Ecochallenge.org and Project Drawdown

Drawdown EcoChallenge

April 4 - April 25, 2018

Elijah O'Connell

Asheville High School!

POINTS TOTAL

0 TODAY
0 THIS WEEK
801 TOTAL

participant impact

UP TO

185

minutes

spent learning
UP TO

6.0

zero-waste meals

consumed
UP TO

2.0

public officials or leaders

contacted
UP TO

6.0

meatless or vegan meals

consumed
UP TO

1.0

conversation

with a person
UP TO

1.0

documentary

watched

Elijah's actions

Food

Learn the Truth About Expiration Dates

#3 Reduced Food Waste

I will spend at least 30 minutes learning how to differentiate between sell by, use by, and best by dates.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Food

Smaller Portions

#3 Reduced Food Waste

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

COMPLETED 6
DAILY ACTIONS

Food

Zero-waste Cooking

#3 Reduced Food Waste

I will cook 1 meal(s) with zero-waste each day.

COMPLETED 6
DAILY ACTIONS

Materials

Properly Dispose of Refrigerants

#1 Refrigerant Management

I will spend at least 30 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

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

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

Electricity Generation

Learn More about Biomass

#34 Biomass

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

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Electricity Generation

Learn More About Geothermal Energy

#18 Geothermal

I will spend at least 15 minutes learning more about the energy generation potential of geothermal energy and consider investing in this technology.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Land Use

Forest-Friendly Foods 1

#5 Tropical Forests

I will spend at least 30 minutes researching the impact of my diet to see how it contributes to deforestation.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Materials

Share Bioplastic Disposal Tips

#47 Bioplastic

I will spend at least 15 minutes researching how to properly dispose of bioplastics in my city and share this information with 1 friends, family and/or colleagues.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Land Use

Learn about Temperate Forests

#12 Temperate Forests

I will spend at least 15 minutes learning more about the environmental services provided by and the environmental issues affecting temperate forests.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Transport

Research and Consider Switching to a Hybrid or Electric Vehicle

#26 Electric Vehicles

I will spend at least 15 minutes researching and weighing my options to see if a hybrid or electric vehicle makes sense for my lifestyle.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Food

Reduce Animal Products

#4 Plant-Rich Diet

I will enjoy 3 meatless or vegan meal(s) each day of the challenge.

COMPLETED 2
DAILY ACTIONS

Food

Learn More about Regenerative Agriculture

#11 Regenerative Agriculture

I will spend at least 15 minutes learning about the need for more regenerative agriculture.

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.

UNCOMPLETED
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

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.

UNCOMPLETED
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
Electricity Generation

What inspires you to act on sustainable energy and other energy issues?
Elijah O'Connell 4/25/2018 11:39 AM
i do hope it works, tho it might not seeing senator burr's history with lobbying

Read More
REFLECTION QUESTION
Transport

Reducing (or eliminating) exhaust emissions and improving public health are two benefits of green vehicles. What other motivators inspire you to consider switching to a more fuel-efficient vehicle?
Elijah O'Connell 4/24/2018 11:52 AM
green vehicles for me: no it would not make sense at the moment for me as i can walk (and do) to everything i need to. this is also good for my health. buying a vehicle even if it is cean, would only hurt the environment in my case as i have almost no need for a vehicle of any kind

Read More
REFLECTION QUESTION
Food

In North America, up to 65% of food waste happens at the consumer level. Chef Steven Satterfield advocates for utilizing every part of a vegetable. How can you incorporate using an entire vegetable, including the skins, tops, and stalks during your next meal prep?
Elijah O'Connell 4/24/2018 11:38 AM
0 waste food preperation: i eat everything that was prepared on the pan and will try to eat all the scraps i can from it. there will be no wasted food if i have something to say about it

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REFLECTION QUESTION
Food

Now that you know the difference between use by, sell by, and best by dates, how will you view expiration dates differently?
Elijah O'Connell 4/24/2018 11:36 AM
expiration dates: they only mean when to sell the product in the store. the product generally stays edible for a while later. throwing out foods by their sell by date without eating them only contributes to food waste

Read More
REFLECTION QUESTION
Food

What do you think contributes to people in North America eating more meat than other countries, and what does this say about North American values and ways of living? How do we start shifting a meat-focused food culture?
Elijah O'Connell 4/24/2018 11:29 AM
meetless meals: the easiest way to accomplish this is to snack on fruit throughout the day and to eat cultural foods that i enjoy that generally dont have meat in them. i dont like this as much as my normal diet as i need the protien for exercising

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REFLECTION QUESTION
Food

Clean air, clean water and healthy food are three reasons to care about regenerative agriculture. In what ways can you support your closest regenerative agriculture farm?
Elijah O'Connell 4/24/2018 11:25 AM
regenerative agriculture: i think the best way to support it is to do it myself. i think that this would be the best way to combat many problems with the food industry (like consumerism), is for more people to have gardens to support themselves on.

Read More
REFLECTION QUESTION
Materials

How do you address your own feelings of concern, fear or despair about climate change?
Elijah O'Connell 4/24/2018 11:16 AM
for refrigration: you can get the comapny to recycle your old refigirator unit instead of putting it in a landfill to just be waste

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REFLECTION QUESTION
Materials

What concerns you the most about how we are affecting the planet? Consider both local and global actions.
Elijah O'Connell 4/23/2018 5:15 PM
for bioplastics. i will be honest in saying that we shouldn't use more bioplastics than petro plastics. i say this because i think we should instead focous on an extremly efficiant recycling system and specifcally to use that recycled plastic for textiles. using conventional plastics that cannot degrade biologically would make for extremely long lasting and durable clothing. i think a very efficiant recycling system would make more use out of petro-plastics far more than it would from bio plastics

Read More
REFLECTION QUESTION
Land Use

As you learn more about the scope and seriousness of the environmental challenges we face, what impact does that have on your thinking and actions? What are the parts that feel overwhelming? What parts help you feel hopeful?
Elijah O'Connell 4/23/2018 5:07 PM
i want to save the sloths of course so i defenitly will use less products that dont require resources form rainforests (like products that dont require pakm oil) and i will use more locally sourced products that dont affect rainforests when made. another part that feels overwhelming is the loss of wildlife, not just the animals that liv there but the actual trees that have been living there for however long as they themselves are beautiful

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REFLECTION QUESTION
Land Use

How is your diet currently impacting deforestation? What can you do to decrease your negative impact and increase your positive impact?
Elijah O'Connell 4/23/2018 11:09 AM
its actually being quite bad to it as i have switched to almond milk due to lactose intolorance. almond milk to my knowledge is quite bad for the environment because of the large amounts of water that needs to be importated and used for growing large amounts of almonds for milk

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