Ecochallenge.org

2018 People's Ecochallenge

October 3 - October 24, 2018

Leslie Louie

3Degrees

POINTS TOTAL

0 TODAY
0 THIS WEEK
775 TOTAL

participant impact

UP TO

870

minutes

spent exercising
UP TO

210

minutes

spent learning
UP TO

120

minutes

spent outdoors
UP TO

24

pounds of CO2

have been saved
UP TO

40

more servings

of fruits and vegetables
UP TO

1.0

waste audit

conducted

Leslie's actions

Health

Exercise Daily

Exercise is a great stress blaster! I will exercise for 30 minute(s) each day.

COMPLETED 11
DAILY ACTIONS

Energy

Use an Energy Meter

I will use an energy meter to monitor my energy use and identify opportunities to save power.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Water

Fix Leaky Faucets

I will fix faucets or report leaky faucets to facilities that have been wasting up to 9 gallons (34 L) of water per faucet every day.

UNCOMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Food

Try a New Way to Prep

I will try a new method of food preparation, such as canning, pickling, or baking bread.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Health

Eliminate Toxic Plastics

I will avoid buying toxic plastics - including polycarbonate, polystyrene and polyvinyl - and instead replace them with bioplastic or durable options.

COMPLETED 22
DAILY ACTIONS

Simplicity

Go for a Daily Walk

I will take a walk for 60 minutes each day.

COMPLETED 9
DAILY ACTIONS

Energy

Power Down the Computer

I will power down my computer and monitor when not using it for more than 2 hours, saving up to (1.1) lbs of CO2 each day that I do this.

COMPLETED 22
DAILY ACTIONS

Food

Meet My Local Farmers

I will visit my nearest farm to find out who produces my food, and will learn about the quality of life of those who produce my food in other regions of the world to make better choices when I shop.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Waste

Personal Waste Audit

I will collect all of my unrecyclable, non-compostable trash to raise my awareness of how much I send to the landfill.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Health

More Fruits and Veggies

I will eat a heart healthy diet by adding 2 cup(s) of fruits and vegetables each day to achieve at least 4 cups per day.

COMPLETED 20
DAILY ACTIONS

Food

Plant an Herb Garden

I will plant an herb garden in my home, workplace, or dorm room.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Nature

Explore My Area

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

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

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
Health More Fruits and Veggies

What do you think contributes to people in North America eating more meat than any other places, and what does this say about North American values and ways of living? How can we start shifting from a meat-focused food culture to a more plant-based one?

Leslie Louie 10/25/2018 5:57 AM

Meat is so readily available and not as expensive as produce compared to other countries. Government subsidies to the meat industry may be partly responsible for this. In Tanzania, fruits and vegetables are often home grown. Otherwise they are very inexpensive compared to meat and so fresh and readily available that we find ourselves eating more fruits and veggies than we do at home. I don't really miss the meat very much. Recently, I've bought chicken from a local farm where I know how the chickens have been raised and I also know the farmer.

Read More
REFLECTION QUESTION
Food Meet My Local Farmers

When you know who produces your food, you are connecting personally to your complex regional food system. What are the advantages of knowing who produces your food and where it comes from? Do you think this might enable someone to advocate for a better quality of life for those who produce their food, both near and far?

Leslie Louie 10/25/2018 5:52 AM

During our hikes into the mountains, we have visited the local farmers who produce the fruits and vegetables that we buy at the roadside stands, local small shops and the markets. One farmer has a family cooperative and they deliver farm fresh veggies on motorcycles to our house and various other homes and restaurants in town. I've learned that the region works to incorporate organic farming practices and participate in interviews and educational sessions to learn more about best practices. It's reassuring that they are committed to organic farming, especially since we see a lot of grasshoppers that invade and decimate some crops before they can be harvested.

Read More
REFLECTION QUESTION
Energy Use an Energy Meter

How can you make your home more energy efficient?

Leslie Louie 10/18/2018 5:56 AM

We don't have air conditioning but almost every room has a fan. We use the fans judiciously to keep ourselves cool. So far it only been in the high 80s. But that was "winter" and the hot season with short rains is coming. I anticipate we will be using the fans more. Each shower has a water heater that needs to be turned on for a few minutes before using. We discovered that if we heat the water for 15 minutes, it's good for about half a day - towards the end we just don't mix with cold water. It's so warm here that sometimes a cold shower feels great! It's not even that cold because the water is stored in large black tanks outside that soak up the heat from the sun. So the "cold" water is really more like a swimming pool - quite refreshing! Otherwise, our small refrigerator is very efficient and well insulated. The lights are almost all CF bulbs. No LED bulbs here. Now if we were going to stay longer, we might invest in solar panels! We have a few portable ones that we use to recharge a battery pack and then charge our phones and some emergency lights for when the power goes out. It's not good for much else.

Read More
Leslie Louie 10/18/2018 5:49 AM

I joined Eco Challenge because my daughter invited me to join her work team. She knows that I care about the environment and I think she is secretly using it s a way to make me do more and learn more about environmental issues and actions that I can take to make a difference. I found that several of the things I am already doing and I chose actions to do that I thought I could do and some that were maybe a stretch. Honestly, I wanted to sign up for more daily actions than the website would allow. I have time this year to do more and to post about it because we moved to Tanzania for 10 months. The actions I do here feel like they make an even bigger impact because so much of what we take for granted at home (city-wide waste and recycling, clean and potable water) are not available here. So it's interesting to reflect on how I am doing things here and what i might have done at home.

Here is a picture of the water filter we use daily to make sure we consume clean potable water. We fill all our water bottles, use it to rinse veggies that we don't plan to cook, and fill our ice trays with it. The filter requires back flushing frequently but so far it's been a workhorse and we would have had to buy bottled water if we didn't have it! Boiling makes it potable, but something is in the water that is clogging the filter - it looks much cleaner after filtering compared to boiled water and tastes better too!

Read More
REFLECTION QUESTION
Nature Explore My Area

How can spending more time outdoors enhance your sense of place?

Leslie Louie 10/10/2018 12:24 PM

The more familiar I am with my outdoor surroundings, the more I feel a part of this place. I get to discover new areas and meet the people who live there. It offers opportunities for cultural exchange too.

Read More
- Rainee Rohrbacher 10/15/2018 1:25 PM
  
  Though I have not moved outside of the state that I am in, I feel similar! Being outside more recently, I have gotten a chance to meet my new neighbors and new community, as well as the local flora and fauna!
  
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REFLECTION QUESTION
Nature Explore My Area

How can spending more time outdoors enhance your sense of place?

Leslie Louie 10/10/2018 12:24 PM

The more familiar I am with my outdoor surroundings, the more I feel a part of this place. I get to discover new areas and meet the people who live there. It offers opportunities for cultural exchange too.

Read More
REFLECTION QUESTION
Simplicity Go for a Daily Walk

Fresh air and movement are good for our entire being and can help us think more clearly and creatively. How does taking a walk each day affect yourself and/or your work?

Leslie Louie 10/10/2018 12:21 PM

I used my walk today to take care of errands so it made the walk feel more purposeful. I felt good being able to accomplish my exercise and errands at the same time. The walk helped me log an additional 10,000 steps!

Read More
- Rainee Rohrbacher 10/15/2018 1:25 PM
  
  WOOO! 10,000! Thats great!
  
  Read More
REFLECTION QUESTION
Food Try a New Way to Prep

Canning and pickling food is a great way to have delicious summer fruits and vegetables all year round. Just make sure to follow the canning and pickling guidelines from the USDA. What are some foods that you would like to preserve and enjoy later in the year?

Leslie Louie 10/09/2018 1:52 AM

I have had to adapt the methods I use to make sauces since i don't have my normal kitchen equipment, like a food processor or blender. So we've been stewing tomatoes to make our own pasta and pizza sauces. For a vegan macaroni and "cheese" sauce we forced it through a sieve instead of using a blender. It turned out great!

I've also been doing a lot of fermenting using sourdough starter, SCOBY for kombucha, and now a locally made yogurt to make our own yogurt at home. With the warmer climate, we have to adjust our fermentation times so that things don't go too long!

Later, when mango season kicks in, we will try to dry mangoes from our tree so that we can have them later after mango season is over. Or maybe we'll make mango chutney and can it!

Read More
- Rainee Rohrbacher 10/15/2018 1:26 PM
  
  YUM YUM YUM!! Keep us posted on your progress!! Sounds great!!!!
  
  Read More
REFLECTION QUESTION
Food Plant an Herb Garden

Consider the ways you can garden: a plot of land? a patio container? hanging basket? windowsill gardens? What would work best for your living situation and lifestyle?

Leslie Louie 10/07/2018 12:05 PM

The soil in Morogoro is very rich and it is a well known agricultural region. I started a vegetable garden and seeds sprouted in the first week! I'm limited to growing from seeds that I can purchase here: okra, beets, amaranth, cauliflower, eggplant, Napa cabbage. I also started plants from the seeds of a butternut squash I bought. I planted some dried up cherry tomatoes, hoping they would grow too.

It's hard to find herb seeds here so I have cuttings of basil from my neighbor which I rooted in a glass of water for a week before putting them into soil. I had a lot of green onions from our local motorcycle farmer, Mr. Safe. I left about 2 inches on the root end and sprouted them again in some water then planted them in soil. I hope they grow!

Read More
- Rainee Rohrbacher 10/15/2018 1:26 PM
  
  BEAUTIFUL!
  
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Leslie Louie 10/07/2018 11:28 AM

I went for a hike today in the mountains behind our house to visit the man who delivers his farmed veggies on a motorcycle. Mr. Safe has a beautiful farm adjoined by land shared by several family members who work cooperatively. They are near a small river that helps with gravity-fed irrigation. The fields were full with lettuces, white radish, chard, beets, green onion, leek and cilantro. He was proud to show us his home and fields and introduce us to many family members. Further up the hill, they also grow strawberries and other cooler climate veggies. I got 2 challenges done in one trip because it was a new trail to me and the first time I had even seen the river or been in that valley. Beautiful!

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- Rainee Rohrbacher 10/15/2018 1:27 PM
  
  Wow! This is great!!! What a beautiful area!
  
  Read More