Ecochallenge.org

2018 People's Ecochallenge

October 3 - October 24, 2018

Heather Hafer

City of Portland Office of Management & Finance (OMF)

"Study nature, love nature, stay close to nature. It will never fail you. - Frank Lloyd Wright "

POINTS TOTAL

0 TODAY
0 THIS WEEK
934 TOTAL

participant impact

UP TO

1.0

donation

made
UP TO

0.0

gallons of water

have been saved
UP TO

2.0

hours

volunteered
UP TO

36

meatless or vegan meals

consumed
UP TO

50

minutes

spent learning
UP TO

60

minutes

being mindful
UP TO

13

pounds

waste composted
UP TO

6.0

pounds of paper

have been saved

Heather's actions

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.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Health

Learn About Local Environmental Justice Concerns

I will spend 15 minutes researching environmental justice concerns in my region, their causes, and local initiatives to address these concerns.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Water

Ditch the Lawn

I will replace my lawn with a drought-tolerant landscape and save the water, money, and time I used to spend cutting the grass.

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

Simplicity

De-Clutter My Home

I will de-clutter, clean, and donate or recycle unneeded items in my home.

COMPLETED 5
DAILY ACTIONS

Health

Audit Toxic Cleaning Products in my Home

I will spend 10 minutes researching toxic chemicals found in cleaning supplies and personal care products and remove them from my home.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Community

Connect with a Nonprofit

I will connect with a local nonprofit, environmental or otherwise, and find out how I can get involved or become a member.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Food

Reduce Animal Products

I will enjoy 1 meatless meal(s) and/or 1 vegan meal(s) each day this week.

COMPLETED 18
DAILY ACTIONS

Waste

Find Local Recycling Depots

I will spend at least 10 minutes finding out where to recycle the recyclable items that I can't put in my curbside bin.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Waste

Choose Two-Sided Printing

I will save up to .21 lbs (.09 kg) of paper each day by switching from one-sided printing to two-sided.

COMPLETED 6
DAILY ACTIONS

Waste

Compost Food Waste

I will avoid sending up to .69 lbs (.31 kg) of food waste to the landfill each day by composting my food or learning how to.

COMPLETED 13
DAILY ACTIONS

Simplicity

Meditate

I will meditate or create a moment of silence for 5 minute(s) each day to reflect on things important to me.

COMPLETED 12
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?

REFLECTION QUESTION
Water Fix Leaky Faucets

Fixing leaky faucets is one of the tasks that we can easily put off until later. Good job on completing this action! How will you use the momentum from completing this action to increase your water efficiency?

Heather Hafer 10/24/2018 11:42 AM

All the faucets in my new house have been inspected, and the one leak that was discovered is being repaired today. Woot! I can't wait to start collecting rain water to water outdoor plants and use my new water efficient dishwasher. I love water.

Read More
REFLECTION QUESTION
Health Learn About Local Environmental Justice Concerns

Who is most affected by environmental degration and/or environmental irresponsiblity in your community? How are they affected?

Heather Hafer 10/24/2018 11:39 AM

So, someone knocked on my door last week. I assumed it was a solicitation call...and in some ways it was, but in a good way. It was a Portland Clean Air volunteer, and being new to the area, I loved learning more about their organization. They showed me a map of my neighborhood and pointed out the contributors to pollution, and what's being done about it. We must have talked for 20 minutes, but the next day I went online and learned even more: http://portlandcleanair.org/

Read More
REFLECTION QUESTION
Waste Choose Two-Sided Printing

Choosing two-sided printing can be an easy adjustment on your computer settings. How can you help others make this same switch? Can it be encouraged company wide?

Heather Hafer 10/24/2018 11:34 AM

Two-sided printing is great for most everything, but there are certain City Council related items that are required to be single-sided. And to take it a step further, I think sometimes we don't need to use paper at all. I'd love to see greater utilization of online resources whenever possible - and since most of our meeting rooms are equipped with A/V equipment, why not project agendas on the wall? Could we start this movement? I think we can...

Read More
Heather Hafer 10/23/2018 9:49 AM

It's not one of my challenges because it's my daily life now, but I just want to say how much I love taking the bus to work every day! It feels like a treat after commuting for over 10 years. Thanks Portland for being awesome at public transportation.

Read More
- Melissa Walton Hendricks 10/24/2018 11:33 AM
  
  Yes, my last job had me commuting to Salem. There's some things I miss about it, but the commute isn't one of them!
  
  Read More
REFLECTION QUESTION
Water Ditch the Lawn

What is the main water source in your region?

Heather Hafer 10/22/2018 10:42 AM

To answer the question, the Bull Run Watershed is Portland's main water source. But in regards to this one-time challenge, I'm thrilled to be moving into a house that doesn't have a grassy backyard. I had the choice between newly installed sod and gravel and bark chips and raised beds. I'm so looking forward to planting some native, drought tolerant, bee-attracting plants!

Read More
REFLECTION QUESTION
Simplicity De-Clutter My Home

How can you prevent yourself from accumulating more things in the future?

Heather Hafer 10/22/2018 8:37 AM

I've been practicing "responsible consumerism" for a couple of years now. I'm not perfect by any means, but spending a few minutes really asking myself if I need something before I buy it has helped me immensely. I've also tried to repair more things or "upgrade" them before getting rid of them. A good deep cleaning or a new coat of paint (and a little glitter never hurt either) makes a world of difference.

Read More
REFLECTION QUESTION
Food Reduce Animal Products

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

Heather Hafer 10/17/2018 1:17 PM

I think Americans eat a lot of meat because they're so removed from the meat industry process. I grew up Macrobiotic, but began eating meat in the 7th grade. And then I read David Coats' "Old MacDonald's Factory Farm" and went vegetarian for YEARS. I do eat meat now, but I make conscious choices and buy organic and grass-fed meats whenever/wherever possible. I don't advocate everyone going vegetarian or vegan, but I'm in full support of Americans eating less meat for a variety of reasons.

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?

Heather Hafer 10/11/2018 10:16 AM

Oh my goodness, I did not expect to find this topic so fascinating! I think all of the motivations listed are valuable, but honestly I'm most struck to learn that “urban fruit contains a wider range of micronutrients than the fruit available in most stores." I never would have known that. My mom's neighborhood has stone fruit, apples, walnuts, pears, rosemary...I think I've purchased all of those items at New Seasons in the past couple of weeks and they were not cheap. My motivation: a treasure hunt! A new adventure!

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?

Heather Hafer 10/09/2018 9:40 AM

Definitely excited to use less toxic cleaners in my home, as I think they have slow but substantial effects over time. I just bought my first e-cloths, can't wait to try them out.

Read More
Heather Hafer 10/08/2018 4:08 PM

Just hit 250 points - AND got a star on my cubicle wall. So stoked. :)

Read More
- Melissa Walton Hendricks 10/09/2018 2:38 PM
  
  Woo-hoo!
  
  Read More