April 3 - April 24, 2019

Kristina Zill

"I dream of a world where before people take any action, they ask whether it's good for Mother Earth, and where other species are valued as much as our own."

POINTS TOTAL

0 TODAY
0 THIS WEEK
841 TOTAL

participant impact

UP TO

1.0

documentary

watched
UP TO

165

minutes

spent exercising
UP TO

185

minutes

spent learning
UP TO

9.0

plastic containers

not sent to the landfill

Kristina's actions

Materials

Choose Recycled Paper

#70 Recycled Paper

I will plan ahead to only use paper products made from post-consumer recycled paper for my home or office.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Buildings and Cities

Go for a Daily Walk

#54 Walkable Cities

I will take a walk for 15 minutes each day and take note of the infrastructure that makes walking more or less enjoyable, accessible, and possible.

COMPLETED 11
DAILY ACTIONS

Electricity Generation

Rooftop Solar Consultation

#10 Rooftop Solar

After researching the incentives at the federal, state, utility, and local levels, I will contact a local installer/distributor for a solar panel installation consultation on my house.

UNCOMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Transport

Research and Consider Switching to a Hybrid or Electric Vehicle

#26 Electric Vehicles

I will spend at least 45 minutes researching and weighing my options to see if a hybrid or electric vehicle makes sense for my lifestyle.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Transport

Use Muscle Power

#49 Cars

I will cut my car trip mileage by only taking necessary trips, and I will only use muscle-powered transportation for all other trips.

COMPLETED 9
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

Food

Learn More about Regenerative Agriculture

#11 Regenerative Agriculture

I will spend at least 30 minutes learning about the need for more regenerative agriculture.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Food

Learn More about Silvopasture

#9 Silvopasture

I will spend at least 15 minutes watching videos and/or reading about the environmental benefits of silvopasture.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Materials

Properly Dispose of Refrigerants

#1 Refrigerant Management

I will spend at least 30 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

Explore Other Food Solutions

All Food Solutions

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

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 6
DAILY ACTIONS

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

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

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.

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

Buildings and Cities

Choose LED Bulbs

#33 LED Lighting (Household)

I will replace 3 incandescent lightbulb(s) with Energy Star-certified LED bulbs, saving up to $14 per fixture per year.

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
Transport Research and Consider Switching to a Hybrid or Electric Vehicle

Reducing (or eliminating) exhaust emissions and improving public health are two benefits of green vehicles. What other motivators inspire you to consider switching to a more fuel-efficient vehicle?

Kristina Zill 4/24/2019 9:43 AM

Every time I fill my tank with gas, I think about how I'm supporting the worst elements in society, including corrupt government officials. For that reason alone, I would love to switch to an electric vehicle. I also would save gobs of money. And as it is, I often simply don't drive in order to avoid all the negative effects, and that can be constraining. These are all great reasons to switch to an EV. I have my eye on the Mitsubishi Outlander plug-in hybrid: https://www.mitsubishicars.com/outlander-phev/2019

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?

Kristina Zill 4/24/2019 9:06 AM

Eating smaller portions is something I need to continue working on. I often realize about halfway through a meal that I'm full, but I continue eating because it tastes so darned good! Since i eat organic, my food bill is substantial. I believe I could save quite a bit of money on food by eating less.

Read More
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?

Kristina Zill 4/22/2019 7:37 AM

The way my diet is currently impacting deforestation? I have occasionally bought Triscuits, which contain palm oil. Also, it isn't enough to choose organic coffee, I need to seek out the Rainforest Alliance coffee, or "shade grown" to protect forests. I have made my own laundry soap, but I find that the powdered version doesn't work if you wash in cold water. Scroll down at this link to find a recipe for liquid soap. All you need is a bar of soap, and 2 cups each of Borax and Washing Soda. https://wellnessmama.com/462/homemade-laundry-detergent/

Read More
REFLECTION QUESTION
Food Learn More about Silvopasture

Had you heard of the term "silvopasture" before now? After learning more about it, what do you think is the biggest advantage of silvopasture?

Kristina Zill 4/21/2019 4:02 PM

I had heard of the term Silvopasture, but I didn't realize how important it is to draw down carbon from the atmosphere... #9 out of the 100 actions. With Silvopasture, livestock fertilizes the ground, while being sheltered by the trees. And the forage under the trees is more nutritious.

Read More
REFLECTION QUESTION
Materials Choose Recycled Paper

Good job on choosing recycled paper! How can you take your action a step further?

Kristina Zill 4/11/2019 12:43 PM

I just bought a pack of recycled paper for my printer. Taking it one step further, I'm writing on the back of old invoices for my Artist's Way morning pages.

Read More
REFLECTION QUESTION
Transport Use Muscle Power

How do your transportation choices affect your engagement in your community? Does your experience or enjoyment differ while walking, riding transit, biking or driving?

Kristina Zill 4/05/2019 12:51 PM

Q: How do your transportation choices affect your engagement in your community? Does your experience or enjoyment differ while walking, riding transit, biking or driving?

Today, instead of making separate trips, Don and I rode together to a meeting. We got to chat along the way, reminiscing about colorful characters in Hobart. We also spoke about this EcoChallenge. It was much more enjoyable than riding alone.

Read More
REFLECTION QUESTION
Materials Go Paperless

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

Kristina Zill 4/03/2019 10:16 AM

That's easy... Creativity!

Read More
Kristina Zill 4/03/2019 10:14 AM

After years of meaning to do so, I just went online and signed up for e-statements from my bank. I also opted out of credit card offers for 5 years at optoutprescreen.com (you have to put in your ss#); and I paid $2 to dmachoice.thedma.org to stop junk mail. Took about 15 minutes total. And I just completed my first action of the EcoChallenge.

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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?

Kristina Zill 3/24/2019 11:30 AM

I don't use single-use items, but sometimes I'm not quick enough to tell a waitress or bartender that I don't want a straw. When I forget to bring my reusable shopping bags, I generally can find an empty box at the grocery store.

Read More