Ecochallenge.org

2020 People's Ecochallenge

October 7 - October 28, 2020

jlll gross

Saint Louis Zoo Volunteers

POINTS TOTAL

0 TODAY
0 THIS WEEK
649 TOTAL

participant impact

UP TO

24

plastic straws

not sent to the landfill
UP TO

1,574

minutes

spent exercising
UP TO

1.0

energy audit

conducted
UP TO

70

minutes

spent learning
UP TO

35

plastic containers

not sent to the landfill

jlll's actions

Action Track: Healing and Renewal

Joyful Movement

Do at Home

I will spend 60 minutes doing an activity where I'm both moving my body and enjoying myself.

COMPLETED 18
DAILY ACTIONS

Food

Advocate for Sustainable Palm Oil and Help Orangutans

Support companies that have joined the Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO). Write to your favorite companies and restaurants. Ask them to use sustainable palm oil in their products and to join the RSPO if they haven't done so already.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Food

Use the sustainable palm oil app.

Download the Cheyenne Mountain Zoo's sustainable palm oil shopping app.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Food

Buy orangutan-friendly candy this Halloween

Orangutans and many other animals are in danger due to unsustainable palm oil plantations, which destroy their forest homes. Palm oil can be found in many products—even candy! We are dedicated to caring for animals, so we encourage you to consider purchasing candy that contains sustainable palm oil. For a list of suggestions, please visit: https://www.stlzoo.org/files/9815/6985/6138/STLZoo_Candy_Guide_for_Holloween.pdf

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Simplicity

Read about sustainable living

Read a (new to you) book about sustainable living. Check the links for some suggested titles or ask a friend or fellow volunteer for a recommendation.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Waste

Use the plastic footprint calculator

Complete the 3-minute consumption calculator to find ways to balance your plastic footprint.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Waste

Use Reusable Bags

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

COMPLETED 15
DAILY ACTIONS

Nature

Support Local Pollinators

Do at Home

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

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Nature

Build a bee condo

Help a very important native pollinator - bees! Provide a nesting spot.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Nature

Watch a lecture series on climate change

The Aquarium of the Pacific has bundled a number of their past lectures on various aspects of climate change. You can pick and choose, but they have arranged them in a sequence that they believe presents a coherent picture of climate change and its impacts. Each of these lectures was presented by a leader in his/her field. See link below.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Nature

Be a litter hero

Pick up trash in your neighborhood or a local park.

COMPLETED 14
DAILY ACTIONS

Waste

Skip the Straw

Do at Home

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 18
DAILY ACTIONS

Energy

Online Energy Audit

Do at Home

I will complete an online energy audit of my home, office, or dorm room and identify my next steps for saving energy.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Food

Smart Seafood Choices

Do at Home

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

COMPLETED 13
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
Nature

Tell us about your bee condo. How else do you help native pollinators?
jlll gross 10/12/2020 5:09 PM
I've been doing some research on what plants I can plant to help butterflies and bees

Read More
- Katie Emerick 10/19/2020 11:08 AM
  Jill, I've been looking into this too. Sue, here's a resource I think is helpful from Brightside St. Louis: https://www.brightsidestl.org/what-we-do/pollinator-conservation/additional-resources/
  
  Read More
- jlll gross 10/16/2020 8:09 AM
  Sue the flowers that have grabbed my attention the most all seem to be purple so if you are interested they are Stiff leaved ester, purple cone flower, wild bergamot and the asters
  
  Read More
- Sue Hilbert 10/15/2020 4:53 AM
  Please share- I would like to plant new flowers!
  
  Read More
REFLECTION QUESTION
Food

Tell us about your experience. Who did you write to? Did you receive a response?
jlll gross 10/08/2020 10:11 AM
I downloaded the app this morning for the Cheyenne Zoo Palm Oil. Learned that one cocoanut oil I have is sustainable and the other is not. Who would have guessed - the one not is certified organic - never assume - organic does not mean sustainable. Also read up on sustainable through this app. Learned a lot. And thank heavens favorite candy is sustainable

Read More
REFLECTION QUESTION
Waste

How could you incorporate other "R's" -- reduce, reuse, refuse, repair, repurpose, etc. -- into your lifestyle?
jlll gross 10/07/2020 3:25 PM
I stopped using the straws years ago at restaurants. My friends think this is terrible because the glasses might be dirty. If they are, their drink is dirty too. For my water bottles at home or that I carry with me when out I use a reusable straw

Read More
REFLECTION QUESTION
Waste

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?
jlll gross 10/07/2020 3:22 PM
Lately depending on store - if not allowed I keep purchase in cart and then bag the items when I get to car.

Read More
REFLECTION QUESTION
Food

Many states and countries have advisories on eating fish. Find out what is advised for your region. Do you think your diet choices fall within these guidelines? What steps do you need to take to make sure that they do?
jlll gross 10/07/2020 3:11 PM
I love seafood but have mostly eaten only when out. With the state of things currently I have been learning to cook more. Mostly tilapia at this point but will experiment with others and down load the app for best choices

Read More
REFLECTION QUESTION
Action Track: Healing and Renewal

What's your favorite activity(ies) in which you experience joy while being active and moving?
jlll gross 10/07/2020 2:55 PM
I know it sounds crazy but I enjoy getting on my treadmill first thing in the morning - it has a stand for book and I always walk minimum of 70 minutes to get in my 10,000 steps a day. It gets my blood pumping and reading helps to keep my mind focused on something else

Read More
jlll gross 10/05/2020 2:19 PM
I'm excited to be doing something to help my favorite place. I have missed being and the zoo volunteering and seeing everyone else.

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