Ecochallenge.org and Project Drawdown

Drawdown EcoChallenge

April 4 - April 25, 2018

Toaster Vernooy

The Magnificent Maniacs

"Creating a world of thriving sustainability"

POINTS TOTAL

0 TODAY
0 THIS WEEK
1,209 TOTAL

participant impact

UP TO

2.0

conversations

with people
UP TO

1.0

documentary

watched
UP TO

11

gallons of water

have been saved
UP TO

9.0

meatless or vegan meals

consumed
UP TO

231

minutes

spent learning
UP TO

6.0

public officials or leaders

contacted
UP TO

10

zero-waste meals

consumed

Toaster's actions

Women and Girls

Research Barriers to Participation and Representation

#6 Educating Girls, #7 Family Planning, #62 Women Smallholders

I will spend at least 15 minutes learning more about the barriers to women's equal participation and representation around the world.

UNCOMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Food

Learn the Truth About Expiration Dates

#3 Reduced Food Waste

I will spend at least 15 minutes learning how to differentiate between sell by, use by, and best by dates.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Buildings and Cities

Online Energy Audit

Multiple Solutions

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

Food

Contact your Elected Officials

#23 Farmland Restoration

I will contact 2 elected officials to voice my opinion on the importance of restoring farmland in my region, including both public and private land.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Land Use

Learn about Temperate Forests

#12 Temperate Forests

I will spend at least 8 minutes learning more about the environmental services provided by and the environmental issues affecting temperate forests.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Buildings and Cities

Explore Other Buildings and Cities Solutions

All Buildings and Cities Solutions

I will spend at least 15 minutes researching other Drawdown Buildings and Cities Solutions.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Electricity Generation

Learn More about Wave and Tidal Energy

#29 Wave and Tidal

I will spend at least 15 minutes learning more about the energy generation potential of wave and tidal energy.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Materials

Install a Toilet Bank

#46 Water Saving - Home

I will reduce the amount of water flushed and save up to 11 gallons (41 L) of water per day by installing a toilet tank bank.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Materials

Share Bioplastic Disposal Tips

#47 Bioplastic

I will spend at least 20 minutes researching how to properly dispose of bioplastics in my city and share this information with 2 friends, family and/or colleagues.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Transport

Research and Consider Switching to a Hybrid or Electric Vehicle

#26 Electric Vehicles

I will spend at least 25 minutes researching and weighing my options to see if a hybrid or electric vehicle makes sense for my lifestyle.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Transport

Research and Advocate for High-Speed Rail

#66 High-Speed Rail

I will spend at least 25 minutes researching and advocating for a comprehensive high speed rail network in my country/region.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Land Use

Forest-Friendly Foods 1

#5 Tropical Forests

I will spend at least 20 minutes researching the impact of my diet to see how it contributes to deforestation.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Land Use

Advocate for Forest Protection

#38 Forest Protection

I will contact 2 congress people or representatives to advocate for public policy that protects forests and the enforcement of existing anti-logging laws.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Food

Learn More about Regenerative Agriculture

#11 Regenerative Agriculture

I will spend at least 20 minutes learning about the need for more regenerative agriculture.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Food

Keep Track of Wasted Food

#3 Reduced Food Waste

I will keep a daily log of food I throw away during the EcoChallenge, either because it went bad before I ate it, I put too much on my plate, or it was scraps from food preparation.

COMPLETED 5
DAILY ACTIONS

Food

Zero-waste Cooking

#3 Reduced Food Waste

I will cook 2 meal(s) with zero-waste each day.

COMPLETED 5
DAILY ACTIONS

Materials

Properly Dispose of Refrigerants

#1 Refrigerant Management

I will spend at least 20 minutes learning how to properly dispose of my refrigerator, freezer, and other refrigerants at the end of their useful lives.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Electricity Generation

Communicate With My Elected Officials

#2 Wind Turbines (Onshore)

I will write or call 2 elected official(s) telling them not to support fossil fuel subsidies and instead support wind energy generation.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Food

Learn More about Silvopasture

#9 Silvopasture

I will spend at least 15 minutes watching videos and/or reading about the environmental benefits of silvopasture.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Food

Explore Other Food Solutions

All Food Solutions

I will spend at least 18 minutes researching other Drawdown Food Solutions.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Food

Reduce Animal Products

#4 Plant-Rich Diet

I will enjoy 1 meatless or vegan meal(s) each day of the challenge.

COMPLETED 9
DAILY ACTIONS

Food

Smaller Portions

#3 Reduced Food Waste

I will use smaller plates and/or serve smaller portions when dishing out food.

COMPLETED 8
DAILY ACTIONS

Electricity Generation

Watch a Video about Methane Digesters

#30 Methane Digesters (large), #64 Methane Digesters (small)

I will watch a video about methane digesters (also commonly known as anaerobic digesters).

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Electricity Generation

Explore Other Electricity Generation Solutions

All Electricity Generation Solutions

I will spend at least 30 minutes researching other Drawdown Electricity Generation Solutions.

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
Food Contact your Elected Officials

In what other ways can you exercise your civic duty to protect the environment and reduce carbon emissions?

Toaster Vernooy 4/25/2018 6:41 PM

I can exercise my civic duty by raising awareness at school, and getting more people involved in programs like this. After all, many people do want to protect the environment, and just don't know about things like this.

Read More
Toaster Vernooy 4/25/2018 6:38 PM

I am done for this year of EcoChallenge! It was a great experience, and I can't wait for next year, when we will be starting right on April 4th!

Read More
Toaster Vernooy 4/25/2018 6:33 PM

Also, installing a toilet tank bank was surprisingly easy! It was basically just a water bottle in the toilet tank that causes the tank to fill up with less water.

Read More
Toaster Vernooy 4/25/2018 6:32 PM

As the challenge comes to a close, I am very happy that I participated. It makes me glad to see so many people who care about the world working together.

Read More
REFLECTION QUESTION
Food Learn the Truth About Expiration Dates

Now that you know the difference between use by, sell by, and best by dates, how will you view expiration dates differently?

Toaster Vernooy 4/25/2018 6:29 PM

A best by date says when the product will taste best by (hence the name). A sell by date is for a store, to know how long to display the product for. In fact, none of these dates have anything to do with the safety of foods. They are solely about taste. I will view expiration dates differently in this way.

Read More
REFLECTION QUESTION
Land Use Advocate for Forest Protection

Higher standards of living are very often dependent on moving our environmental costs elsewhere. What are some specific ways in which the environmental impacts of your own lifestyle might be shifted elsewhere?

Toaster Vernooy 4/25/2018 6:08 PM

Pollution is one example. Trash is an impact that I contribute to every day (though I try to limit my contribution). It will be shifted to landfills, which is terrible for the environment. Vehicle pollution also impacts the environment. The carbon monoxide from exhaust is shifted into the atmosphere, which suffers (take the ozone layer). These can be prevented though.

Read More
REFLECTION QUESTION
Electricity Generation Learn More about Wave and Tidal Energy

What did you learn about wave and tidal energy? Were you surprised by the information you found?

Toaster Vernooy 4/25/2018 5:56 PM

I was surprised that tidal and wave energy is currently more expensive than producing energy on land! I would have thought with all the power that the ocean's waves are constantly outputting, it would be very profitable and efficient to use tidal power. However, using this kind of power would reduce emissions.

Read More
REFLECTION QUESTION
Buildings and Cities Explore Other Buildings and Cities Solutions

What did you find out? What is the most interesting fact you learned?

Toaster Vernooy 4/25/2018 5:51 PM

The coolest thing I learned was that glass is far less efficient at keeping heat out than insulated walls - by a factor of 10 or more. The cool part is that smart glass can fix this - it can decide when to let heat in from the sun, and when to block it out. This makes it extremely energy efficient.

Read More
REFLECTION QUESTION
Buildings and Cities Online Energy Audit

What are your next steps for saving energy?

Toaster Vernooy 4/25/2018 5:37 PM

Basically the best plans of action are to upgrade to higher efficiency appliances - especially a better heating system. This could save money and increase comfort - all while helping the environment.

Read More
Toaster Vernooy 4/25/2018 3:37 AM

Also, another interesting thing: If our plate size is 15% larger than it used to be, it's safe to assume that 15% of the food we put on our plate is superfluous. That means if we saved that 15% of food for later, about every 6 meals we eat we could get a free one for just saved up food!

Read More