Marcella Bangkong

RIT Sustainable Living Class - Spring 2022

"I hope to practice sustainability at whatever I do."

POINTS TOTAL

0 TODAY
0 THIS WEEK
471 TOTAL

participant impact

UP TO

9.0

pounds of paper

have been saved
UP TO

13

plastic straws

not sent to the landfill
UP TO

17

plastic bottles

not sent to the landfill
UP TO

1.0

documentary

watched
UP TO

13

plastic containers

not sent to the landfill
UP TO

90

minutes

spent learning
UP TO

24

gallons of water

have been saved

Marcella's actions

Transportation

Car Share

I will sign up for a car-sharing service or organize car sharing with my neighbors or classmates to cut down on the number of vehicles on the road.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Waste

Choose Two-Sided Printing

I will save up to .21 lbs (.09 kg) of paper per day by switching from one-sided printing to two-sided when I have to print documents.

COMPLETED 9
DAILY ACTIONS

Action Track: Building Resilience

Support Businesses Owned by People of Color

Racial inequity is both a sustainability and justice problem. I will support businesses owned by people of color in my community whenever I shop.

COMPLETED 9
DAILY ACTIONS

Action Track: Building Resilience

Watch a Documentary about Food Sovereignty

I will watch 3 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.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Transportation

Conduct Virtual Meetings

I will not travel for meetings and will instead conduct them virtually.

COMPLETED 9
DAILY ACTIONS

Waste

Use Reusable Bags

If at all possible, I will not accept any disposable bags when making purchases.

COMPLETED 9
DAILY ACTIONS

Waste

Skip the Straw

Plastic bags and small plastic pieces like straws are most likely to get swept into our waterways. I will keep 1 plastic straw(s) out of the landfill and ocean each day by refusing straws or using my own glass/metal straw.

COMPLETED 9
DAILY ACTIONS

Waste

Use a Reusable Water Bottle

I will keep 1 disposable plastic bottle(s) from entering the waste stream by using a reusable water bottle.

COMPLETED 8
DAILY ACTIONS

Water

Use Reusable Bottles

I will use a reusable bottle and stop purchasing bottled water, saving 2 disposable plastic bottle(s) a day.

COMPLETED 3
DAILY 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 3
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 Use Reusable Bottles

What are some of the needs that water meets or benefits that water provides for you?

Marcella Bangkong 3/28/2022 8:19 AM

Humans are, on average, 60% water. It is in us and makes us up. Water provides many benefits such as increasing energy, relieving fatigue, flushing out toxins, improving skin complexion, maintaining regularity, and I can go on and on about how water is essential to our survival.

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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?

Marcella Bangkong 3/28/2022 8:16 AM

I would guess the main water source in Rochester would be Lake Ontario and the Finger Lakes nearby. If one doesn't know the main water source of the region they are staying in, simply looking at the map and identifying large bodies of freshwater is a good first start. In addition, the internet is vast and full of information. A quick google search is also a good first start.

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REFLECTION QUESTION
Transportation Car Share

Take a moment to think of places you frequent often (school, work, grocery store, natural areas). Could you choose one or two days a week to schedule driving with a friend, neighbor or co-worker to these places?

Marcella Bangkong 3/22/2022 11:38 AM

Yes, this would be quite easy to coordinate and schedule, especially if you are living with roommates. Instead of going by yourself, and taking multiple trips, you can plan to go together, which eliminates using multiple cars and emitting C02 into the air.

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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?

Marcella Bangkong 3/21/2022 10:31 AM

I already incorporate the reuse, refuse, and reduce aspects in my lifestyle. I reuse my metal straw, I refuse to use plastic bags, and I reduce my carbon footprint by walking to classes. It takes time for them to develop into habits, and when you get to that point, it becomes a natural thing to do in your everyday life.

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REFLECTION QUESTION
Waste Choose Two-Sided Printing

Choosing two-sided printing can be an easy adjustment on your computer settings. How can you help others make this same switch? Can it be encouraged company wide?

Marcella Bangkong 3/21/2022 10:28 AM

Putting things into perspective on how much paper is wasted can help encourage others to make the switch to two-sided printing instead. For example, they could avoid 1lb of waste if they switched to two-sided printing. This can definitely be encouraged company-wide.

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REFLECTION QUESTION
Waste Use Reusable Bags

What do you do if you find yourself in the situation of needing a bag for items but don't have a reusable one with you or aren't allowed to use the one you brought? Carry things out in your hands? In a cart? Accept a disposable one? If you find yourself in this position often, what system could you put in place to try to create a successful habit of not using plastic bags?

Marcella Bangkong 3/21/2022 10:24 AM

When I forget to bring my reusable bags, I would often carry the items using the cart and load them back into my car. That way I don't end up wasting unnecessary plastic bags.

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REFLECTION QUESTION
Action Track: Building Resilience Support Businesses Owned by People of Color

A recent Keen Independent Research Foundation study found that Minority Businesses Enterprises (MBEs) are more likely to have difficulties in receiving loans or city contracts. In what ways can you work to address systemic racism like that demonstrated in this study?

Marcella Bangkong 3/21/2022 10:21 AM

Having an open and honest discussion about this issue is important. Yes, they might be uncomfortable to talk about, but systemic racism itself is uncomfortable -- we must become comfortable with the uncomfortable in order to address and hopefully resolve issues like systemic racism.

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REFLECTION QUESTION
Transportation Conduct Virtual Meetings

How can you ensure that your virtual meetings honor your values and your company's culture?

Marcella Bangkong 3/21/2022 10:17 AM

By making sure that communication between all parties is as straightforward as possible. This includes communicating about the goals and values we want to reach together. This also helps with getting to know people more personally online.

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