Aaron Owens
3/20/2022 7:42 AM
In the afternoon, I open window blinds to allow my living room floor to soak up the rays and emit some small residual heat. Ill admit is pretty negligible but its super easy.
Aaron Owens
POINTS TOTAL
- 0 TODAY
- 0 THIS WEEK
- 303 TOTAL
participant impact
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UP TO30minutesof additional sleep
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UP TO9.0plastic strawsnot sent to the landfill
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UP TO30minutesspent exercising
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UP TO5.0plastic bottlesnot sent to the landfill
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UP TO7.0disposable cupsnot sent to the landfill
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UP TO15meatless or vegan mealsconsumed
Aaron's actions
Waste
Use a Reusable Mug
I will avoid sending 1 disposable cup(s) to the landfill each day by using a reusable mug.
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.
Food
Reduce Animal Products
I will enjoy 3 meatless meal(s) and/or 3 vegan meal(s) each day this week.
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.
Energy
Heat and Cool Naturally
I will naturally heat and cool my house, office, or dorm room by opening or closing my windows, curtains, and blinds, and by using fans.
Health
Healthy Sleep
Effectively working for sustainability requires self care! I will commit to getting 30 more minute(s) of sleep each night to achieve at least 7 hours per night.
Health
Joyful Movement
I will spend 30 minutes doing an activity where I'm both moving my body and enjoying myself.
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?
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REFLECTION QUESTIONEnergy Heat and Cool NaturallyWhat are other ways you could use the power of the sun to reduce your own environmental footprint?
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REFLECTION QUESTIONHealth Joyful MovementWhat's your favorite activity(ies) in which you experience joy while being active and moving?
Aaron Owens 3/20/2022 7:40 AMRunning. I LOVE running. I find it extremely therapeutic as it relieves stress, clears my head and always lifts my spirits. I encourage everyone to get into the habit of running- dont worry about the distance or time. Just go run. -
REFLECTION QUESTIONWaste Use a Reusable Water BottleWhile water bottles are needed for health and safety in certain places, we can do more to reduce the unnecessary use of them. What are the barriers to you using reusable bottles and tap water instead of bottled water? How could you make this a permanent habit?
Aaron Owens 3/20/2022 7:35 AMAs stated in my coffee mug reply, the challenge has been that of social stigma. People like to throw stuff out. If enough people adopt the stance of reusing materials, not just water bottles, this stigma should evaporate over time. -
REFLECTION QUESTIONWaste Use a Reusable MugMaybe you've heard how good it is to switch from a single use coffee cup to a reusable one, but it's just hard to make the switch. What stands in your way of making this a habit? By identifying the challenges, you can begin to work through them to have better success in taking this action. Knowing the difference you are making, how does it make you feel?
Aaron Owens 3/20/2022 7:33 AMThe most prominent challenge I have faced is one of social stigma- "my god that guys been using the SAME mug since arriving on the Mayflower" or a close derivate. I have accepted that people are addicted to throwing things out and just ignore the ridicule. -
REFLECTION QUESTIONWaste Skip the StrawHow could you incorporate other "R's" -- reduce, reuse, refuse, repair, repurpose, etc. -- into your lifestyle?
Aaron Owens 3/20/2022 7:30 AMI would love to be able to reuse/repair clothing without fear of ridicule from coworkers. I feel that there is an unspoken rule that one must have a vast array of attire and if you dont you are not successful. -
REFLECTION QUESTIONHealth Healthy SleepConsider 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?
Aaron Owens 3/20/2022 7:27 AMDuring this semester, I have been getting 5-6 hours through the week. This is due to a very full schedule. I would love to get closer to 8 hours. Lately, I have been able to achieve this by sacrificing free time that would typically go to personal endeavors (video games, hiking, movies etc) -
REFLECTION QUESTIONFood Reduce Animal ProductsWhy do people in richer countries eat more meat than people in other places? How does eating more meat affect our planet and other people?
Aaron Owens 3/20/2022 7:24 AMMy guess is that we (the United States) have the infrastructure that makes mass meat production affordable. A quick Google search indicates that animal agriculture is responsible for 15% of all green house gas emissions. Green house gases elevate temperatures. -
Aaron Owens 3/20/2022 7:19 AMI think its going pretty good. Personally, my struggle has been with recording and tracking my actions. I practice various Eco friendly actions regularly but always forget to update them. -
Aaron Owens 3/20/2022 7:11 AMThis response is in regard to the prompted question:
share “your why”. Why did you join the challenge and choose the actions you did?
I joined the challenge because it is integrated with my Micro-Eco class. Secondly, I support its purpose; prior to Eco-Challenge my personal stance on our environment can be summarized with:
"Our resources are finite. Our utilization of these resources appears to be exponential. We need to refocus."
The answer the second part of the question, I selected the actions that I did because they were ones that I have already been taking. I reuse cups, food Tupperware, and avoid meats regularly.
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Aaron Owens 3/17/2022 8:03 AMIt wasn't until I stopped using the straw that I realized I did not need the straw.