2018 People's Ecochallenge

October 3 - October 24, 2018

Campbell Swaim

"My mission is to become more aware of the things I can do to help the environment and take action by doing things from the small everyday actions, to the larger longterm actions, and the Ecochallenge is my starting place."

POINTS TOTAL

0 TODAY
0 THIS WEEK
1,062 TOTAL

participant impact

UP TO

1.0

documentary

watched
UP TO

330

minutes

spent learning
UP TO

990

minutes

being mindful
UP TO

770

minutes

not spent in front of a screen

Campbell's actions

Health

Learn About Local Environmental Justice Concerns

I will spend 30 minutes researching environmental justice concerns in my region, their causes, and local initiatives to address these concerns.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Food

Watch a Documentary about Food Sovereignty

I will watch 1 documentary(ies) about food sovereignty: the right of local peoples to control their own food systems including markets, ecological resources, food cultures and production methods.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Community

Support Native Communities

I will use the resource links provided and spend 30 minutes learning about the native populations that lived in my area prior to colonization, and what I can do to support those that still exist.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Nature

Forage for My Food

I will use the 'Learn More' resources below to find where I can forage for my own food locally.

COMPLETED
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

Waste

Find Local Recycling Depots

I will spend at least 30 minutes finding out where to recycle the recyclable items that I can't put in my curbside bin.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Health

Audit Toxic Cleaning Products in my Home

I will spend 30 minutes researching toxic chemicals found in cleaning supplies and personal care products and remove them from my home.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Health

Support Pollution Reduction

I will spend at least 30 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

Health

Learn More about Food Deserts

I will spend 30 minutes learning about food deserts and find out how I can advocate for healthy and fresh food in my region.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Health

Go get a check up

I will make an appointment for my annual physical.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Energy

Turn it off

I will keep lights, electronics, and appliances turned off when not using them.

COMPLETED 22
DAILY ACTIONS

Simplicity

Less Screen Time

I will replace 35 minute(s) of screen time each day with other activities.

COMPLETED 22
DAILY ACTIONS

Simplicity

Eat Mindfully

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

COMPLETED 22
DAILY ACTIONS

Health

Happiness

I will write down three things every day that I am grateful for, or send one email every day thanking or praising someone.

COMPLETED 22
DAILY ACTIONS

Create Your Own Action

Reusable utensils only

My goal is to only use reusable utensils when I eat, which will reduce the amount of plastic being used in the world.

COMPLETED 21
DAILY ACTIONS

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?

Campbell Swaim 10/24/2018 7:48 PM

The Eco Challenge is almost over, let finish it strong!

Read More
REFLECTION QUESTION
Community Support Native Communities

Indigenous speaker and activist Winona LaDuke says that, "most indigenous ceremonies, if you look to their essence, are about the restoration of balance — they are a reaffirmation of our relationship to creation. That is our intent: to restore, and then to retain balance and honor our part in creation." Why is balance important to sustainability?

Campbell Swaim 10/24/2018 7:15 PM

Balance is important to sustainability because for example, there might be a lot of money being made, but environmentally friendly choices aren't being made, so that isn't good for the environment. If all decisions are environmentally friendly, there might not be any money made in the process and then things can go wrong, so if you have a good balance, everything turns out better in the end.

Read More
REFLECTION QUESTION
Food Watch a Documentary about Food Sovereignty

How does food sovereignty address the complex agrarian transition to modern food systems?

Campbell Swaim 10/24/2018 7:01 PM

Food sovereignty supports the right of healthy food culturally appropriate for people who need it. A lot of the food we eat today is from big corporates that process the food, but before this, food was locally produced and sold.

Read More
REFLECTION QUESTION
Health Audit Toxic Cleaning Products in my Home

To what extent do you believe that environmental factors contribute to your own health or issues with health?

Campbell Swaim 10/22/2018 8:56 PM

I believe that environmental factors contribute to issues with health because for example if people are breathing air that is polluted or smokey, it can damage their lungs, or if people drink contaminated, or unhealthy water they can get sick. There are more examples than that, but those examples show how environmental factors can contribute to your health.

Read More
Campbell Swaim 10/22/2018 5:04 PM

Today I made fry bread with my mom and younger brother for his project at school, and it was really fun! My brother and I have a teeny tiny bit of Cherokee in us, and that is the tribe my brother chose to learn and present about for school, so that is why we made the fry bread! Here is a link to the recipe we used if you want to check it out (scroll down a little to find it): https://thestayathomechef.com/authentic-indian-fry-bread/

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?

Campbell Swaim 10/20/2018 12:36 PM

I would like to continue preserving blueberries because my blueberry bushes produce a lot more blueberries than we can eat, so we end up freezing them and giving them away to grandparents and friends each year. I would also like to try to save some pumpkins seeds for later in the year because there will be a lot we can save after we take them out of our pumpkins to carve them for Halloween.

Read More
REFLECTION QUESTION
Nature Forage for My Food

Amongst the motivations for foraging are: a source of food; means of income; connecting with nature; cultural tradition; or transmitting "local ecological knowledge, and a means for stewarding local and native plant populations" (McLain et al. 2012, 13). Which of these would be your chief motivation and why?

Campbell Swaim 10/20/2018 12:19 PM

My chief motivation would probably be to find a source of food because foods are very important for our bodies, so we can stay healthy, energized, and nourished. It is also a good idea to learn where there is food around you, so in case you ever need access to it, or others do, you have the knowledge to help them or yourself. It was interesting looking on the Falling Fruit website to see how many places around me I can find fruit at. There weren’t actually that many, but there were a fair amount of places.

Read More
Campbell Swaim 10/17/2018 4:25 PM

One of my daily challenges is to keep electronics and appliances off when not using them, and while I have been making sure I do this, I have noticed a lot of unneeded electricity being kept on all day. My school has lots of windows to let light in, so a lot of the time there are lights on all day that don't need to be on, and I wish I could be in charge of turning them on and off because I could save energy!

Read More
Campbell Swaim 10/17/2018 4:20 PM

I have checked in every day so far in this challenge...I hope I keep this up for the rest of it!

Read More
Campbell Swaim 10/16/2018 6:45 PM

This is my first time participating in the Eco-challenge, and it has been really fun so far. I have learned new information on a couple of various topics, and it is super cool to get a sense of how small actions every day can be impactful in the long run and I can start to see this by participating.

Read More