Ecochallenge.org

Campus Ecochallenge 2021

April 1 - April 21, 2021

Amber McGarvey

Dickinson Green Devils 2021

Points Total

0 Today
0 This Week
699 Total

Participant Impact

up to

18

locally sourced meals

consumed
up to

32

meatless or vegan meals

consumed
up to

23

organic meals

consumed
up to

232

pounds of CO2

have been saved
up to

160

gallons of water

have been saved
up to

370

minutes

spent exercising
up to

1.0

advocacy actions

completed
up to

21

conversations

with people
up to

85

minutes

spent outdoors
up to

171

minutes

spent learning

Amber's Actions

Action Track: Healing & Renewal

Go For A Daily Walk Outside

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

COMPLETED 12
DAILY ACTIONS

Transportation

Choose a Carbon Offset

If buying a plane ticket, I will also buy a carbon offset.

Completed
One-Time Action

Nature

Explore My Area

I will explore at least one new hiking trail or nature walk in my area.

Completed
One-Time Action

Nature

Support Local Pollinators

At least 30% of crops and 90% of flowering plants rely on pollinators to produce fruit. I will spend 15 minutes researching which plants support local native pollinators and plant some in my yard or local community garden.

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 8
DAILY ACTIONS

Water

Eco-friendly Gardening

I will plant native species, landscape with water-efficient plants, and use eco-friendly fertilizers.

Completed
One-Time Action

Community

Talk To My Friends and Classmates

I will decide which social or environmental issue in my community is most important to me and tell 10 friends and/or classmates each day about the issue.

COMPLETED 6
DAILY ACTIONS

Community

Support Native Communities

I will use the resource links provided below and spend 15 minutes learning about the native populations that lived in my area prior to colonization, and what I can do to support those that still exist.

Completed
One-Time Action

Community

Support A Sharing Economy

I will create or support a sharing economy with family, friends, neighbors, or classmates.

COMPLETED 5
DAILY ACTIONS

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?

Uncompleted
One-Time Action

Health

Happiness

I will write down three things every day that I am grateful for, or send one email every day thanking or praising someone.

COMPLETED 3
DAILY ACTIONS

Food

Try a New Way to Prep

I will try a new method of food preparation, such as canning, pickling, or baking bread.

Completed
One-Time Action

Food

Smart Seafood Choices

I will visit seafoodwatch.org or download the app and commit to making better seafood choices for a healthier ocean.

COMPLETED 2
DAILY ACTIONS

Food

Locally-Sourced Meals

I will source 2 meal(s) each day from local producers.

COMPLETED 10
DAILY ACTIONS

Food

Choose Organic Ingredients

I will enjoy 3 meal(s) cooked with organic ingredients each day.

COMPLETED 12
DAILY ACTIONS

Food

Reduce Animal Products

I will enjoy 2 meatless meal(s) and/or 1 vegan meal(s) each day this week.

COMPLETED 11
DAILY ACTIONS

Waste

Advocate For More Food Packaging Options

I will advocate for alternatives to single-use packaging at local grocery stores, markets, at work, or on campus to reduce pollution in the environment and in local communities.

Completed
One-Time Action

Waste

RESEARCH LOCAL WASTE SITES

I will spend 15 minutes finding out where landfills and/or toxic waste sites are situated in my region and which communities are most impacted by these sites.

Completed
One-Time Action

Action Track: Healing & Renewal

Practice Gratitude for Earth

I will spend 5 minute(s) per day outside, practicing gratitude (prayer, meditation, journaling, etc.) for Earth and my natural surroundings.

COMPLETED 7
DAILY ACTIONS

Action Track: Healing & Renewal

Engage In Active Listening

I will practice actively listening to a friend, family member, co-worker, acquaintance, or someone who I may disagree with in at least 3 conversations.

Completed
One-Time Action

Action Track: Healing & Renewal

Research Restorative Justice

I will spend 30 minutes learning about restorative justice and conflict resolution opportunities in my own community or state.

Uncompleted
One-Time Action

Feed

Reflection Question
Waste RESEARCH LOCAL WASTE SITES

In what neighborhoods or areas of your region are landfills or other waste sites located? Which communities are most affected by these locations?

Amber McGarvey 4/21/2021 1:11 PM

I found the EPA website to be very surprising since huge swaths of my city had good environmental indicators. I had more luck comparing those results to the state version of an environmental indicators mapping tool and that was more helpful since it broke it down at a more detailed level. https://oehha.ca.gov/calenviroscreen/report/draft-calenviroscreen-40
There are many waste recovery sites and industrial sites located near the local Air Force Base which was interesting to me.

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Reflection Question
Community Support A Sharing Economy

What benefits does a sharing economy offer to your own life? What benefits does it offer to your neighbors' and community members' lives?

Amber McGarvey 4/21/2021 12:55 PM

I am very into sharing economies and mutual aid. I love the idea that everything someone could need already exists in the world, and alternative distribution systems such as sharing economies can get that resource to that individual in a way that is free and impactful on the earth since it reduces the amount of virgin resources used. I enjoy the idea of "we help us" and communities supporting and strengthening eachother.

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Reflection Question
Food Locally-Sourced Meals

If you were to only eat what is in season locally from now on, what would be the most difficult food item for you to give up? Why?

Amber McGarvey 4/21/2021 12:34 PM

If I was only to eat what is season locally from now on, the hardest to give up would be coffee. I did some research and coffee is only harvested once a year depending on what side of the equator the producer is on. This leads me to believe that some of my coffee is from different parts of the country depending on year. I am fortunate to have a farmer owned coffee cooperative nearby that I can visit to find exactly which country the current coffee is coming from. Otherwise, I feel fortunate that almost all of my fruit and veggie diet is impacted by seasonality. I only eat summer squash in the summer, only eat spaghetti squash in the winter, only pomegranates in the winter; peaches in the summer. Okay, I thought of one other thing that would be hard to give up: LEMONS. As a kid I thought they were summer fruit but a few years ago I learned citrus season is in the winter!

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Reflection Question
Transportation Choose a Carbon Offset

A round-trip flight from New York City to Los Angeles emits just over 1.5 tons of CO2—per person. That’s a lot of carbon! What can you do to reduce the number of flights you take per year?

Amber McGarvey 4/21/2021 11:15 AM

COVID-19 helped reduce the number of flights I took. While it's a bummer to not see my family for the holidays, it gave me the opportunity to spend more time in my local area and have very relaxing, non-rushed holidays.

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Reflection Question
Water Eco-friendly Gardening

What are the most prominent water concerns in your area? Examples include drought, flooding, pollution, access, security, and privatization.

Amber McGarvey 4/20/2021 2:46 PM

Drought is a huge issue in the Central Valley of CA. We also find ourselves in a drought-flood cycle. Wildfires destroy brush and other small plants, drought prevents them from regrowing, but then some winters have very heavy rains, which cause flooding especially in wildfire-scarred land where there is erosion and burn scars that exacerbate flooding and run-off. I've been learning about native plants, beyond just drought tolerant plants for the past few years. Yarrow is one I tried to plant in my garden which unfortunately died. In my community garden we have a lot of success with California Poppy and Lupine.

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Reflection Question
Nature Support Local Pollinators

Why is it important to take care of pollinators?

Amber McGarvey 4/13/2021 8:22 PM

I purchased calendula and allysum from local farm stands to plant in my garden and attract pollinators. I also released native lady bugs this past week as a natural form of pest control as lady bugs eat aphids that terrorize many of my plants like lettuce and kale. Some of the plants that natural attract lady bugs also attract bees so it's beneficial in multiple ways. I already had parsley in my garden which showed up on many lists of plants that ladybugs love so that was convenient. After observing the lady bugs for a week I can say from experience they seemed to really love celery as well!

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Reflection Question
Community Talk To My Friends and Classmates

What makes you feel connected to your campus, your neighbors, or another kind of community in your life?

Amber McGarvey 4/06/2021 11:11 AM

When my neighbors share food with each other or leave notes and signs on their sidewalk for other neighbors to appreciate!

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- Neil Leary 4/06/2021 1:42 PM
  
  Hey Amber, that's wonderful that you are connected with your neighbors like this!
  
  Read More