EcoChallenge.org

Drawdown EcoChallenge

April 3 - April 24, 2019

Danny Buck

Across the Pond

POINTS TOTAL

0 TODAY
0 THIS WEEK
1,152 TOTAL

participant impact

UP TO

1.0

documentary

watched
UP TO

350

minutes

spent learning
UP TO

39

zero-waste meals

consumed

Danny's actions

Materials

Properly Dispose of Refrigerants

#1 Refrigerant Management

I will spend at least 15 minutes learning how to properly dispose of my refrigerator, freezer, and other refrigerants at the end of their useful lives.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Women and Girls

Learn about the Need for Family Planning

#7 Family Planning

I will spend at least 30 minutes learning more about the need for family planning globally.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Transport

Explore Other Transport Solutions

All Transport Solutions

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

UNCOMPLETED
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

Action Track: Social Justice

Start a Social Media Campaign

#6 Educating Girls

Through social media, I will raise awareness about gender inequity in education by sharing the information found in the links below.

COMPLETED 6
DAILY ACTIONS

Electricity Generation

Learn More About Geothermal Energy

#18 Geothermal

I will spend at least 30 minutes learning more about the energy generation potential of geothermal energy and consider investing in this technology.

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

Buildings and Cities

Explore Other Buildings and Cities Solutions

All Buildings and Cities Solutions

I will spend at least 30 minutes researching other Drawdown Buildings and Cities Solutions.

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

Food

Zero-waste Cooking

#3 Reduced Food Waste

I will cook 3 meal(s) with zero-waste each day

COMPLETED 13
DAILY ACTIONS

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

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

Land Use

Research Peatlands

#13 Peatlands

I will spend 30 minutes researching the environmental benefits of peatlands and what is being done around the world to conserve and restore them.

COMPLETED 3
DAILY ACTIONS

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.

UNCOMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Food

Composting

#60 Composting, #3 Reduced Food Waste

I will start a compost bin where I live.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Buildings and Cities

Research Retrofitting Incentives

#80 Retrofitting

I will spend at least 30 minutes finding out if my city, region, or state offers incentives for retrofitting existing buildings.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Buildings and Cities

Research Heat Pumps

#42 Heat Pumps

I will spend at least 30 minutes researching heat pumps to see if installing one makes sense for my home/building.

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 15
DAILY ACTIONS

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 16
DAILY ACTIONS

Transport

Test Drive an Electric Bike

#69 Electric Bikes

I will test drive an electric bike at a local distributor to see if it makes sense to use one in place of my car, or to extend the area I can cover by bike.

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
Materials Properly Dispose of Refrigerants

How do you address your own feelings of concern, fear or despair about climate change?

Danny Buck 4/24/2019 7:45 AM

The task is huge, the time is short, the road is steep. Overwhelming concern more than fear or despair has left me fairly stupefied the past couple of years. I have found that I am gaining strength and momentum by posting and sharing on social media, particularly Facebook and Twitter. A friend got me on the radio to discuss it recently and that helped.
But what has been a wonderful gift is this Eco-challenge. It has focused me and gotten me to dig into Project Drawdown in a way that I had not managed to do before. And it has pushed me to post on social media on a topic over a number of days, which is a great idea.

Read More
REFLECTION QUESTION
Electricity Generation Learn More About Geothermal Energy

Geothermal energy is reliable, abundant, and efficient. Project Drawdown states that public investment will play a crucial role in its expansion. In what ways (i.e. with money, time, advocacy) can you invest in geothermal energy?

Danny Buck 4/23/2019 1:19 PM

Time and advocacy is the role appropriate for me. It is a product that can be used by individuals and by public buildings and industry. It can be used for both heating and cooling. As the payback is 5-10 years, assistance in the initial investment would need to come from the public sphere to accomplish a widespread use.

Read More
REFLECTION QUESTION
Food Zero-waste Cooking

How are environmental issues like black carbon and other emissions from cooking fires or rudimentary cookstoves also human health and social justice issues? Why do these issues matter to you?

Danny Buck 4/23/2019 12:54 PM

Black carbon and other cooking fire emissions are second to only CO2 in trapping heat in the atmosphere and climate change tends to affect lower income societies disproportionately with floods and droughts. Also, inhalation affects health and life expectancy.
This matters for fellow humans to be healthy and more productive helps us all to deal with climate disruption. We will all be affected by the social and bio disruption that will spread to all countries and regions.

Read More
Danny Buck 4/23/2019 12:14 AM

We have just two days left we’ve got to double down and finish strong !

Read More
Danny Buck 4/22/2019 1:07 PM

It's a real challenge to sit down and put in the time to learn about the various solutions, but is ever so rewarding when I do. I am so glad that I came across The Challenge, as I had had trouble penetrating the PD, even though I have the book and share on PD twiter.

Read More
Danny Buck 4/22/2019 12:50 PM

Very challenging to be able to focus on this every single day. I have been unable to get into the challenge about 1 out of 4 days, but have continued to do my daily challenges.

Read More
REFLECTION QUESTION
Land Use Research Peatlands

Much of Indonesia's peatlands have been drained so they could be replaced with palm oil or pulp and paper plantations. How can you make choices that help to protect peatlands, even if you live far away from one?

Danny Buck 4/22/2019 12:46 PM

We need to bring palm oil production, first into a stabilized level of use and then back to sustainable. I can use fewer products that include palm oil and encourage government not to use it as a "renewable" fuel.
I have already stopped buying any garden products that are not peat free.

Read More
Danny Buck 4/22/2019 12:34 PM

Did all of my daily challenges, but did not record them.

Read More
REFLECTION QUESTION
Transport Test Drive an Electric Bike

Half of all trips made in the US are three miles or less; 72% of them are driven. Private vehicles account for 60% of trips of a mile or less. Do you often drive short distances instead of biking or walking? If so, how might incorporating an electric bike into your lifestyle help you make more climate-friendly choices?

Danny Buck 4/22/2019 6:49 AM

I have a bike that can carry a fairly heavy load that I am using frequently now that the weather has started to warm up. I test rode an electric bike and it is quite cushy compared to a mechanical bike. It starts up much more easily and somehow seems more stable. It definitely takes a lot less energy to ride and is very good for uphill.
However, my budget still says, "mechanical", rather than "electric", so I'm sticking to that for now. I am sue that I would use an electric bike more if I had one.

Read More
REFLECTION QUESTION
Women and Girls Learn about the Need for Family Planning

What did you learn about the need for family planning? Share some of the learning with your friends!

Danny Buck 4/21/2019 2:13 PM

Family planning is not available or is of limited availability in major portions of the world. Avoiding unwanted or unplanned pregnancies can allow women to gain more access to education and better knowledge about personal and family health while lowering the number of deaths during childbirth.
Women are more likely to become major breadwinners in their families, supporting not only their spouse and children, but helping out with their parents on the one side and grandchildren on the other.

Read More