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Julie Cahillane's avatar

Julie Cahillane

Northwestern University Earth Month 2020

POINTS TOTAL

  • 0 TODAY
  • 0 THIS WEEK
  • 366 TOTAL

participant impact

  • UP TO
    3.0
    advocacy actions
    completed
  • UP TO
    6.0
    disposable cups
    not sent to the landfill
  • UP TO
    7.0
    meatless or vegan meals
    consumed
  • UP TO
    180
    minutes
    spent exercising
  • UP TO
    165
    minutes
    spent learning
  • UP TO
    7.7
    pounds of CO2
    have been saved
  • UP TO
    3.3
    pounds of paper
    have been saved
  • UP TO
    3.0
    public officials or leaders
    contacted

Julie's actions

Health

Exercise Daily

Exercise is a great stress blaster! I will exercise for 30 minute(s) each day.

COMPLETED 0
DAILY ACTIONS

Food

Watch a Documentary about Food Sovereignty

I will watch 1 documentary(ies) about food sovereignty: the right of local peoples to control their own food systems including markets, ecological resources, food cultures and production methods.

UNCOMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Waste

Prevent Recycling Contamination

Contamination prevents what is recyclable from being recycled. I will spend 15 minutes researching which materials are accepted by local haulers or drop stations in my community and recycle only those items.

COMPLETED 0
DAILY ACTIONS

Food

Weekly Meal Planning

I will reduce food waste and save money by planning a weekly menu, only buying the ingredients I need.

COMPLETED 0
DAILY ACTIONS

Waste

Use a Reusable Mug

I will avoid sending 1 disposable cup(s) to the landfill each day by using a reusable mug.

COMPLETED 0
DAILY ACTIONS

Health

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 0
DAILY ACTIONS

Community

Express My Support

I will find out who in my state makes decisions that impact the environment and express my support for more environmental actions.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Waste

Go Paperless

I will reduce the amount of paper mail that I receive by 0.11lbs (0.05kg) a day or 3.3lbs (1.6kg) a month by opting into paperless billing, ending unwanted subscriptions and opting out of junk mail.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Community

Support Native Communities

I will use the resource links provided below and spend 30 minutes learning about the native populations that lived in my area prior to colonization, and what I can do to support those that still exist.

UNCOMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Energy

Organize a Course

I will organize one of Ecochallenge.org's discussion courses, such as Powering a Bright Future, with classmate, friends, co-workers, or family.

UNCOMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Energy

Online Energy Audit

I will complete an online energy audit of my home, office, or dorm room and identify my next steps for saving energy.

UNCOMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Energy

Adjust the Thermostat

I will adjust my thermostat down 2 degrees from usual when I use the heat, and up 2 degrees when I use air conditioning.

COMPLETED 0
DAILY ACTIONS

Health

Learn More about Food Apartheid

What can lack of access to nutritious food affect a community? How can having access to nutritious food help a community become more resilient?

UNCOMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Health

Eliminate Toxic Plastics

I will avoid buying toxic plastics - including polycarbonate, polystyrene and polyvinyl - and instead replace them with durable non-plastic options.

COMPLETED 0
DAILY ACTIONS

Food

Try a New Way to Prep

I will try a new method of food preparation, such as canning, pickling, or baking bread.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Food

Organize a Course

I will organize one of Ecochallenge.org's discussion courses on food sustainability - 'Menu for the Future' or 'Hungry for Change' with my family, friends, co-workers, or classmates.

UNCOMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Food

Smart Seafood Choices

I will visit seafoodwatch.org or download the app and commit to making better seafood choices for a healthier ocean.

COMPLETED 0
DAILY ACTIONS

Waste

Learn About & Practice Sustainable Fashion

I will learn about sustainable fashion and begin trying to practice it in my own life.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Waste

Find Local Recycling Depots

I will find out where to recycle the recyclable items that I can't put in recycling dumpsters or my curbside bin.

UNCOMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Health

Support Pollution Reduction

I will spend at least 30 minutes learning about water and air quality issues in my area, how they are impacting human and environmental health, and how I can help.

UNCOMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Health

Learn About Local Environmental Justice Concerns

I will spend 30 minutes researching environmental justice and environmental racism concerns in my region, who is affected by them, and local initiatives to address these concerns.

UNCOMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Food

Reduce Animal Products

I will enjoy 1 meatless meal(s) and/or 0 vegan meal(s) each day this week.

COMPLETED 0
DAILY ACTIONS

Energy

Learn About Renewable Energy

I will spend 30 minutes learning more about renewable energy alternatives (i.e. solar, wind, biomass) in my region.

UNCOMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Energy

Power Down the Computer

I will power down my computer and monitor when not using it for more than 2 hours, saving up to (1.1) lbs of CO2 each day that I do this.

COMPLETED 0
DAILY ACTIONS

Waste

Personal Waste Audit

I will collect all of my unrecyclable, non-compostable trash to raise my awareness of how much I send to the landfill.

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?


  • Julie Cahillane's avatar
    Julie Cahillane 4/30/2020 12:31 PM
    It's been so great to 'see' you all in this challenge learning, doing, and supporting our Northwestern team! It has made our virtual Earth Month more tangible for me. Thank you all! 
  • REFLECTION QUESTION
    Health Happiness
    How does/can practicing gratitude keep you centered and motivated to work for a better world?

    Julie Cahillane's avatar
    Julie Cahillane 4/22/2020 3:17 PM
    I think this is one of the more critical things we should all be doing right now. Everyone needs a little kindness, especially when coping with challenging times. Be kind to yourself. Be kind to others. Let go of judgement. It is important for our collective emotional and mental health. We are all in this life, pandemic, and this planet, together. 
  • REFLECTION QUESTION
    Energy Power Down the Computer
    What are other easy things you could do to save energy and reduce your environmental footprint?

    Julie Cahillane's avatar
    Julie Cahillane 4/20/2020 8:57 AM
    A thought on powering down and well-being... when we work from home, it can be difficult to 'turn off' work. But it is important for well-being to separate work from home life, and make sure you are stepping away from work on off hours. Powering down your computer is one way to do this. Turn it off, step away, don't let the pings of email/teams alerts/etc. constantly draw you back to work when you should be focusing on personal time. 
  • REFLECTION QUESTION
    Food Weekly Meal Planning
    An average American throws out about 240 lbs of food per year. The average family of four in the US spends $1,500 a year on food that they throw out. Does this surprise you? Where would you rather use this money?

    Julie Cahillane's avatar
    Julie Cahillane 4/10/2020 8:38 AM
    The amount of food we waste is shocking. This time of sheltering-in-place and reduced trips to the grocery store is a great opportunity to get better at shopping and meal planning. Take stock of what you have and make a plan to use it all. This will reduce waste, lower your spend, and limit the number of times you need to be out and about when we should all be doing our best to stay at home. And it's a good way to train ourselves to use what we have instead of running to the store frequently to get that one more ingredient that we can probably do without. 
  • REFLECTION QUESTION
    Energy Adjust the Thermostat
    Your utility company is able to tell you your average energy usage. Ask them how your energy usage compares to others in your ZIP code, region, and/or state. What other steps can you take each day to reduce your electricity usage?

    Julie Cahillane's avatar
    Julie Cahillane 4/10/2020 8:30 AM
    Take advantage of daylighting! Remember to turn off the lights when sunlight is streaming into the room. It's good to take stretch breaks when at your desk all day. Use that time to remember to turn off lights you might have needed first thing in the morning but no longer need when the sun is higher and shining into your windows.