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October 3 - October 24, 2018
A. E.  Jones's avatar

A. E. Jones

WSP USA & Friends

"Constantly learn and improve. Create a healthier planet and people."

POINTS TOTAL

  • 0 TODAY
  • 0 THIS WEEK
  • 653 TOTAL

participant impact

  • UP TO
    1.0
    waste audit
    conducted
  • UP TO
    130
    minutes
    being mindful
  • UP TO
    30
    minutes
    spent outdoors
  • UP TO
    180
    minutes
    spent learning
  • UP TO
    1.0
    energy audit
    conducted
  • UP TO
    350
    minutes
    spent exercising
  • UP TO
    1.0
    documentary
    watched

A. E. 's actions

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

Nature

Support Local Pollinators

At least 30% of crops and 90% of flowering plants rely on pollinators to produce fruit. I will spend 30 minutes researching which plants support local native pollinators and plant some in my yard.

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

Exercise Daily

Exercise is a great stress blaster! I will exercise for 25 minute(s) each day.

COMPLETED 14
DAILY ACTIONS

Simplicity

Meditate

I will meditate or create a moment of silence for 10 minute(s) each day to reflect on things important to me.

COMPLETED 13
DAILY ACTIONS

Nature

Explore My Area

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

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

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.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Water

Get Involved in the Water Justice Movement

I will spend at least 15 minutes using the resources provided to learn about water justice and find out how I can get involved in local initiatives.

COMPLETED 1
DAILY ACTION

Community

Support Native Communities

I will use the resource links provided and spend 15 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

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
    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?

    A. E.  Jones's avatar
    A. E. Jones 10/24/2018 3:09 PM
    Attaining balance, or implementing sustainable practices, establishes a symbiotic relationship with nature. By achieving balance, we restore whatever we take in and use, ensuring that we are not consuming to excess and eroding the environment.
  • REFLECTION QUESTION
    Water Get Involved in the Water Justice Movement
    Who is affected by polluted water or a lack of access to water in your region? How are they affected?

    A. E.  Jones's avatar
    A. E. Jones 10/23/2018 9:01 PM
    Apparently, several indigenous tribes in the Pacific Northwest are affected by polluted water, requiring them to boil their water before use.
  • REFLECTION QUESTION
    Energy Online Energy Audit
    What most interested or surprised you about your own energy footprint?

    A. E.  Jones's avatar
    A. E. Jones 10/23/2018 10:13 AM
    I was fairly pleased that we already do a decent job being efficient. Most of the recommendations concerned upgrading our appliances, but since we are in an rented apartment we will not do that. Good to keep in mind for when we own a more permanent home.
  • REFLECTION QUESTION
    Food Watch a Documentary about Food Sovereignty
    How does food sovereignty address the complex agrarian transition to modern food systems?

    A. E.  Jones's avatar
    A. E. Jones 10/20/2018 5:07 PM
    Food sovereignty is the return to sustenance farming at the community or individual-level. Food sovereignty is a call to action for individuals to regain their agency and responsibility with regard to their food supplies, liberating them from their dependence on modern food systems.
  • REFLECTION QUESTION
    Health Support Pollution Reduction
    What environmental factors affect human health in your region, and how do they affect it?

    A. E.  Jones's avatar
    A. E. Jones 10/12/2018 10:07 PM
    Well, the wildfire smoke is a problem for me. As an asthmatic, when the smoke and debris fill the air, even from fires that are a state or more away, I have trouble breathing. I know there this is some interesting work being done with regard to wildfire recurrence intervals. Hopefully new policies will help future years' smoke.
  • REFLECTION QUESTION
    Waste Personal Waste Audit
    Why is it so difficult to understand the impacts our purchases and waste have on other people, animals, and places? How might your experience with this challenge impact your future consumption and choices?

    A. E.  Jones's avatar
    A. E. Jones 10/12/2018 8:27 PM
    The waste eventually being "out of sight, and out of mind" is, in my opinion, why it is so hard to understand the impacts of our waste. One thing I have noticed with this challenge is: pizza boxes. Day-to-day our garbage is pretty minimal (we have been averaging <1 bag/month this year; could definitely do better, but it's a start). However, ordering pizza for pick-up is a major downfall. The boxes can't be recycled and end up as large waste items. I will need to find a solution.

    • Lori Withee's avatar
      Lori Withee 10/16/2018 12:55 PM
      I did see on a TV show that you can recycle any part of a pizza box that has not been touched by grease :-)---such as the top, sometimes, when it has not been touched by cheese.  But it requires you to tear them apart.  Not very convenient.  
  • REFLECTION QUESTION
    Simplicity Meditate
    What would you like to invest more time in reflecting on?

    A. E.  Jones's avatar
    A. E. Jones 10/12/2018 8:23 PM
    I would like to spend more time reflecting on gratitude.
  • REFLECTION QUESTION
    Nature Support Local Pollinators
    Why is it important to take care of pollinators?

    A. E.  Jones's avatar
    A. E. Jones 10/12/2018 8:20 PM
    Bees and other pollinators are essential to the health of the global environment. Without the work of pollinators, plants will struggle to disperse their genetic material and reproduce. The more we can assist pollinators with this hard work, the more we help the global environment, in turn.
  • REFLECTION QUESTION
    Nature Explore My Area
    How can spending more time outdoors enhance your sense of place?

    A. E.  Jones's avatar
    A. E. Jones 10/12/2018 8:17 PM
    More time spent outdoors allows you to learn a given location in greater detail and enables you to feel more comfortable in your surroundings. The more intimately you know a locale, the more it will likely begin to feel like home. 
  • REFLECTION QUESTION
    Health Exercise Daily
    How can you incorporate other personal values (like quality time with friends or spending time in nature) into your exercise routine?

    A. E.  Jones's avatar
    A. E. Jones 10/12/2018 8:09 PM
    I should work invite friends on my runs and/or pick up trail running. These are good ideas to accomplish two tasks at once without sacrificing quality with either task. Trail running, hiking, bakpacking, or mountain/trail biking done with a friend (or 2) would be a great way to spend one's day (not to mention get a good workout.