Alison Bliven

Renal Recyclers

POINTS TOTAL

0 TODAY
0 THIS WEEK
638 TOTAL

participant impact

UP TO

1.0

documentary

watched
UP TO

120

miles

not traveled by car
UP TO

120

miles

traveled by bus
UP TO

50

minutes

spent learning
UP TO

28

pounds of CO2

have been saved
UP TO

12

zero-waste meals

consumed

Alison's actions

Food

Zero-waste Cooking

#3 Reduced Food Waste

I will cook 2 meal(s) with zero-waste each day

COMPLETED 6
DAILY 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
ONE-TIME ACTION

Land Use

Forest-Friendly Foods 2

#5 Tropical Forests

I will replace or remove the palm oil, coffee, and cocoa products in my current diet that are known to contribute to deforestation.

COMPLETED 11
DAILY ACTIONS

Transport

Use Public Transit

#37 Mass Transit

I will use public transit 10 mile(s) per day and avoid sending up to 2.37 lbs of CO2 into Earth's atmosphere.

COMPLETED 12
DAILY ACTIONS

Transport

Research and Advocate for High-Speed Rail

#66 High-Speed Rail

I will spend at least 30 minutes researching and advocating for a comprehensive high speed rail network in my country/region.

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

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 21
DAILY 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

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

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 Use Public Transit

How has your access to various kinds of transporation throughout your life influenced your current attitudes about transportation and your transportation behavior?

Alison Bliven 4/15/2019 2:19 PM

I grew up in a rural town where you needed a car to get to work, go to the store, really do anything. Carpooling was uncommon as everyone lived so far away from one another. Going from this environment to living in Boston which is a very walkable city with multiple options for public transport (the T, busses, commuter line) was amazing - I could get practically anywhere and I didn't have to be focused on driving or upkeep on a car! When I moved to Seattle a couple years ago, I lost that walkability and extensive system of transport options, however I still mostly use the busses and/or link light rail fairly frequently - to work, the airport, stores/friends places that are easy to access. By sharing one car with my husband who works in Kent (really hard to get to without a car), I also don't really have the option of driving during the week if I don't feel like taking the bus (however I'm very cheap so would not be interested in paying the parking downtown if I were to drive anyway!). The fact that VM is able to provide an ORCA card at such a great yearly price is also a great motivator for me.

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REFLECTION QUESTION
Land Use Buy Bamboo

Are bamboo alternatives readily available in your community? If not, what are other sustainable alternatives?

Alison Bliven 4/13/2019 9:56 PM

Some items are available in bamboo (I've mostly seen kitchen supplies, bowls), many are not. I like to purchase products from second hand stores as well so at least those products are getting another use before being recycled or going in the landfill!

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Alison Bliven 4/12/2019 9:40 AM

Another way I've found that works for me to decrease wasted produce is by subscribing to Imperfect Produce:
"More than 20% of the fruits and vegetables grown in America never make it off the farm because they aren't perfect enough for grocery store standards. This results in billions of pounds of wasted produce every year. We're talking about produce that is just as nutritious and delicious but looks a little different. With so many delicious fruits and vegetables going to waste, we decided we had to do something.
Imperfect fights food waste by finding a home for 'ugly' produce. We source it directly from farms and deliver it to customers' doors for about 30% less than grocery store prices. Our subscription produce box is affordable, convenient, customizable, healthy, and delicious."

My produce is a little funny at times (HUGE sweet potatoes, itty bitty avocados), but it is definitely worth it for the environment and my wallet. I just customized my delivery box which will provide me and my husband with produce that will last us 2 weeks. This time around I'm getting kale, grapefruit, apples, lemons, asparagus, cucumber, carrots, green onions, mandarins, yellow squash, onions, lettuce, garlic, and tomatoes... for only $25 (including the shipping)!

Another bonus- it makes our trips to the grocery store much lighter because we're just buying the fringe items, making it easier to walk to and from the store instead of driving. Winning all around.

Oh one last thing- Imperfect Produce also started accepting returned cardboard boxes they deliver your produce in so they can be used again (not for food due to food safety/sanitation) before being recycled. Just leave the broken down cardboard box where you usually get your delivery dropoff.

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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?

Alison Bliven 4/12/2019 9:12 AM

Tracking my wasted food over the last week has been a great exercise. Over the last few years I've been trying very hard to maximize my use of the produce I buy - it's good for the environment AND is a great money saver. A couple things I consistently do:
-Use those stems! Broccoli, cauliflower, chard, collard greens etc, all have stems/extra leaves that are often tossed for no reason!
-Eat the peel. Okay so maybe not oranges and banana peels (though there are other things you can do with citrus peels...) but apple peels, carrot peels, even kiwi peels are great to eat and provide more fiber and micronutrients to each bite.
-Freezer bag veggie stalk - if you do have some scraps, collect them in a bag in the freezer; once it gets full, stick the collection in a big pot, cover with water and boil it down. Now you have homemade, low sodium, very cheap veggie stock.

Some resources to learn more:
-https://qgardenscf.com/2018/06/11/want-to-get-the-most-out-of-your-produce-heres-how/
-https://dietitiansondemand.com/get-the-most-out-of-your-produce/

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Alison Bliven 4/06/2019 11:18 AM

Found some great information about high speed rail opportunities in the PNW. Still a long way to go, but I definitely support transport that would decrease the number of cars (and traffic!) on I-5 every day. For more info: http://www.cascadiarail.org/

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Alison Bliven 4/03/2019 12:39 PM

Looks like Tilth Alliance and Seattle Public Utilities teamed up to offer a Master Composter/Sustainability Steward Program! Just missed the deadline to sign up for this years program, but will be keeping my eyes out for the next one. http://www.seattletilth.org/learn/mcss/mcsb

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