Sarah Bernhard
"To be better than I've been before"
POINTS TOTAL
- 0 TODAY
- 0 THIS WEEK
- 1,066 TOTAL
participant impact
-
UP TO1.0energy auditconducted
-
UP TO246minutesspent learning
-
UP TO44plastic strawsnot sent to the landfill
Sarah's actions
Health
Go get a check up
I will make an appointment for my annual physical.
Health
Support Pollution Reduction
I will spend at least 10 minutes learning about water and air quality issues in my area, how they are impacting human and environmental health, and how I can help.
Nature
Forage for My Food
I will use the 'Learn More' resources below to find where I can forage for my own food locally.
Nature
Support Local Pollinators
At least 30% of crops and 90% of flowering plants rely on pollinators to produce fruit. I will spend 6 minutes researching which plants support local native pollinators and plant some in my yard.
Energy
Online Energy Audit
I will complete an online energy audit of my home, office, or dorm room and identify my next steps for saving energy.
Waste
Carry my Trash
I will carry all of my unrecyclable, non-compostable trash with me to raise my awareness of how much I send to the landfill.
Waste
Use Reusable Bags
I will not accept any disposable bags when making purchases.
Waste
Advocate For More Food Packaging Options
I will advocate for alternatives to single-use packaging at local grocery stores, markets, at work, or on campus.
Waste
Skip the Straw
Plastic bags and small plastic pieces like straws are most likely to get swept into our waterways. I will keep 2 plastic straw(s) out of the landfill and ocean each day by refusing straws or using my own glass/metal straw.
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.
Food
Smart Seafood Choices
I will visit seafoodwatch.org or download the app and commit to making better seafood choices for a healthier ocean.
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?
-
Sarah Bernhard 10/24/2018 6:49 PMDuring this challange I learned way more about salmon and seafood in general, than I ever thought possible.-
Anthony Yeznach 10/24/2018 7:15 PMPray that you never get stuck in an elevator with me. Salmon is just the starter course! :p)
-
-
REFLECTION QUESTIONNature Forage for My FoodAmongst 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?
Sarah Bernhard 10/18/2018 6:32 PMI thought it waws really cool learning about urban foraging and seeing it mapped out with descriptions of where I could find fruit in my neighborhood. I like the idea of onnecting with nature and using native plants.-
Anthony Yeznach 10/18/2018 7:17 PMThere is a lot of "stuff" available. Fruit and nuts from trees that are either unharvested, or wild grown. Outside of the urban area, road-side apple trees abound. Nut trees are everywhere. It's not hard to snag a few gems.
-
-
REFLECTION QUESTIONEnergy Online Energy AuditWhat most interested or surprised you about your own energy footprint?
Sarah Bernhard 10/11/2018 10:24 AMI wasn't too surprised by the results. I guess the biggest surprise was that there wasn't some big energy suck in my house that I wasn't aware of.-
Anthony Yeznach 10/11/2018 11:33 PMUsually, the "big energy sucks" in a house are older windows and sliding doors. Newer technology for any "glass area" on a house can account for incredible savings under both heating and cooling conditions. And a few extra inches of insulation in the attic works wonders, especially if your original attic insulation is blown-in. Blown-in settles a lot and loses insulation factor over time.
-
-
Sarah Bernhard 10/08/2018 6:25 PMWas traveling this weekend so checking in was hard....keeping up with the challenge was harder...but I was staying at a very eco friendly place so I probably made more eco challenge friendly choices than I am "allowed" to :) -
REFLECTION QUESTIONWaste Skip the StrawHow could you incorporate other "R's" -- reduce, reuse, refuse, repair, repurpose, etc. -- into your lifestyle?
Sarah Bernhard 10/05/2018 7:10 PMI've ordered a reusable straw to go in my bag with my reusable grocery bag. I might turn into a bag lady but I'll cut back on a lot of waste! -
REFLECTION QUESTIONWaste Use Reusable BagsWhat do you do if you find yourself in the situation of needing a bag for items but don't have a reuseable one with you? Carry things out in your hands? In a cart? Accept a disposable one? If you find yourself in this position often, what system could you put in place to try to establish this a successful habit?
Sarah Bernhard 10/05/2018 7:04 PMI always keep a reusable bag in my purse. It folds up into a tiny pouch. If I don't have that for some reason, I'll just take the items out in my cart or carry them, if I can. -
REFLECTION QUESTIONWaste Carry my TrashWhat one thing could you do right away to reduce your waste?
Sarah Bernhard 10/03/2018 7:44 PMThe one thing I'm doing right away to reduce my waste is to try to use as little packaging as possible with the food I purchase. -
REFLECTION QUESTIONHealth HappinessHow does/can practicing gratitude keep you centered and motivated to work for a better world?
Sarah Bernhard 10/03/2018 7:39 PMPracticing gratitude helps keep me living in the moment and appreciating things, even on a bad day. -
REFLECTION QUESTIONFood Smart Seafood ChoicesMany states and countries have advisories on eating fish. Find out what is advised for your region. Do you think your diet choices fall within these guidelines? What steps do you need to take to make sure that they do?
Sarah Bernhard 10/03/2018 7:37 PMThere were no fish recommended for my area. Definitely have to dive deeper into this app. I do need to be asking restuarants around here if their fish options are sustainable.-
Anthony Yeznach 10/03/2018 7:54 PMFirst, thank you for doing what you are doing. You are great!
I'm a *serious* fish and ocean guy, and even the listings on seafoodwatch can be hard to follow. Relax, work with it a while, get a "sense" and go from there. Being on a vector is more important than making a step. -
Peggy La Point 10/03/2018 7:47 PMI think I remember seeing something about this. I`ll dig around a little!
-
-
Sarah Bernhard 10/03/2018 7:29 PMGood! It was easy. I want more challenges!