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April 3 - April 24, 2019
Heidi Flanagan's avatar

Heidi Flanagan

Chapel Hill High School

"Small choices result in large impacts when we work together for a common good. "

POINTS TOTAL

  • 0 TODAY
  • 0 THIS WEEK
  • 951 TOTAL

participant impact

  • UP TO
    2.0
    conversations
    with people
  • UP TO
    36
    meatless or vegan meals
    consumed
  • UP TO
    55
    minutes
    spent learning
  • UP TO
    14
    plastic containers
    not sent to the landfill
  • UP TO
    93
    pounds of CO2
    have been saved
  • UP TO
    1.0
    public official or leader
    contacted

Heidi's actions

Action Track: Social Justice

Learn about Local Indigenous Practices

#39 Indigenous Peoples' Land Management

I will spend at least 20 minutes learning how local indigenous tribes are caring for the land by attending a training, workshop, or presentation.

UNCOMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Transport

Purchase a Carbon Offset

#43 Airplanes

If I buy a plane ticket, I will purchase a carbon offset.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Women and Girls

Research Barriers to Participation and Representation

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

I will spend at least 20 minutes learning more about the barriers to women's equal participation and representation around the world.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

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 7
DAILY ACTIONS

Materials

Share Bioplastic Disposal Tips

#47 Bioplastic

I will spend at least 15 minutes researching how to properly dispose of bioplastics in my city and share this information with 2 friends, family and/or colleagues.

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

Action Track: Social Justice

Express My Support

#54 Walkable Cities

I will find out who in my city makes decisions that impact neighborhood walkability and express my support for better walking infrastructure.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Transport

Conduct Virtual Meetings

#63 Telepresence

I will encourage my office to hold meetings virtually whenever possible instead of requiring travel.

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

Transport

Stay on the Ground

#43 Airplanes, #63 Telepresence

Instead of traveling by plane, I will find an alternative way to accomplish the goals of an upcoming trip (i.e. telepresence, vacation locally).

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Food

Reduce Animal Products

#4 Plant-Rich Diet

I will enjoy 2 meatless or vegan meal(s) each day of the challenge.

COMPLETED 18
DAILY ACTIONS

Land Use

Forest-Friendly Foods 1

#5 Tropical Forests

I will spend at least 20 minutes researching the impact of my diet to see how it contributes to deforestation.

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 18
DAILY ACTIONS

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?


  • Heidi Flanagan's avatar
    Heidi Flanagan 4/24/2019 7:11 PM
    Have learned from others posts.  Greatly  appreciate the community effort as we move forward to challenge climate change.

  • Heidi Flanagan's avatar
    Heidi Flanagan 4/23/2019 6:11 PM
    Researching carbon credit purchasing to offset future air travel and learned that Green-e Climate certifies carbon offsets so that you can know your money will go to impactful change. Apparently there are some companies that aren't legit.

  • Heidi Flanagan's avatar
    Heidi Flanagan 4/22/2019 7:49 PM
    Happy Earth Day Y'all... more conscious of the importance of  focusing on environmental issues this year.

  • Heidi Flanagan's avatar
    Heidi Flanagan 4/21/2019 2:47 PM
    Becoming more conscious of the impact of small choices our family makes daily.  Will make every day  Earth Day :)
  • REFLECTION QUESTION
    Transport Conduct Virtual Meetings
    How can you ensure that your virtual meetings honor your values and your company's culture?

    Heidi Flanagan's avatar
    Heidi Flanagan 4/17/2019 6:41 PM
    Our work has started allowing staff to work remotely one day a week.  Not only is this reducing the environmental impact of car travel, it is  helping me be more productive because I am not battling traffic to get to work.

  • Heidi Flanagan's avatar
    Heidi Flanagan 4/13/2019 1:43 PM
    Did you know that cities in North Carolina have a 'walk score'?   Boone is rated the most walkable city in the state with a score of 50, Asheville and Chapel Hill are in the 30's and multiple NC cities with high population, including Charlotte, fall in the 20's.  I am reading on how the score is calculated...opportunities await!
  • REFLECTION QUESTION
    Transport Stay on the Ground
    What was your process like for restructuring your trip? How can you avoid more air travel in the future?

    Heidi Flanagan's avatar
    Heidi Flanagan 4/06/2019 5:17 PM
    We currently fly infrequently but when booking flights I have started looking more closely at the direct flights. Somewhat more expensive but one less flight reduces our carbon footprint...and we can economize on food and skip family activities that use fuel.

    • Heidi Flanagan's avatar
      Heidi Flanagan 4/08/2019 4:30 PM
      Thanks for the hi-five...we decided yes kayaking and no jet ski/helicopter ride in Florida
  • REFLECTION QUESTION
    Land Use Forest-Friendly Foods 1
    How is your diet currently impacting deforestation? What can you do to decrease your negative impact and increase your positive impact?

    Heidi Flanagan's avatar
    Heidi Flanagan 4/03/2019 7:03 PM
    We love our morning coffee.  Before I learned about the eco challenge we were buying coffee that was not rainforest certified. I was surprised to find that only one type of coffee sold at Trader Joe's, an expresso blend, is rainforest certified.   Since expresso is too strong for me, we have started buying 100% rainforest certified coffee (Caribou) at another store. In the next month I will outreach to Trader Joe's to request more rainforest certified coffee options.  

    FYI coffee sold at the local grocery Dunkin Donuts is 30% rainforest certified and Starbucks is not rainforest certified.

  • Heidi Flanagan's avatar
    Heidi Flanagan 3/17/2019 5:15 PM
    I have just switched to buying Caribou coffee which is 100% rainforest alliance certified.  I was surprised that only one of the coffees at Trader Joe's is rainforest certified, an espresso blend.  At our local grocery none of the Starbucks coffee is rainforest certified.  Look for the frog symbol and make a difference!