Ecochallenge.org

Drawdown Ecochallenge

October 1 - October 31, 2023

Akila R

The Hartford

"Learning and Sharing"

POINTS TOTAL

0 TODAY
0 THIS WEEK
687 TOTAL

participant impact

UP TO

61

meatless or vegan meals

consumed
UP TO

59

zero-waste meals

consumed
UP TO

5.0

lightbulbs

replaced
UP TO

588

minutes

being mindful
UP TO

715

minutes

spent exercising
UP TO

60

more servings

of fruits and vegetables
UP TO

245

minutes

spent learning

Akila's actions

Food, Agriculture, and Land Use

Zero-Waste Cooking

Reduced Food Waste

I will cook 2 meals with zero-waste each day.

COMPLETED 31
DAILY ACTIONS

Food, Agriculture, and Land Use

Eat Mindfully

Reduced Food Waste

I will eat all of my meals without distractions, e.g., phone, computer, TV, or newspaper.

COMPLETED 31
DAILY ACTIONS

Transportation

Go for a Daily Walk

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 31
DAILY ACTIONS

Food, Agriculture, and Land Use

More Fruits And Veggies

I will eat a heart healthy diet by adding 2 cups of fruits and vegetables each day to achieve at least 4 cups per day.

COMPLETED 31
DAILY ACTIONS

Food, Agriculture, and Land Use

Reduce Animal Products

Plant-Rich Diets

I will enjoy 2 meatless or vegan meals each day of the challenge.

COMPLETED 31
DAILY ACTIONS

Buildings

Research Heat Pumps

High-Efficiency 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

Health and Education

Learn about the Need for Family Planning

Family Planning and Education

I will spend at least 30 minutes learning more about the need for family planning globally.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Health and Education

Connect With A Nonprofit

Family Planning and Education

I will connect with a local nonprofit working on issues affecting women, girls, trans people, and/or nonbinary people in my community, and find out how I can get involved or become a member.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Electricity

Solar Water Consultation

Solar Hot Water

I will contact a local installer/distributor to see if a solar water heater makes sense for my house.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Electricity

Choose LED Bulbs

LED Lighting

I will replace 2 incandescent lightbulbs with Energy Star-certified LED bulbs, saving up to $14 per fixture per year.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Industry

Choose Recycled Paper

Recycled Paper

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

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Industry

Join a Recycling Program

Recycling

I will set up or join a recycling program at my workplace or school.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Participant Feed

Akila R 10/31/2023 8:01 AM
It was wonderful participating in the challenge this year!! looking forward to more

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REFLECTION QUESTION
Food, Agriculture, and Land Use

In North America, up to 65% of food waste happens at the consumer level. Chef Steven Satterfield advocates for utilizing every part of a vegetable. How can you incorporate using an entire vegetable, including the skins, tops, and stalks during your next meal prep?
Akila R 10/30/2023 10:29 AM
Whatever part of the fruit or vegetable that can be incorporated into a dish should be made use of. I save the rest for the next meal prep, or soups/ broth or if I'm not able to use them for cooking, i add it as wet waste to compost.

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REFLECTION QUESTION
Food, Agriculture, and Land Use

How does eating more fruits and vegetables and less meat positively affect yourself, other people, and our planet?
Akila R 10/30/2023 10:27 AM
Personally I believe adding more fruits and vegetables are good for our health irrespective of if you are meat consumer or not.

Planetary diet: Save the planet and lives by eating less meat, more vegetables (nbcnews.com)

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REFLECTION QUESTION
Industry

How can you take your commitment to sustainable living beyond yourself? How can you, personally, work toward broader change?
Akila R 10/26/2023 7:11 AM
Advocate for more mindful consumption, esp with garments, cosmetics and decor items.

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REFLECTION QUESTION
Industry

Good job on choosing recycled paper! How can you take your action a step further?
Akila R 10/26/2023 7:10 AM
Advocate more on using recycled products. Identify ways to reduce paper waste

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REFLECTION QUESTION
Food, Agriculture, and Land Use

Mindful eating is healthier for us than eating with distractions. How does your eating experience differ when practicing mindfulness?
Akila R 10/12/2023 1:15 PM
Easy answer is I eat less - rather I eat only what my hunger demands --
That salty or sweet cravings that hit post a dinner-in-front-of-TV meal is not hitting me as much after a conscious/ mindful eating

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REFLECTION QUESTION
Transportation

What have you noticed on your daily walks? What have you enjoyed? What infrastructure changes could make your walks more enjoyable or possible?
Akila R 10/12/2023 1:11 PM
I have started walking/ slow running to prepare for a Charity Walk I'm participating this October. I have a month streak diligently walking in preparation, around my workplace and my housing community. Although both those are green and less traffic areas, one thing I would like to see is a running and walking trail/ walkway and better street lights/ reflectors. This will be advantageous for folks walking late evenings and during winter months.

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Akila R 10/12/2023 12:47 PM
This year I joined the ecochallenge as a means to explore easy to moderate sustainable ways I can contribute. As I started reading up on various day to day things I can and should be doing and how it is impacting people, environment etc I am more convinced that some practices I have adopted as part of the challenge, I would bring back to my all year routine.

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