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October 1 - October 31, 2025

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  • REFLECTION QUESTION
    Community
    What are the ways in which voters are prohibited from or discouraged from voting in your region and/or state? What could be done to get rid of these barriers?

    Olivia A.'s avatar
    Olivia A. 10/05/2025 4:23 AM
    I live in Germany and didn't find a lot of information about voter suppression here. I don't think it is a big topic here and it's likely not as present. The requirement for voting is a German citizenship and it's recommended to bring a passport and ID, which I can imagine could be difficult for some people but it is required to have an ID as an adult here anyway. Voting can be difficult if you have a disability but you have the right to request an accessible polling station.
    I am originally from the US, however, and there is a lot of voter suppression going on there. On social media, it is easy to find misinformation and be discouraged from voting, especially due to posts targeting specific groups. It would be important for companies to pass fact-checking laws. In California, voter suppression including for voters from abroad is comparatively low.
    In my opinion, the provision of the Voting Rights Act struck down in Holder v. Shelby County must be reestablished to prevent voter suppression due to policies. Voter suppression includes: policies requiring proof of citizenship and other registration restrictions as well as voter ID laws, arbitrary requirements and criminalization of the ballot box, felony disenfranchisement, voter purges, and redistricting and gerrymandering. Voter fraud in the sense of saying you are someone else and voting under there name is very rare, only about 3%, whereas double voting or absentee ballots are bigger problems. I understand that it is important to prevent fraud but suppression and discrimination are not the solution.

    • Frank Tallman's avatar
      Frank Tallman 10/05/2025 7:21 AM
      • Foodie 🍱
      Olivia, I would say that what your seeing and/or experiencing is the same in most places across the world.

  • Olivia A.'s avatar
    Olivia A. 10/05/2025 3:04 AM
    Today I learned about environmental problems in my city. I learned that my city is getting warmer, with increased heat waves. In 2018 the longest heat wave took place over 17 days. The historic district and the industrial west part of the city have the most problems. This is damaging for the health of people living here. There's a heat action plan with preventative and acute measures for heat waves in our city. What would be important: more green spaces and heat-reflecting surfaces. We badly need these.

    • Kerry Keck's avatar
      Kerry Keck 10/05/2025 9:42 AM
      Olivia, this is also a problem here in my city and there is clearly a social justice component. I have seen the results of data demonstrating the lack, or even total absence, of tree cover and/or green spaces in lower income neighborhoods and those with the highest demographic toward people of color.

  • Olivia A.'s avatar
    Olivia A. 10/03/2025 9:43 AM
    Today's EcoChallenge updates:

    Missed out on the first two days due to travel and illness. Now I'm back and hoping for a great EcoChallenge.

    Unplugged some appliances but unfortunately couldn't unplug everything that belongs to my family.

    Created a table to learn about spending habits.

    Learned about an environmental problem in my city. There's a small lake near where I live which apparently has been closed off because many fish are dying due to a poisonous substance in the lake, and we aren't sure where it's coming from.