Ecochallenge.org

Campus Ecochallenge

Campbell Bereck

ENST 246 : Environmental Activism

POINTS TOTAL

0 TODAY
0 THIS WEEK
627 TOTAL

participant impact

UP TO

240

minutes

being mindful
UP TO

10

miles

traveled by foot
UP TO

1.0

hour

volunteered
UP TO

14

plastic straws

not sent to the landfill
UP TO

380

minutes

spent exercising
UP TO

1.0

documentary

watched
UP TO

28

pounds of CO2

have been saved
UP TO

10

miles

not traveled by car
UP TO

360

minutes

spent learning
UP TO

280

gallons of water

have been saved

Campbell's actions

Simplicity

Track my Purchases

I will spend 10 minutes each day maintaining a record of all my purchases and learning about my spending habits.

COMPLETED 19
DAILY ACTIONS

Nature

Support Local Pollinators

At least 30% of crops and 90% of flowering plants rely on pollinators to produce fruit. I will spend 20 minutes researching which plants support local native pollinators and plant some in my yard or local community garden.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Community

Volunteer in my Community

I will volunteer 1 hour(s) in my community during the challenge.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Health

Support Pollution Reduction

I will spend at least 20 minutes learning about water and air quality issues in my area, how they are impacting human and environmental health, and how I can help.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

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?

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 14
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 14
DAILY ACTIONS

Health

Learn About Local Environmental Justice Concerns

I will spend 20 minutes researching environmental justice and environmental racism concerns in my region, who is affected by them, and local initiatives to address these concerns.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

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.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Health

Exercise Daily

Exercise is a great stress blaster! I will exercise for 20 minute(s) each day.

COMPLETED 9
DAILY ACTIONS

Transportation

Walk Instead

I will walk 1 mile(s) each day instead of driving and avoid sending up to (___) lbs of CO2 into Earth's atmosphere.

COMPLETED 10
DAILY ACTIONS

Simplicity

Meditate

I will meditate or create a moment of silence for 15 minute(s) each day to reflect on things important to me.

COMPLETED 16
DAILY ACTIONS

Simplicity

Go For A Daily Walk Outside

I will take a walk outside for 10 minutes each day.

COMPLETED 20
DAILY ACTIONS

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 14
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 14
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 17
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?

Campbell Bereck 3/06/2019 5:55 PM

Starting on February 29nd, I added two more daily challenges and two more one time challenges. My daily challenges are to exercise daily and walk instead of drive. These challenges are in addition my prior daily challenges which are to eliminate toxic plastics, power down the computer, go for a daily walk, track my purchases, skip the straw, take five minute showers, meditate, and to avoid refined sugar. My one time challenges are to watch a documentary about food sovereignty and to learn about local environmental justice concerns.
My first one-time challenge was to watch one documentary about food sovereignty: “the right of local peoples to control their own food systems including markets, ecological resources, food cultures, and production methods” (Ecochallenge). I watched a documentary called Regaining Food Sovereignty, which explores the “food systems in some Northern Minnesota Native communities” (PBS). This documentary explains that indigenous people suffer disproportionately from diabetes and health disease as a result of corporate controlled global food system that values profit over human and ecological health (PBS). Specifically, through advertising and marketing, these large companies fool people into eating processed, genetically modified foods. In protest of this, these indigenous people are using traditional methods such as hunting and gathering to take back control of their food system. For example, these people gain access to healthy and local foods by hunting, fishing, gardening, berry picking, and even making maple syrup. Through these methods, these tribal nations are making strides toward creating “a new model of community health and well-being for this and future generations” (PBS).
My second one time challenge was to learn about environmental justice concerns, “their causes, and local initiatives to address these concerns” (Ecochallenge). One of the resources on the Ecochallenge provides an infographic which depicts the connection between asthma and pollution, cleaning supplies, pesticides, and plasticizers (Oregon Environmental Council). According to this site, air pollution causes 30% of asthma attacks (Oregon Environmental Council). This pollution can stem from “acrolein from wood smoke” and “diesel soot from traffic and construction equipment” (Oregon Environmental Council). However, it is not just outdoor air which triggers asthma, according to the article, cleaning studies have shown that chemicals in cleaning supplies are directly linked to asthma (Oregon Environmental Council). In addition to these factors, plasticizers called phthalates, which are found in PVC and vinyl, “are linked to asthma (Oregon Environmental Council). In addition to pointing out these factors, this infographic explains that susceptibility is class and race based. Specifically, “multiracial non-Hispanic people have the highest rates of asthma” (Oregon Environmental Council). Additionally, “lower-income residents are more likely to have asthma” (Oregon Environmental Council).
My first daily challenge was to cut down my carbon footprint by waling instead of driving. This daily challenge was relatively easy to implement into my life because I just chose to walk to my classes instead of driving. Before adding this challenge, I was already taking daily walks around downtown Lewisburg, but I was still driving to class. Through this added challenge, I am able to walk even more throughout the day which benefits both my health and the environment. Through the additional walking required by this challenge, I continue to notice that my mood is improved and I am less stressed. Taking these health benefits into consideration, I really hope to implement this lifestyle change permanent. However, I may be hindered from doing this in the future because of lack of time and bad weather. Regardless, this challenge has demonstrated the importance and benefits of walking instead of driving.
My second daily challenge was to exercise daily. This challenge was in fact, difficult for me to incorporate into my daily routine because of lack of time. Additionally, I am someone who doesn’t enjoying just going to the gym but I instead prefer to take classes. When I have more free time at home, it is easier for me to revolve my schedule around my workout classes. However, at school, I have been less successful at planning my schedule ahead of time. In the future, I hope to get better at planning my days to ensure that I exercise. In addition to working harder to make exercise a daily habit, I plan to do my best to be mindful of my other previous daily challenges which I found harder to implement on a daily basis such as avoiding refined sugar. Some challenges I was very successful in and hope to make a permanent lifestyle change are to meditate, track my purchases, go on a daily walk, track my purchases, skip the straw, take 5 minute showers, and eliminate toxic plastics.

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Campbell Bereck 2/28/2019 10:55 AM

Starting on February 22nd, I added 3 more daily challenges and 2 one-time challenge to my Ecochallenge actions. My daily daily challenges are to skip the straw, take five minute showers, and to avoid refined sugar. These challenges are in addition my prior daily challenges which are to eliminate toxic plastics, power down the computer, go for a daily walk, track my purchases, and to meditate. My one-time challenges for this week were to learn more about food deserts and support pollution reduction.
My first one-time challenge was to spend some time “learning about food deserts” and to “find out how I can advocate for healthy and fresh food in my region” (Ecochallenge). One of the resources on the Ecochallenge page provided a map which shows food deserts in the United States. These are places where people “aren’t within walking distance of a supermarket” or don’t have vehicles they can drive to buy fresh food (Shute). Parson’s article on food deserts explains that obesity is directly related to low-income neighborhoods because these people don’t have access to “healthy foods like fresh fruits and vegetables, whole grains, and lean meats” (Parsons). In addition to point out these problems, this article also provides “six innovative ideas that aim to expand food access on all fronts – education, availability, and affordability” (Parsons). One initiative helps local entrepreneurs to open successful supermarkets in food deserts. The second initiative is to extend the stock of corner stores to include fresh and healthy produce. Other initiatives include food education, farm-to-school programs, urban farms and food pantries, and farmers’ market coupon programs (Parsons).
My second one-time challenge was to spend some time “learning about water and air quality issues in my area, how they are impacting human and environmental health, and how I can help” (Ecochallenge). I found the resources on this topic to be extremely unhelpful. Specifically, the UN sustainable development goals resources have nothing to do with pollution. Although the EPA: My Environment resource is more applicable to the topic of pollution, I found this page to be very confusing. Besides learning that I am most susceptible to formaldehyde risk and that the state mostly consumes natural gas and petroleum; I didn’t get much else out of the article. I would like to learn more about and understand this page’s section on my water and air.
My first added daily challenge is to skip the straw, which is something I have been working toward for a while. Because of my previous attempts, the only time I use straws is when I get a smoothie at the bison or an iced coffee at Starbucks. In order to address this, I bought a reusable cold-drink tumbler for my smoothies and Starbucks drink. Additionally, I added a metal straw into my reusable utensil kit. This change has made me feel much better about my consumption habits and it is definitely something I plan to incorporate into my daily routine. This proud feeling was exacerbated by learning about the negative outcomes created by straws. According to one of the resource articles, straws embody the broader dangers “posed by absorption of toxic chemicals in the water and by plastic odors that mimic some species’ natural food” (Wilkins). As a result, plastic ends up in our seafood which negatively impacts our health.
My other daily challenges were to take five minute showers and to avoid refined sugar by cutting out “sweetened beverages, candy, and processed foods” (Ecochallenge). It has been easy and rewarding for me to take five minute showers, I simply time myself through five minutes of music. Avoiding refined sugar has also been relatively easy for me in that I already don’t consume soda or much candy. However, it has been difficult for me to avoid processed foods altogether, such as the gomacro bars I eat almost every morning. Because of my lack of time, I hope to pay more attention to avoiding processed foods but I don’t think it’s something I can incorporate into my daily routine. In the weeks to come, I plan to continue to take five minute showers, skip the straws, take daily walks, meditate, track my purchases, power down my computer, eliminate toxic plastics, and attempt to avoid refined sugar.

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Campbell Bereck 2/21/2019 10:14 AM

Starting on February 15th, I added 3 more daily challenges and 1 one-time challenge to my Ecochallenge actions. My daily challenges are to help others, meditate, and power down my computer when it’s not in use. My one-time challenge was to volunteer in my community, which I did at the Lewisburg Children’s Center through the club Head Start.
Firstly, it is important to note that I continue to complete my daily challenges from week one, which are to track my purchases and to go on a daily walk. For tracking my purchases, I currently use a note on my phone, where I write out each date and list how much money I spent and where I spent it. Although this method is seemingly simple, because it is so easy, I have no excuse not to write out my spending. In Professor Stuhl’s response to my week one journal, he recommended the app Mint for tracking my purchases. I have downloaded the app and I’m super excited about it! However, I’m still playing around with it so I will post an update on my experience with the app next week!
I also continue to enjoy my daily walks! For example, on 2/20, I decided to treat myself to Amami. However, instead of driving there I decided to walk. It was so lovely walking through downtown Lewisburg in the snow, everything looked so beautiful and I really enjoyed taking it all in. Additionally, I have continued to notice the health benefits I discussed in my week one journal. Specifically, that my daily walks have helped me to de-stress and improve my overall mood. For the weeks to come, I am excited to take a walk from the South campus apartments around the center for sustainability, as Professor Stuhl suggested. I am really looking forward to enjoying the food garden and native plants that Professor Stuhl said are along this route. In addition to this helpful suggestion, professor Stuhl also explained that Bucknell students and staff are trying to build a sustainability path. I would really love to get involved in this project, as I have noticed the benefits of my daily walks and I would love to help others gain the same experience.
Motivated by the de-stressing components of my daily walks, I decided to add a daily challenge which would build upon this – meditation. According to one of the resource articles, meditation can help to “reduce stress, increase calmness and clarity and promote happiness” (Gelles). Meditation is something I have done periodically when I am particularly stressed or can’t focus on my work. I have noticed meditation’s tremendous ability to help alleviate these situations. Ever since then, meditation is something I have been wanting to implement in my daily routine. Through the Ecochallenge, I was motivated to make a deliberate attempt to mediate every night at 9:00. I use, and highly recommend the app Headspace which provides “guided meditations and mindfulness techniques that bring calm, wellness and balance to your life in just a few minutes a day” (Headpsace). I accordance with these claims made by headspace and the resource article, I have noticed a tremendous difference in my mood and stress level. Dedicating just 10 minutes a day to relaxation and meditation has made all the difference in my mental health. Because of these incredible health benefits, meditation is something I hope to continue to implement in my daily routine.
In addition to these simplicity challenges, I also wanted to implement a challenge in the realm of energy. When I was searching for a daily-action to choose, I found a resource article which explained “How to Shrink Your Dorm Print” (Smarter House). Through this two-minute video, I learned that I already act according to most of these energy efficient recommendations. Specifically, I only use my drying rack and never a dryer, I use an electric kettle for tea, I only use LED light bulbs, I don’t have a mini fridge or TV in my room, and I always turn out the lights before I leave the room (Smarter House). Seeing that I have already adapted many energy efficient behaviors made me very happy and it made me even more motivated to create more change. I chose to make sure my computer is in sleep mode when I’m not using it. Previously, I had left a Netflix show such as Friends, playing on my computer when I left the room to refill my water bottle, or even to shower. Now, through this Ecochallange, I have made a deliberate attempt to always close my computer screen when I leave the room. This daily-action has made me happier knowing that I am doing my part to create a more sustainable future.
My third and last daily-challenge is a community oriented challenge to help others in need. One example of how I did this was to bring my sick friend soup. However, I regret choosing this challenge because I tend to want to help those in need regardless of whether or not I’m being challenged to. Similarly, my one-time action was to volunteer in my community, which I did at the Lewisburg Children’s Center through the club Head Start. However, I am likely to partake in this activity whether or not I am being challenged to. Through this journal, I have realized that my daily challenge to help others and my one-time challenge to volunteer are too conservative in that they don’t challenge me enough. Therefore, in the weeks to come, I plan to choose daily and one-time challenges that will ensure my actions align with my values.

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- Allison Rhyu 2/28/2019 10:47 AM
  
  It’s really interesting to see how you are tracking your purchases for the challenge. In doing so, how do you think your spending habits have changed? Would you say that after growing conscious of everything you purchase, you feel more incentivized to save? As someone who’s looking to save up for post-graduation while growing towards an increasingly minimalistic lifestyle, I am looking to do something similar. I think I will look into the app Mint in the next couple of days, and hope that doing so could be helpful for me as well. It’s also quite admirable how you’ve integrated meditation into your daily routine. I will definitely look into the Headspace app as well, as I am also looking into meditation. While I did partake in late-night yoga my first year on campus, I have unfortunately fallen off the wagon with yoga and meditation practices since, and want to get back into it. Doing so has certainly improved my mental health and cleared my headspace as well. I like how you set an interval for ten minutes a day as well, a time that is sufficient enough to make the meditation meaningful, all the while not taking too significant of a portion out of your day. I definitely look forward to seeing what future Eco-Challenges you decide to integrate in the coming weeks, and after hearing of the positive effects your changes have had on you so far, especially tracking spending and meditation, I feel quite inspired and may look into the apps you have mentioned. (Word count: 257)
  
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- brooke shepherd 2/25/2019 7:46 AM
  
  I thought that your journal response was very upbeat in regarding your additional challenges that you added on, as well as maintaining your other challenges. I’m curious to see how you like the Mint app and if you could see yourself using it even after the EcoChallenge is over. I also added meditation to my daily challenges which I think has had a very positive impact on my daily activities. It feels rewarding to disconnect from the world and connect to yourself, and I could see myself incorporating meditation into my life after the challenges are over. I thought that your ways in order to minimize your dorm footprint were very beneficial! It’s hard to maintain living and eco-friendly lifestyle when certain things are out of our control in a dorm building. I have added on helping out people in their lives to my daily challenges. Although I agree with you that I tend to help out people naturally, I think that it is rewarding to keep track of who I help each day and how I help them. It’s easy to get caught up in your own life at school with work and other activities, so I’m excited to make an even stronger effort to help out my friends. I’ve never been to the Lewisburg Children’s Center, but your positive feedback on it makes me want to go! It can be a rewarding experience to get off of Bucknell’s campus and interact with the community around us. Overall, I thought that your journal was a very positive reflection of your eco-challenges and I hope that you maintain this experience.
  
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- Andrew Stuhl 2/21/2019 10:21 AM
  
  Awesome! Thanks for the recommendation on Headspace. I've heard of it but haven't tried it. Going to go check it out now!
  
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Campbell Bereck 2/14/2019 9:12 AM

For the first week of the Ecochallenge, I picked actions that I know I would stick to and that were important to me. For my daily challenges, I have chosen to go on a daily walk and to track my purchases. For my one-time challenge, I wanted to support local pollinators by researching “which plants support local native pollinators” (Ecochallenge). All of these changes appealed to me in that they are things that I have been interested in doing for a long time. For example, I have always made somewhat of an attempt to track my purchases and to be somewhat mindful during my walks. However, with the implementation of these daily challenge into my life, I have made a much more deliberate attempt to incorporate these actions into my daily life. I also chose these challenges because they fall under categories that represent some of my main goals as an environmentalist – simplicity and nature.
Firstly, the challenge I enjoyed the most this week is going for daily walks. On my walks, I am able to appreciate my surroundings and breath in the fresh air. As a senior, admiring Bucknell’s beautiful campus helps me to truly appreciate and get the most out of the time I have left here. After these walks, I feel less stressed, more appreciative, and energized. These health benefits were reflected in one of the resource articles under this action “7 Incredible Health Benefits of Walking 30 Minutes a Day.” According to the article, going on a daily walk helps to improve your mood, lose weight, de-stress, lower your blood pressure, reduce your risk of chronic diseases, foster creativity, and improve digestion (Rabbitt 2018). Taking these health benefits into consideration, I am definitely very willing to make this lifestyle change permanent. The only potential boundary I see in adopting this daily change is the weather. Specifically, when it is cold or raining, I am definitely less inclined to go on my daily walk.
My second daily challenge is to track my purchases, something I have been halfheartedly doing for a while now. Previously, my dad had urged me to do this for the financial aspect of being careful with money. However, adopting this challenge under the Ecochallenge framework has urged me to consider the other benefits of tracking your purchases. For example, by being more conscious with your purchasing, you can help the environment by buying less stuff you don’t need, which contributes to the waste cycle. Another benefit of tracking your purchases is outlined by the resource article, “Your Spending Choices Often Reflect Your Values.” As the title suggests, this article explains that our spending habits are directly tied to our values and priorities (Richards). Taking this relationship into consideration, the author explains that because his top priorities are spending time with his family and serving his community, all of his actions should reflect this (Richards). This example urged me to consider what my purchases are saying about me. Much like the author, I want to be proud of my purchases and have them better align with my values. Specifically, by tracking my purchases, I have been more likely to support local businesses and environmentally conscious companies and brands. Taking into consideration the immense financial and environmental benefits of tracking my purchases, it is definitely a lifestyle change that I definitely want to incorporate into my daily life.
In order to break up my simplicity-centered daily goals, I chose to learn about local pollinators for my one-time challenge. Specifically, I opted to spend 20 minutes “researching which plants support local native pollinators” (Ecochallenge). Through the resource articles, I was reminded of the importance of planting gardens instead of maintaining pristine lawns (Smith). Additionally, this article provided information that I was already aware of, including the importance of native plants and diverse gardens (Smith). One thing I was not aware of is that providing sources of water goes hand-in-hand with supporting pollinators (Smith). This information will serve as helpful guidelines when I own my own home and I begin to cultivate my own yard and garden. Through my research on plants that support local pollinators, I learned that for my home on Long Island, we should plant tulip trees, violets, dill, celery, carrots, willows, blueberries, sunflowers, etc…

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- Andrew Stuhl 2/20/2019 5:53 AM
  
  Wow, this is so great Campbell! I applaud you for getting out on walks and tracking your purchases. I'm so curious about these things. For your walks, where specifically did you go? There is a great walking path that cuts from the south campus apartments around the Center for Sustainability, which has a nice food garden and a wonderful set of native plant gardens -- you should definitely check that out! Also, the Grove is obviously a favorite of mine. Did you know that some faculty and staff are trying to build a "sustainability path" that will meander throughout campus and highlight some of our sustainability features on campus? I think you'd love that and maybe you'd want to be involved in helping build it? On tracking your purchases, how did you do that (ie. did you write them out, type them out?) I use an Excel spreadsheet -- pretty simple, but effective. I break up the spreadsheet into two tabs at the bottom -- money out and money in. In the 'money out' tab, i have sections for purchases that I can't change (mortgage, car insurance, water, trash, energy utilities, cell phone) and then other sections for purchases I can change (gas, groceries, spending money, miscellaneous). For money in, it is usually just my wife and I's paychecks. then, at the end of the month, we tally the two totals and find the difference (hopefully, money in is greater than money out!). Doing this also allows us to calculate our monthly savings and track it over time. We've been pretty good about saving more than 20% of our take home pay over the past 10 years. There are also great apps out there that help with this tracking and budgeting -- have you heard of Mint? https://www.mint.com/
  
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