Art Spain

Heartland College EASC 111

POINTS TOTAL

0 TODAY
0 THIS WEEK
262 TOTAL

participant impact

UP TO

2.0

donations

made
UP TO

3.0

people

helped
UP TO

3.0

advocacy actions

completed
UP TO

3.0

public officials or leaders

contacted
UP TO

95

minutes

spent learning

Art's actions

Electricity

Learn More About Geothermal Energy

Geothermal Power

I will spend at least 30 minutes learning more about the energy generation potential of geothermal energy and consider investing in this technology.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Electricity

Support Microgeneration in Low Income Countries

Small Hydropower, Micro Wind Turbines, Microgrids

I will make a donation to a nonprofit that installs microgeneration in low income countries.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Electricity

Learn More about Micro Wind

Micro Wind Turbines

I will spend at least 30 minutes learning more about the energy generation potential of micro wind.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Electricity

Choose Renewable Energy or Purchase Renewable Energy Credits

Onshore Wind Turbines, Utility-Scale Solar Photovoltaics

I will sign up for my utility company's clean/renewable energy option. If my utility does not offer one, I will purchase Renewable Energy Credits to match my usage.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Industry

Learn about Carbon Offsets

I will spend 30 minutes learning about carbon offsets, and why they are a necessary solution in combating a climate crisis.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Industry

Plastics Audit

Reduced Plastics

I will complete a plastics audit to see where plastics show up in my life and determine how I can reduce the use of single-use plastics.

COMPLETED 1
DAILY ACTION

Food, Agriculture, and Land Use

Support Indigenous Peoples' Land Management

Indigenous Peoples' Forest Tenure

I will donate to Native American Rights Fund, which protects tribal natural resources and environmental rights and promotes Native American Human Rights.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Food, Agriculture, and Land Use

Give a Microloan

Sustainable Intensification for Smallholders

I will give 3 microloans to women who need help starting a business.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Electricity

Communicate With My Elected Officials

Onshore Wind Turbines, Offshore Wind Turbines

I will write or call 3 elected officials telling them not to support fossil fuel subsidies and instead support wind energy generation.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Participant Feed

REFLECTION QUESTION
Industry

What was the hardest item to reduce using or cut out that is plastic? Did you find a way to do it?
Art Spain 10/15/2023 2:59 PM
The hardest thing is diet soda in plastic bottles. I've switched to cans now, but I don't really know. Is recycling cans better than recycling plastic bottles?

Read More
- Janet Beach Davis 10/16/2023 1:04 PM
  Aluminum cans become new aluminum cans. Plastic bottles become downgraded plastics, if they are recycled at all.
  
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- Jeanne Poirier 10/15/2023 7:25 PM
  IMHO - YES! The less plastic we use the better. Until it comes from a different source than fossil fuels, please use alternatives. Cans are definitely recyclable - so much plastic is wasted. Keep up the good work Art!
  
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REFLECTION QUESTION
Industry

What are some attributes of an offset that you should consider before purchasing them?
Art Spain 10/15/2023 2:53 PM
I think that would depend on why you want to purchase them. Regardless, I would think that you would want them to be from a certified provider. If your looking to offset your personal Carbon Footprint, then I would suggest looking into Tradewater. They have a calculator that will help you put a value on the amount of carbon you are responsible for each month.

Read More
- Janet Beach Davis 10/16/2023 1:06 PM
  Like anything else, make sure it’s a reputable company because there are scammers.
  
  Read More
REFLECTION QUESTION
Food, Agriculture, and Land Use

Indigenous speaker and activist Winona LaDuke says that, "most indigenous ceremonies, if you look to their essence, are about the restoration of balance — they are a reaffirmation of our relationship to creation. That is our intent: to restore, and then to retain balance and honor our part in creation." Why is balance important to sustainability?
Art Spain 10/15/2023 10:52 AM
When I think of balance, I think of harmony. I think that to be in harmony we must be in harmony with the earth. We have a place in the harmony that is the earth and all of it's many ecologies. That place is not dominion, but we have a place none the less.

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- Janet Beach Davis 10/16/2023 1:07 PM
  Even our language implies dominion. We “conquer “ the wilderness.
  
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REFLECTION QUESTION
Electricity

How can micro energy solutions reduce inequities? Why is this important to you?
Art Spain 10/15/2023 10:30 AM
Micro energy solutions can provide affordable and reliable energy to poor families and communities. This will do much to reduce inequality. This is something that can help in the whole world, not just the USA.

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REFLECTION QUESTION
Electricity

Micro turbines can be placed on large structures to take advantage of stronger, steadier breezes. The Eiffel Tower now sports vertical axis turbines that produce electricity for use on site. Where could micro turbines potentially be installed in your city?
Art Spain 10/09/2023 3:34 PM
The only thing that comes to mind in Bloomington is the State Farm Headquarters. Is it still in use?

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- Janet Beach Davis 10/09/2023 8:04 PM
  The one downtown? It’s been sold but I don’t think it’s in use yet.
  
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REFLECTION QUESTION
Food, Agriculture, and Land Use

Globally, women typically invest a higher proportion of their earnings in their families and communities than men. Why do you think that is?
Art Spain 10/09/2023 2:59 PM
Think that the ability to bear children caused women to evolve to feel more connected than men do. I think that men have to work to feel the same levels of connectedness that women feel naturally.

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Art Spain 10/07/2023 12:02 PM
I sent the following letter to Representative Sorensen, Senator Durbin, and Senator Duckworth.

Dear Senator Durbin,

In May of this year, Senator Whitehouse D(RI) said that the USA pays the fossil fuel industry as much as 20 billion dollars a year. I rarely complain about my tax money being wasted, but this is worse than wasted. This money incentivizes behavior that is bad for this country and the world. As a taxpayer and citizen of this country and the state of Illinois, I request that you take whatever steps are necessary to reappropriate these subsidies to the development of renewable energy, such as wind and solar.

Thanks for your time.
Art Spain

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- Janet Beach Davis 10/09/2023 8:05 PM
  You will get a reply back. And probably invited to coffee in DC .
  
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REFLECTION QUESTION
Electricity

What inspires you to act on sustainable energy and other energy issues?
Art Spain 10/07/2023 11:59 AM
I believe strongly in the idea that being a good citizen requires one to care about those that come after as well as ones fellow citizens.

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Art Spain 10/07/2023 11:01 AM
Here's one interesting fact I learned from my research today.
The amount of heat within 10,000 meters (about 33,000 feet) of Earth's surface contains 50,000 times more energy than all the oil and natural gas resources in the world. Stop fossil fuel extraction!

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REFLECTION QUESTION
Electricity

Geothermal energy is reliable, abundant, and efficient. Project Drawdown states that public investment will play a crucial role in its expansion. In what ways (i.e. with money, time, advocacy) can you invest in geothermal energy?
Art Spain 10/07/2023 10:59 AM
I googled how to invest in geothermal energy. Everything that came back was about how to buy stocks in energy companies. I was looking for a way a poor person like me could help move geothermal along.

Read More
- Janet Beach Davis 10/09/2023 8:07 PM
  There are a few local companies that install geothermal in homes. And perhaps acting as an advocate in a place like the Ecology Action Center would help get the word out.
  
  Read More