Ecochallenge.org and Project Drawdown

Drawdown EcoChallenge

April 4 - April 25, 2018

Noah Risdal

Asheville High School!

POINTS TOTAL

0 TODAY
0 THIS WEEK
905 TOTAL

participant impact

UP TO

165

minutes

spent learning
UP TO

8.0

public officials or leaders

contacted
UP TO

3.0

conversations

with people
UP TO

1.0

documentary

watched
UP TO

1.0

donation

made

Noah's actions

Land Use

Buy Bamboo

#35 Bamboo

When they are available, I will purchase products made from bamboo instead of wood, plastic, or metal.

COMPLETED 1
DAILY ACTION

Women and Girls

Connect With A Nonprofit

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

I will connect with a local nonprofit working on womens' or girls' issues in my community, and find out how I can get involved or become a member.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Women and Girls

Fund Family Planning

#7 Family Planning

I will donate to supply a community with reproductive health supplies.

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 30 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 30 minutes learning more about the energy generation potential of biomass.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

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

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 25 minutes researching the impact of my diet to see how it contributes to deforestation.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Food

Learn the Truth About Expiration Dates

#3 Reduced Food Waste

I will spend at least 10 minutes learning how to differentiate between sell by, use by, and best by dates.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Land Use

Learn about Temperate Forests

#12 Temperate Forests

I will spend at least 10 minutes learning more about the environmental services provided by and the environmental issues affecting temperate forests.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Materials

Share Bioplastic Disposal Tips

#47 Bioplastic

I will spend at least 10 minutes researching how to properly dispose of bioplastics in my city and share this information with 3 friends, family and/or colleagues.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Electricity Generation

Advocate for Solar Installation

#10 Rooftop Solar

I will create a plan to and advocate for solar installation at my business, apartment building, or campus.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Materials

Recycle Everything I Can

#55 Household Recycling

I will recycle all materials that are accepted by local haulers or drop stations in my community.

COMPLETED 9
DAILY ACTIONS

Materials

Eliminate Toxic Plastics

#47 Bioplastic

I will avoid buying toxic plastics, including polycarbonate, polystyrene and polyvinyl and instead replace them with bioplastic or durable options.

COMPLETED 9
DAILY ACTIONS

Electricity Generation

Communicate With My Elected Officials

#2 Wind Turbines (Onshore)

I will write or call 4 elected official(s) telling them not to support fossil fuel subsidies and instead support wind energy generation.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Food

Contact your Elected Officials

#23 Farmland Restoration

I will contact 4 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

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
Land Use

Are bamboo alternatives readily available in your community? If not, what are other sustainable alternatives?
Noah Risdal 4/25/2018 6:51 AM
Yes a decent amount of bamboo products are avalible in my community.

Read More
REFLECTION QUESTION
Women and Girls

What are the most pressing womens' and girls' issues in your community?
Noah Risdal 4/25/2018 6:50 AM
Abortion rights is and has been a major issue in my community. A couple of weeks ago iowa nearly fully out lawed abortions.

Read More
REFLECTION QUESTION
Women and Girls

When family planning focuses on healthcare provision and meeting the expressed needs of women, it results in empowerment, equality, and well-being, and the benefits to the planet are side effects. Why is family planning an important civil rights consideration?
Noah Risdal 4/25/2018 6:49 AM
Family planning should be a civil right because america is built on liberty. The right to do what ever when ever as long as you dont hurt others. Women are in a position where we a are taking part of that right away by not giving a majority of women a way to prevent starting a family or choose when to start one.

Read More
REFLECTION QUESTION
Food

In what other ways can you exercise your civic duty to protect the environment and reduce carbon emissions?
Noah Risdal 4/25/2018 6:47 AM
I can excercize my civic duty by contacting my representitive. This can make a real impact on the bills he passes.

Read More
REFLECTION QUESTION
Electricity Generation

What inspires you to act on sustainable energy and other energy issues?
Noah Risdal 4/25/2018 6:33 AM
I act to make a differance. Without a lot of people acting and contacting our congress men no ones efforts will matter.

Read More
REFLECTION QUESTION
Materials

How could you incorporate other "R's" -- reduce, reuse, refuse, repair, repurpose, etc. -- into your lifestyle?
Noah Risdal 4/24/2018 6:38 AM
I could do more to incorporate reduction into my daily rutine. I already reuse my plastics as well as repurpose the plastics bags that i do get. Instead of repurposing the plasics i could just refuse them all together.

Read More
REFLECTION QUESTION
Electricity Generation

How does advocating for this type of technology connect to your values? How might you be able to get others involved in advocating for the shift to clean energy?
Noah Risdal 4/24/2018 6:10 AM
Advocation for clean solar energy connects with my values because i want to protect the enviroment. Solar energy has the potential to remove all dependence of fosil fuels when used in conjuction with wind and other forms of renewable energies. I can get others involoved by adding solar panals on my home and advocating for other homes to do the same.

Read More
REFLECTION QUESTION
Materials

What single-use items (e.g. straws, coffee cups, vegetable bags, plastic bags) do you regularly use? What could be substituted instead?
Noah Risdal 4/24/2018 6:03 AM
I regularly use straws in my every day life. These straws get added back into the enviroment and harm sealife. I could lower my impact by adding renewable straws into my routine. These straws are usually made from a harder plastic or from metal. By doing this i can remove about 150 straws per year from the enviroment.

Read More
REFLECTION QUESTION
Materials

What concerns you the most about how we are affecting the planet? Consider both local and global actions.
Noah Risdal 4/24/2018 6:00 AM
One thing that is concerning to me is the amount of water trapped in nonbiodegradable plastic bottles. Every year at the minimum 22 million gallons of water is trapped in plastic bottles with no way to ever return to the water cycle. This is troubling because no new water is added to the water cycle every year. This is causing our net water supply to go down.

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?
Noah Risdal 4/23/2018 6:13 AM
Seeing the impacts that are had upon these forests it makes me want to use more bamboo based products as well as reducing my impact upon climate change. It can be overwhelming because of the sheer scale of what’s happening. It’s hard to feel like you’re making a difference when the trees are still going to be cut down and other people are still going to pollute. I’m hopeful because it’s a cause that western people can witness with their own eyes. I feel that this may drive them towards change.

Read More