Heather Sheedy

The best ways to help the community become more sustainable are to join the existing community events or resources in your area. Swap meets, tool libraries, repair fairs, are a few examples and focus on generating less waste. I think it's also important to support businesses that give back to local communities and share environmental responsibility.

Apartments are tricky for gardening but still possible. My ideas are to plant several herbs along my south-facing window and tend to an aero-garden in the kitchen. Because my balcony is north-facing and does not get enough sun, I've considered growing mushrooms and other shade-loving plants. I'm also looking into eventually setting up vermicomposting and renting space in the community garden next spring.

It's hard to understand the impacts our purchases and waste have on other people, animals and places because we have not prioritized its study and still have a ways to go in order to shift our thinking on how to measure environmental impact. The economic standard metric, Gross Domestic Product (GDP), which is a monetary value of finished goods and services, shows a very different picture compared to Genuine Progress Indicator (GPI) that measures goods/services but incorporates both production and consumption costs. GDP is not a great way to  account for money-savings, highlight the value of waste reduction and also does not consider impacts on health and wellbeing. Toxics are a huge problem because of the lack of research and regulations. Many people are unaware of toxins in our daily consumables and products and at the mercy of what little information we have access to due to loose regulations because manufacturers are allowed to withhold for trade secrets. The EcoChallenge and other informative sites help bring more awareness to the issues because it gives people a chance to see measurable action and impact. It is motivating to find out that those participating are collectively working hard to reduce containers and straws that would otherwise end up in landfills or the ocean or reducing smog by pounds for alternative transportation. It's a great initial eye-opener and tool for encouragement to get started and hopefully keep up long after the event.

It's not surprising that there is 30-40% food waste in the U.S. Part of the problem is that people don't buy the right amount, misunderstand expiration dates and don't plan accordingly in terms of food preparation, preservation and storage. If I were efficient enough to save money on all the food I waste annually, I'd donate those funds to places like the Oregon Food Bank and help those in need since statistically 1 in 6 people in the U.S. struggle with hunger. I'd also like to support farmer's markets and local buying clubs.

Here are some easy ways to reduce energy at home or in the office:
- Turn off lights and appliances when you do not need them.
- Minimize use of electric-powered heaters by bundling up and adjusting the thermostat settings.
- Replace traditional incandescent light bulbs with halogen incandescent bulbs, compact fluorescent lights (CFLs), and light-emitting diode bulbs (LEDs). It saves anywhere from 25-80% less electricity and lasts 3 to 25 times longer than traditional bulbs.
- It takes a considerable amount of energy to get material resources from the land and for building or manufacturing products . By reducing the amount of material goods you collect (especially those that you don't need or use often) through sharing, reuse and buying smart, you can reduce energy usage as well as carbon emissions.

My personal values are quality time with family/friends, having fun, community/environmental service, and learning. Team sports like soccer allows for both exercise and fun outdoors with my friends. For the EcoChallenge and Drive Less Challenge, I am biking more to spend less money on fuel, reducing air pollution and moving around in the process. I am considering finding ways to incorporate my value of learning, perhaps try activities I don't know much about like lifting kettle-bells or other strength-focused workouts with a trainer to have exposure to different training.

Mode of transportation definitely affects my community engagement. When riding transit and walking, I pay more attention to the people I see in neighborhoods and on rare occasions, strike up a conversation. Sometimes that small piece of human awareness/contact is uplifting. Bike riding, while a slower way to get around, allows me to enjoy new routes, sights and experience the changing surroundings.