EcoChallenge.org

Drawdown EcoChallenge

April 3 - April 24, 2019

Ravi Fernando

University of Cambridge

"Embedding Sustainability in Corporate Strategy "

POINTS TOTAL

0 TODAY
0 THIS WEEK
607 TOTAL

participant impact

UP TO

45

conversations

with people
UP TO

952

gallons of water

have been saved
UP TO

20

lightbulbs

replaced
UP TO

400

minutes

spent exercising
UP TO

18

plastic containers

not sent to the landfill

Ravi's actions

Buildings and Cities

Go for a Daily Walk

#54 Walkable Cities

I will take a walk for 40 minutes each day and take note of the infrastructure that makes walking more or less enjoyable, accessible, and possible.

COMPLETED 10
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

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

Fix Leaky Faucets

#46 Water Saving - Home

I will fix faucets or report leaky faucets to facilities that have been wasting up to 9 gallons (34 L) of water per faucet every day.

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 10
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 9
DAILY ACTIONS

Transport

Advocate For Greener Vehicles

#26 Electric Vehicles

I will assess the vehicles used by my company or college and advocate for a purchasing policy focused on electric and fuel-efficient vehicles

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Materials

Mulch the Base of Trees and Plants

#46 Water Saving - Home

I will prevent water runoff and increase absorbency by mulching the base of trees and plants in my yard.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Materials

Go Paperless

#70 Recycled Paper

I will reduce the amount of paper mail that I receive by 0.11lbs (0.05kg) a day or 41lbs (18.6kg) a year by opting into paperless billing, ending unwanted subscriptions and opting out of junk mail.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Electricity Generation

Choose Renewable Energy or Purchase Renewable Energy Credits

#2 Wind Turbines (Onshore), #8 Solar Farms

I will sign up for my utility company's clean/renewable energy option. If my utility does not offer one, I will purchase Renewable Energy Credits to match my usage.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Electricity Generation

Spread the Word about Energy Alternatives

All Electricity Generation Solutions

I will research and tell 5 people each day about the benefits of alternative energy sources like wind turbines, solar energy, geothermal energy, and methane digesters.

COMPLETED 9
DAILY ACTIONS

Buildings and Cities

Choose LED Bulbs

#33 LED Lighting (Household)

I will replace 20 incandescent lightbulb(s) with Energy Star-certified LED bulbs, saving up to $14 per fixture per year.

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
Transport Advocate For Greener Vehicles

How does advocating for green vehicles in your community connect to your values? How might you be able to get others involved in advocating for the shift to fuel-efficient vehicles?

Ravi Fernando 4/24/2019 9:47 PM

I launched a FB page titled
The Future of Electric Vehicles and now use a Toyota Prius hybrid as we yet don’t have an EV network in Sri Lanka

Read More
REFLECTION QUESTION
Materials Install a Toilet Bank

How can your region/household prepare for changing water situations in order to become more resilient?

Ravi Fernando 4/24/2019 9:45 PM

We collect Rain water for our garden and plants indoors. In addition we don’t flush unless it’s brown

Read More
REFLECTION QUESTION
Materials Fix Leaky Faucets

What are other easy and low-cost ways to reduce your water usage at home?

Ravi Fernando 4/24/2019 9:44 PM

We have no leaky faucets

Read More
REFLECTION QUESTION
Materials Mulch the Base of Trees and Plants

Name some of the human activities impacting the health of water systems, both locally (your watershed) and globally (freshwater and oceans). What can you do to improve the health of water systems?

Ravi Fernando 4/24/2019 9:43 PM

We have over 60 Trees in our garden, we collect all the coconut husks and created a water holding mulch at the base of around 20 of them

Read More
REFLECTION QUESTION
Materials Eliminate Toxic Plastics

What single-use items (e.g. straws, coffee cups, vegetable bags, plastic bags) do you regularly use? What could be substituted instead?

Ravi Fernando 4/24/2019 9:41 PM

We have stopped buying water and boiling the water and putting them in Glass bottles for each of us!

Read More
REFLECTION QUESTION
Materials Go Paperless

What do you want to prioritize over material 'stuff' in your own life?

Ravi Fernando 4/24/2019 9:40 PM

Have already done so for all the mobile and TV bills ! The utility has yet to implement sending both e and paper bills

Read More
REFLECTION QUESTION
Food Keep Track of Wasted Food

An average American throws out about 240 lbs of food per year. The average family of four spends $1,500 a year on food that they throw out. Where would you rather use this money?

Ravi Fernando 4/24/2019 9:39 PM

We have been able to reduce the amount of waste we generate by over 50%

Read More
REFLECTION QUESTION
Food Smaller Portions

Fun fact: Your brain and stomach register feelings of fullness after about 20 minutes of eating. While dishing food out, we tend to load our plates with more than we need. Using smaller plates helps to mitigate this. Aside from the environmental benefits, what other benefits might come out of eating smaller portions?

Ravi Fernando 4/24/2019 9:38 PM

This has been the easiest to achieve! We have stopped buying imported fruits and gone 100%local fruits to reduce our indirect carbon footprint!
We have cut down portions for dinner and lunch dramatically

Read More
REFLECTION QUESTION
Electricity Generation Choose Renewable Energy or Purchase Renewable Energy Credits

Your utility company is able to tell you your average energy usage. Ask them how your energy usage compares to others in your zipcode, and in your state. What steps can you take each day to reduce your electricity usage?

Ravi Fernando 4/24/2019 9:36 PM

Today my household generates 15-20kwh a day and between 400-650kwh a month! Which means we deliver over 200kwh to the grid a month

Read More
REFLECTION QUESTION
Electricity Generation Spread the Word about Energy Alternatives

What inspiration and wisdom can you gather from your family, faith, or community traditions that would help you in both communicating about and addressing our most pressing energy issues?

Ravi Fernando 4/24/2019 9:33 PM

I have been advocating helping all employees to be given soft loans to go solar as a Board member of LOLC

Read More