Ashley Jacks

"I constantly overthink everything so I will without a doubt think about my environmental impact with everything I do throughout the day."

POINTS TOTAL

0 TODAY
0 THIS WEEK
458 TOTAL

participant impact

UP TO

708

gallons of water

have been saved
UP TO

435

minutes

of additional sleep
UP TO

197

minutes

spent learning
UP TO

229

minutes

being mindful
UP TO

16

plastic straws

not sent to the landfill
UP TO

140

pounds of CO2

have been saved

Ashley's actions

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 6
DAILY ACTIONS

Water

Fix Leaky Faucets

I will fix faucets or report leaky faucets to facilities that have been wasting up to 9 gallons (34 L) of water a day or 270 (1,020 L) gallons of water a month per faucet.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Water

5-Minute Showers

I will save up to 20 gallons (75 L) of water each day by taking 5-minute showers.

COMPLETED 6
DAILY ACTIONS

Water

Say No to Plastic Straws

An estimated 71% of seabirds and 30% of turtles have been found with plastics in their stomachs. When they ingest plastic, marine life has a 50% mortality rate. By asking for no straw when placing a drink order, I will keep 5 plastic straw(s) of out of the ocean each day.

COMPLETED 6
DAILY ACTIONS

Water

Get Involved in the Water Justice Movement

I will spend at least 30 minutes using the resources provided to learn about water justice and find out how I can get involved in local initiatives.

COMPLETED 6
DAILY 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

Turn it off

I will keep lights, electronics, and appliances turned off when not using them.

COMPLETED 8
DAILY ACTIONS

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 8
DAILY ACTIONS

Simplicity

Needs Vs. Wants

I will adopt a "Needs Vs. Wants" approach and only buy things I need.

COMPLETED 8
DAILY ACTIONS

Health

Reduce refined sugar

I will keep track and reduce my consumption of refined sugars, including sweetened beverages, candy, and processed foods.

COMPLETED 8
DAILY ACTIONS

Health

Healthy Sleep

Effectively working for sustainability requires self care! I will commit to getting 60 more minute(s) of sleep each night to achieve at least 7 hours per night.

COMPLETED 8
DAILY ACTIONS

Simplicity

Eat Mindfully

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

COMPLETED 8
DAILY ACTIONS

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
Water Get Involved in the Water Justice Movement

Who is affected by polluted water or a lack of access to water in your region? How are they affected?

Ashley Jacks 11/02/2021 4:18 PM

In my area, most individuals who are affected by polluted water or have less access to water live in poverty or lower-income areas. They are concerned because the water they drink is polluted from the source, and it takes more to make the water drinkable, and different filtration systems are needed but are pretty expensive.

Read More
REFLECTION QUESTION
Health Reduce refined sugar

Before you started this challenge, did you think you were 'addicted' to sugar? How do you feel now?

Ashley Jacks 11/02/2021 4:11 PM

Before I started the challenge, I did not think I was addicted to sugar, but I did always have a sweet tooth. This challenge just made me painfully aware of how much sugar was in the foods that I wanted to have, whether or not I ended up eating them. I would check every nutrition label for the amount of sugar in it, and it felt quite a bit obsessive. But, I do not feel that much differently; I just feel more and more paranoid that I will get type two diabetes after eating a cookie.

Read More
REFLECTION QUESTION
Simplicity Eat Mindfully

Mindful eating is healthier for us than eating with distractions. How do your eating experiences differ when practicing mindfulness?

Ashley Jacks 11/02/2021 4:03 PM

I like eating and practicing mindfulness, but it is different from eating food and talking to my friends or eating and watching a movie or TV show. When practicing mindfulness, it feels more natural than if I were watching a show and eating food. There is much less effort needed when practicing mindfulness than I had initially expected.

Read More
REFLECTION QUESTION
Energy Power Down the Computer

What are other easy things you could do to save energy and reduce your environmental footprint?

Ashley Jacks 11/02/2021 4:00 PM

There are many different things that you could do to save energy and reduce your environmental footprint. One of the easiest things to concentrate on is to eat less meat and animal products because it uses mass amounts of resources to raise animals to eat.

Read More
REFLECTION QUESTION
Energy Turn it off

How is electricity generated where you live? How does it impact the environment, animals, and humans?

Ashley Jacks 10/07/2021 3:36 PM

Where I live, most of the energy is generated by fossil fuels. This negatively impacts the environment and most people do not even realize that they are using fossil fuels despite not driving their car or cooking from a gas-powered stove. We are destroying our environments, the environments of animals all over the globe, without even batting an eye because we are simply just turning on or off the lights. We need to find a more efficient source of energy to power our homes and cities but, how as individuals are we supposed to do something about it?

Read More
REFLECTION QUESTION
Simplicity Needs Vs. Wants

How is creativity a necessary ingredient for practicing simplicity?

Ashley Jacks 10/07/2021 2:28 AM

Creativity is very much a necessary ingredient for practicing simplicity because one has to think in detail about what one actually needs. For example, one could make a list of wants and needs and edit it down to where they only have the essentials written down under the needs. I think that another contribution to practicing simplistically is the price point. Sometimes it is more economical to be simplistic because then you are not buying any just because you can.

Read More
REFLECTION QUESTION
Health Healthy Sleep

Consider how many hours of sleep you get now. How would you like to shift your sleep patterns? What are you finding works for you to be successful in this action?

Ashley Jacks 10/07/2021 2:22 AM

Currently, my sleep patterns are very inconsistent due to me adjusting to sharing a room with someone for the first time and us both staying up late to complete homework. There are some nights during the regular school week that I go to bed at 11 pm and other nights when I go to bed at 2 am the following morning. I would like to shift my sleep patterns to where I can go to bed earlier and then wake up earlier. I would like to be able to have more time to get ready before my first class of the day, rather than just waking up 30 minutes before class and rushing through everything I need to do. I am finding that asking my roommate to put in headphones when she is watching the bachelor on her phone late at night and just manage my time better so that I can have enough time to get a proper night's sleep.

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?

Ashley Jacks 10/07/2021 2:15 AM

I plan on spending money I saved from making more energy-efficient choices by buying things that I really need or donating the money to charitable organizations that are environmentally friendly or have to do with the UN SDGs.

Read More