then sharing them with everyone you know!
Heather, thank you for posting about Drawdown Explorer. It's great to be able to have the scientific facts right there in front of me as I try to implement sustainable techniques.
Oh, I love belly dancing! I had to give it up due to an injury, but don't worry... keep at it, and your hips (and other areas) will be moving in wonderful ways!
One big thing was adding a heat pump - because they're moving heat, not creating it, they're a lot more efficient than pretty much any other method of heating your home. So I've now done that! Now I want to swap out the other heating appliances in my home for heat pumps - my water heater and dryer. But it's also just fascinating seeing what energy I'm currently using - I now have a way to real-time watch how many kW my house is using, and it's something being able to see the general background usage of lights, my fridge, etc., but then see the truly massive spikes when I turn on an oven, iron, or the heat pump. At least it takes a lot less power to keep an oven at temperature than to get it up to temperature, but I think I'm going to be a lot more careful about not letting my oven sit around, preheated, while I get distracted and haven't actually gotten the food into the oven yet.
By putting solar up on my house, I'm being a visible example in the community - studies have shown that people are more likely to get solar for their own home when they see others around them doing the same. We need to make solar seem like the normal, obvious, cool thing to do so that others will see it as something to aspire to.
Question for the community: as you've been looking through the collections of actions to choose between, are there any you think are missing? Either ones you've then added yourself as a create your own action, or maybe actions you already take that you think others in the community might be inspired to try? Anything you'd like to see added to the challenge next time around?
Two I noticed:
There's an action about researching whether a hybrid or EV might be right for you, but there's no action to actually purchase an EV/plug-in hybrid/electric bike/etc. I know that's a really big step that a lot of folks wouldn't be ready to undertake in a month, but so is "Install an alternative energy system," and that's an action folks can take!
I also see a daily action about composting food waste, but I'd love to see a one-time action about creating a compost pile and/or signing up for a local composting service. That's an important first step!
Solar panels will be getting turned on very, very soon! I just have to wait for the inspection tomorrow and permission to operate from my utility sometime after that!
If anyone wants to complete the goal of "Donate to Low-Income Solar Initiatives" I can highly recommend Renewables.org! It's quite a bit like Kiva: you loan money in $25 chunks, which they then use to support solar projects in India and Africa - places where the grid is likely particularly dirty, yet labor to install solar panels is super cheap, so you end up getting a lot more "bang for your buck" then you would with a similar-costing solar project in the U.S. You can loan as much as you'd like, then over time it'll get repaid out of the money saved by having the solar array, allowing you to reloan it to another project. It's a great organization, and I'd love to see it grow like Kiva has! (And if you want to support individual families instead, Kiva has a bunch of great loans to help families get a panel or two to run some lights, and maybe a TV or refrigerator. Solar is an amazing way to bring electricity to folks who've never had access to the traditional electric grid!)
Another favorite I made a giant batch of and have been eating all week: potato rolls! Dissolve 2 1/4 oz yeast packets in 2/3 cup warm water. In a large bowl, mix 1 cup warm mashed potatoes (just the potoatoes - no milk and butter), 2/3 cup shortening, 2/3 cup sugar, 2 eggs, 2 1/2 tsp salt, another 2/3 cup water, 2 cups flour, and the yeast mixture. Beat it smooth, then add another 4-ish cups flour until it forms a soft dough. Don't knead it, just make it a ball and put it in a covered greased bowl and let rise for an hour. Then divide into thirds. For each third, grease a 9-inch round cake pan, and shape the dough into 15 rolls in the pan. Let rise about 30 minutes. Finally bake at 375 F for 20-25 minutes until golden brown. They're soft yet hearty, and it actually works pretty well to leave a pan in the fridge for a day or two before baking so you can have fresh rolls multiple days in a row. A great use for locally picked potatoes, and a great meat-free breakfast!
