EcoChallenge.org

Drawdown EcoChallenge

April 3 - April 24, 2019

Lisa Mitten

SUNY New Paltz

POINTS TOTAL

0 TODAY
0 THIS WEEK
607 TOTAL

participant impact

UP TO

10

conversations

with people
UP TO

8.0

meatless or vegan meals

consumed
UP TO

95

minutes

spent learning
UP TO

4.0

plastic containers

not sent to the landfill

Lisa's actions

Electricity Generation

Learn More about Biomass

#34 Biomass

I will spend at least 60 minutes learning more about the energy generation potential of biomass.

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 4
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 4
DAILY ACTIONS

Buildings and Cities

Go for a Daily Walk

#54 Walkable Cities

I will take a walk for 30 minutes each day and take note of the infrastructure that makes walking more or less enjoyable, accessible, and possible.

COMPLETED 0
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

UNCOMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Transport

Research and Consider Switching to a Hybrid or Electric Vehicle

#26 Electric Vehicles

I will spend at least 30 minutes researching and weighing my options to see if a hybrid or electric vehicle makes sense for my lifestyle.

UNCOMPLETED
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 10 friends, family and/or colleagues.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

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

Food

Reduce Animal Products

#4 Plant-Rich Diet

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

COMPLETED 8
DAILY ACTIONS

Electricity Generation

Learn More About Geothermal Energy

#18 Geothermal

I will spend at least 60 minutes learning more about the energy generation potential of geothermal energy and consider investing in this technology.

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 Learn More about Biomass

Had you ever heard of biomass techonology before you took this challenge? What did you learn that surprised you? Share this with your friends!

Lisa Mitten 4/15/2019 5:37 AM

I attended a webinar last week about biomass made from wood or wood waste. What I learned is that there are a lot of drawbacks about biomass: (1) there's not enough wood waste to meet the demand, so it's very likely that good trees will be used for burning and that this industry is not well regulated. (2) I learned that some modes of burning wood are more carbon intensive than coal. I took away that this is not a direction that SUNY New Paltz should be heading in, which is challenging to take in because other strategies to clean / reduce carbon emissions our heating system are quite challenging. An easy switch like switching to liquid renewable fuel oil made from wood waste is not sustainable after all.

Read More
REFLECTION QUESTION
Materials Share Bioplastic Disposal Tips

What concerns you the most about how we are affecting the planet? Consider both local and global actions.

Lisa Mitten 4/05/2019 7:28 AM

What concerns me most is that there are SO MANY solutions to drawing down global warming and to actually reverse global warming, we need to do ALL OF THEM to be successful. It's so complex and there's so much to do. We're going to need to mobilize our local communities and the entire world.

Read More
REFLECTION QUESTION
Materials Properly Dispose of Refrigerants

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

Lisa Mitten 4/05/2019 7:18 AM

By focusing on solutions! And thinking that the challenge of drawing down climate change as something fun, a life's mission.

Read More
REFLECTION QUESTION
Food Reduce Animal Products

In your opinion, what contributes to people in North America eating more meat than any other countries? What does this say about North American values and ways of living?

Lisa Mitten 4/05/2019 7:17 AM

Meat is so cheap because it's so heavily subsidized by the federal government due to the farm bill. It's a cheap way of getting protein, so we eat a lot of it. But we fail to realize the true environmental costs of eating so much meat.

Read More
Lisa Mitten 4/02/2019 10:48 AM

Welcome SUNY New Paltz students, faculty and staff to our Drawdown EcoChallenge team! Enjoy the three weeks!

Read More