Ecochallenge.org

Campus Ecochallenge

Amanda Barba

Human Ecology SBVC

POINTS TOTAL

0 TODAY
0 THIS WEEK
190 TOTAL

participant impact

UP TO

8.0

gallons of water

have been saved
UP TO

4.0

miles

not traveled by car
UP TO

60

minutes

spent outdoors
UP TO

35

minutes

being mindful
UP TO

60

minutes

not spent in front of a screen
UP TO

2.0

plastic straws

not sent to the landfill
UP TO

135

pounds of CO2

have been saved

Amanda's actions

Energy

Switch to Cold Water

I will switch to washing my clothes in cold water, saving up to 133 lbs of CO2 a month and 1,600 lbs of CO2 over the course of the next year.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Energy

Choose LED Bulbs

I will replace 4 incandescent lightbulb(s) with Energy Star-certified LED bulbs, saving up to $14 per fixture per year.

UNCOMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Water

Brush My Teeth Without Running Water

I will save up to 8 gallons (30 L) of water each day by turning it off while brushing my teeth.

COMPLETED 1
DAILY ACTION

Simplicity

De-Clutter My Home or Dorm Room

I will de-clutter, clean, and donate or recycle unneeded items in my home or dorm room.

COMPLETED 1
DAILY ACTION

Simplicity

Eat Mindfully

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

COMPLETED 1
DAILY ACTION

Community

SIGN UP TO VOTE

I will make sure I’m registered to vote. While I’m at it, I’ll sign up to help others register too!

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Nature

Go for a Daily Walk

I will take a 30-minute walk outside each day.

COMPLETED 0
DAILY ACTIONS

Nature

Spend Time Outside

I will replace 60 minute(s) each day typically spent inside (computer time, watching television, etc.) with quality time outside.

COMPLETED 1
DAILY ACTION

Action Track: Healing & Renewal

Practice Loving-Kindness Meditation

I will spend 20 minutes practicing Loving-Kindness Meditation to nurture love and compassion for myself and others.

COMPLETED 1
DAILY ACTION

Action Track: Healing & Renewal

Happiness

I will write down three things every day that I am grateful for, or send one email every day thanking or praising someone.

COMPLETED 1
DAILY ACTION

Waste

Skip the Straw

Plastic bags and small plastic pieces like straws are most likely to get swept into our waterways. I will keep 2 plastic straw(s) out of the landfill and ocean each day by refusing straws or using my own glass/metal straw.

COMPLETED 1
DAILY ACTION

Transportation

Drive Less

I will cut my car trip mileage by only taking necessary trips.

COMPLETED 1
DAILY 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
Nature Spend Time Outside

Rachel Carson said that we need the beauty and mysteries of the natural world for our spiritual and emotional development. Does that ring true for you? What are the implications for a culture that spends most of its time indoors?

Amanda Barba 11/29/2020 10:20 PM

This absolutely rings true for me. Often times I feel myself becoming overwhelmed with different stressors of life, and find that I need to take a minute to take in the earths beauty to remind myself that my troubles are only temporary. I think that cultures that tend to spend most of its time indoors tend to become more anxious and hypercritical since they do not have much to distract their thoughts. I think they would also have little to no regard for the Earth since they do not take the time to appreciate its beauty.

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- Ana Dutciuc 11/29/2020 10:29 PM
  
  you got this. I know it is hard at first but it will all pan out.
  
  Read More
REFLECTION QUESTION
Energy Switch to Cold Water

What do you plan to do with the money you save from making more energy efficient choices?

Amanda Barba 11/29/2020 10:10 PM

I plan on putting it towards more energy efficient appliances that will help me reduce my amount of waste even more! One day I would like to have solar panels for my home, so that is another thing I plan on saving for.

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- Ana Dutciuc 11/29/2020 10:29 PM
  
  Good job Amanda! keep it going
  
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- Parker Taylor 11/29/2020 10:17 PM
  
  Hi Amanda! That is a great idea, although could be expensive. But you have to start somewhere right? Keep up the hard work!
  
  Read More
REFLECTION QUESTION
Community SIGN UP TO VOTE

Why is voting important to creating a just, sustainable, and thriving world? In what other ways can you actively participate in important decision-making?

Amanda Barba 11/29/2020 10:05 PM

Voting is so incredibly important to creating a just, sustainable, and thriving world because it determines the kinds of leaders that will ensure all of these things or not. Voting also determines what new propositions we must abide by that could potentially change our lives drastically. Another way to become more active in important decision-making is by attending your local town meetings and voicing your concerns for your community.

Read More
- Parker Taylor 11/29/2020 10:18 PM
  
  Hi Amanda! I dont think people understand that voting plays a huge roll into sustainability and other ways to support our ecosystems. Keep up the good work!
  
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REFLECTION QUESTION
Simplicity De-Clutter My Home or Dorm Room

How can you prevent yourself from accumulating more unnecessary things in the future?

Amanda Barba 11/29/2020 9:43 PM

I think that in the future it would be beneficial to ask myself, "will I use this often, and do I have room for this or will I have to make room?". I tend to hold on to things for sentimental reasons, but have learned as I have gotten older that I cannot hold on to everything and therefore must only keep or buy what is absolutely necessary. Another way to prevent accumulation of unnecessary items is to remind myself that I need to be saving my money for more important things.

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REFLECTION QUESTION
Action Track: Healing & Renewal Practice Loving-Kindness Meditation

How can practicing Loving-Kindness Meditation be helpful to the health of the environment?

Amanda Barba 11/29/2020 9:39 PM

Practicing loving kindness meditation is incredibly beneficial to the health of the environment because it forces you stop and take in all that this Earth has to offer and all that it gives to us. I think when you can sit and take in the environment around you, it will remind you to be kinder to the Earth and help you think twice about the impact you make on it. Plus, if we are not kinder to our environment, then we would have no place to sit quietly to meditate which benefits both the environment and our mental health.

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REFLECTION QUESTION
Water Brush My Teeth Without Running Water

What is the main water source in your region? If you don't know, how could you find out?

Amanda Barba 11/29/2020 9:16 PM

There are various water sources for my region which include groundwater wells, Lake Mathews, and the Colorado River. I had to research this answer before responding, so one way you can find out is by going to your regions official website and search for its water service department where it will be listed.

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REFLECTION QUESTION
Transportation Drive Less

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

Amanda Barba 11/29/2020 8:07 PM

Growing up I would ask my parents if it was alright for me to walk to school since it was not too far away from home, and I enjoyed being outside as much as possible. I think because of this I always tried to walk everywhere that I could. I do however, enjoy going for long drives to places to clear my head, but I still try to limit how much I drive because I would much rather stay fit and healthy than to be sedentary and take my car everywhere.

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- Ana Dutciuc 11/29/2020 10:30 PM
  
  Exactly. The car should be the last result.
  
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REFLECTION QUESTION
Waste Skip the Straw

How could you incorporate other "R's" -- reduce, reuse, refuse, repair, repurpose, etc. -- into your lifestyle?

Amanda Barba 11/29/2020 7:51 PM

I would incorporate the other R's into my lifestyle by taking an item that can easily be replaced by something that can be reused over and over again, such as a straw, and try to find ways to do that with more and more items. I have found that in incorporating the R's into my lifestyle, it actually has helped to de-clutter my room by using only what is necessary, reusing and repairing all that I can, and refusing to buy more than what I need.

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- Parker Taylor 11/29/2020 10:07 PM
  
  Hi Amanda! Those are great ideas on how to incorporate the Rs into your lifestyle! There are so many things we use in life that can be replaced by simple changes. Good luck on your action!
  
  Read More
REFLECTION QUESTION
Action Track: Healing & Renewal Happiness

How does/can practicing gratitude keep you centered and motivated to work for a better world?

Amanda Barba 11/29/2020 7:45 PM

I feel that practicing gratitude really helps remind you of all the wonderful things that you have been given or had the opportunity to do since not many people are as lucky. This has been a very tough year for my family and I, and this really helped my peace of mind as well as remind me of all the things to look forward to.

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- Ana Dutciuc 11/29/2020 10:30 PM
  
  And once you show gratitude people do not realize but they will get gratitude in return.
  
  Read More