Elizabeth Walsh

Journal 6
Elizabeth Walsh

On top of my previous challenges, my new challenges were choosing two-sided printing, establishing a recycling program in my residence, and walking instead of driving. I enjoyed the new challenges this week, and I do think that I could make at least two of them a permanent part of my lifestyle. However, it definitely requires more dedication. 

For the challenge regarding choosing two sided printing, it definitely helps that the printers through Bucknell automatically print two sided. In addition, even though I live off campus, we do not own a printer so this was a challenge that I had already really been practicing. However, I do try to not print as much as possible in order to avoid wasting paper but for one of my classes I have to turn in a paper copy three times a week. In regards to the barriers, I really do not feel as though there are any and this is something that I could permanently integrate into my life. Even after college, I think that if I were to print something I could make the effort to choose two-sided printing. 

One of my other waste challenges was to implement a recycling program in my residence. I enjoyed doing this in my house, and my housemates on my floor were willing to participate as well. However, in one of the resources it provided 9 key secrets to starting the program in college and university, and one of the actions on the list was to communicate with guests. This is where I did see some potential barriers, because people who were guests at our house would throw in normal trash and not realize that we were trying to recycle. However, going forward I think I could put a sign on the bin to establish that it is recycling. More so, in Lewisburg you have to drop off your recycling so continuing this program does take more dedication. 

Lastly, the new challenge I incorporated was to walk instead of drive. Other than campus, most of the places I go to are not necessarily far, such as Giant and CVS, but the rail trail does not have the safest crossing by Route 15 so I normally drive there. However, instead of driving to campus I tried to walk more even though it is really tempting to drive in this cold weather. I think that when it warms up, walking to campus would be a great addition to my daily routine and I would also incorporate more exercise into my day. In addition, I enjoyed looking through the resources and reading about how certain towns remodeled their streets for people. Fortunately, the town of Lewisburg is fairly easy to get around by walking, it gets more complicated for grocery stores and pharmacies. However, I did realize that Lewisburg pharmacy is walking distance and an easier walk than CVS. After this week, I can say that while I am Bucknell I could see myself continuing to walk rather than drive.

Journal 5 - Elizabeth Walsh

For this week my daily challenges were to turn it off which entailed turning off lights, electronics and appliances when I am not using them to conserve energy, and to use reusable bottles to save water and disposable plastic bottles. My one time action was to switch to cold water to conserve energy. 

I enjoyed the challenges this week on top of the challenges that I had the previous week, which was meditating and daily walks. However, I think that this week trying and aiming to use reusable water bottles was really good for me. Oftentimes when I go to the gym, I find it easier to go to CVS on the way and pick up a plastic water bottle or I will purchase one at the gym because it saves time. Instead, this week I made it a point to get my reusable water bottle that I had bought and try to be conscious about filling it up rather than opting for a plastic water bottle. In regards to the potential barriers about using a reusable water bottle, at my house downtown I do not have a brita so I would be getting my water from the sink. However, with that being said, I did enjoy having a reusable water bottle to fill up throughout the day. One of the resources I read stated that the plastic binge is almost as dangerous as climate change. I had read past articles warning about the dangers of plastic, but this resource really stood out to me about how much plastic is wasted which in turn motivates me to continue to reuse a plastic bottle. 

My other daily challenge was to turn it off, which entailed turning off lights, electronics and appliances when not using them. I normally leave a light on in my room throughout the day, and at my house downtown oftentimes lights are plugged in and the kitchen light often stays on throughout the night because of how dark my house gets. This week I made it an effort to walk through my house to turn off all the lights before going to bed. Additionally, one of the resources suggested that I power down my computer. This week, I charged my computer and would turn it off instead of leaving it on throughout the night. I did see an improvement with my computer. Some of the barriers with this challenge may be that my roommates might accidentally leave lights on, or I forget to do a walk through before night. However, I am going to try to maintain this and keep it a part of my lifestyle. Another resource suggested that I use a power strip, so I can power down multiple electronic devices at once. I do have a power strip, but given the resource I am going to try to flip the switch off at night from now on. 

Lastly, my one time challenge was to switch to cold water when doing my laundry. Before, I used to only do hot water and I would separate my clothes by color because I thought it was more “clean.” I personally saw no difference with my clothes, in fact it was almost easier and less time consuming because I did not have to be as worried about colors mixing. 

Journal 4
Elizabeth Walsh

This past week my daily challenges were daily walks and daily meditation, and my one time challenge was to explore trails in the area. Daily walks were easy to incorporate into my daily routine because I live downtown, so between walking to friends houses and class I can get some exercise in. However, the weather this past week did not make this easy with the temperature and ice on Friday. With that being said, when it gets warmer out I am going to try to walk more places closer to me than drive. Walking is also related to my other challenge, meditation. When I first signed up for the meditation challenge, I thought I had to practice meditation through sounds, a video or an app. While I did try to follow a short meditation YouTube video, a lot of my meditation this week consisted of taking the time to enjoy the quiet and be alone. For example, when I put my laundry away, instead of watching TV and having the background noise, I chose to keep the room quiet. I do feel like that made a difference and it gave me more time to think. I was surprised because I realized how often I rely on background noise and how often I feel like my mind has to be stimulated by technology around me. When I was taking my walks, I tried to avoid bringing out my phone or putting headphones in and just enjoy what was around me. As for my one time challenge, I went for a hike at Dales Ridge about 10 minutes from campus. The hike is about two miles and is a beautiful hike. I really enjoyed finding a new trail and bringing friends with me to enjoy it with. After the hike, I would really like to look for new trails to explore in Lewisburg and around there. 

I enjoyed my challenges this past week and I feel as though I could easily make these changes permanent. I enjoyed taking the time to walk and think, and I did feel like it made a difference and I felt as though I was more aware of my feelings. Because these challenges were more on the simple side, I do not anticipate many barriers to making these changes. However, as for meditation, it is tempting to put the television on or play music and it does create a bad habit. It is something that I would like to stick to.