Blessing Apkarian
POINTS TOTAL
- 0 TODAY
- 0 THIS WEEK
- 6 TOTAL
Blessing's actions
Food, Agriculture, and Land Use
Zero-waste Cooking
Reduced Food Waste
I will cook 1 meal(s) with zero-waste each day
Coastal, Ocean, and Engineered Sinks
Smart Seafood Choices
Ocean Farming
I will visit seafoodwatch.org or download the app and commit to making better seafood choices for a healthier ocean.
Land Sinks
Forest-Friendly Foods 2
Tropical Forest Restoration
I will replace or remove from my current diet the palm oil, coffee, and cocoa products that are known to contribute to deforestation.
Land Sinks
Buy Bamboo
Bamboo Production
When they are available, I will purchase products made from bamboo instead of wood, plastic, or metal.
Industry
Launch a Recycling Program
Recycling
I will set up a recycling center at my workplace or school.
Industry
Go Paperless
Recycled Paper
I will reduce the amount of paper mail that I receive by 0.11lbs (0.05kg) a day or 3.3lbs (1.6kg) a month by opting into paperless billing, ending unwanted subscriptions and opting out of junk mail.
Industry
Choose Recycled Paper
Recycled Paper
I will plan ahead to only use paper products made from post-consumer recycled paper for my home or office.
Industry
Reduce Single-Use Disposables
Bioplastics
Cheap, single-use items and disposable packaging end up blowing around as litter more often in poor and BIPOC-majority neighborhoods. I will avoid buying and using 1 single-use plastics and instead replace them with durable options.
Industry
Advocate For More Packaging Options
Multiple Industry Solutions
I will advocate for alternatives to single-use packaging at local grocery stores, markets, at work, or on campus.
Industry
Learn About & Practice Sustainable Fashion
Multiple Industry Solutions
I will learn about sustainable fashion and begin trying to practice it in my own life.
Industry
Recycle Everything I Can
Recycling
Contamination prevents what is recyclable from being recycled. I will research and recycle all materials that are accepted by local haulers or drop stations in my community, making sure to not contaminate recyclables with non-recyclables.
Industry
Practice the 5 R's
Recycling
I will Practice the "5 Rs" — refuse, reduce, reuse, repurpose, and recycle — to reduce my waste more than I can with just recycling alone.
Food, Agriculture, and Land Use
Smaller Portions
Reduced Food Waste
I will use smaller plates and/or serve smaller portions when dishing out food.
Food, Agriculture, and Land Use
Reduce Animal Products
Plant-Rich Diets
I will enjoy 1 meatless or vegan meal(s) each day of the challenge.
Food, Agriculture, and Land Use
Keep Track of Wasted Food
Reduced Food Waste
I will keep a daily log of food I throw away during Earth Month Ecochallenge, either because it went bad before I ate it, I put too much on my plate, or it was scraps from food preparation.
Transportation
Improve a Bus Stop
Public Transit
I will improve a bus stop in my neighborhood by posting the stop schedule, adding seating or shelter, adding art or flowers, picking up litter, or implementing some other small improvement.
Transportation
Conduct Virtual Meetings
Telepresence
I will encourage my office to hold meetings virtually whenever possible instead of requiring travel.
Transportation
Go for a Daily Walk
Walkable Cities
I will take a walk for 30 minutes each day and take note of the infrastructure that makes walking more or less enjoyable, accessible, and possible.
Electricity
Calculate My Carbon Footprint
All Drawdown Solutions
I will calculate the greenhouse gas emissions associated with my household and consider how different lifestyle choices could reduce my negative impact on the environment.
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 QUESTIONFood, Agriculture, and Land Use Reduce Animal ProductsWhy do people in richer countries eat more meat than people in other places? How does eating more meat affect our bodies, our planet, and other people?
Blessing Apkarian 5/02/2021 1:45 PMMeat is more expensive than some plant based diets because producing meat cost more than producing plants. The meat has to eat the plants so it's basically like paying for the plants plus the meat. Eating a lot of meat can increase the risk of obesity, cancer and heart disease. Raising livestock also emits as much greenhouse gas emissions as all cars, trucks and automobiles combined, therefore, contributing heavily to Climate Change. Everyone is affected by Global Climate Change (GCC) but the global south, the ones contributing the least to GCC, are feeling the affects the most. -
REFLECTION QUESTIONFood, Agriculture, and Land Use Smaller PortionsWhile dishing food out, we tend to load our plates with more than we need. Using smaller plates helps to mitigate this. Aside from the environmental benefits, what other benefits might come from eating/serving smaller portions?
Blessing Apkarian 5/02/2021 1:36 PMOther than environmental benefits, there are important human health benefits to using a smaller plate. Some benefits are, eating less, eating slower, if you want seconds, you have to get up and walk more to get your second helping, you are more mindful of what you choose to put on your plate which would hopefully lead to healthier choices. If you are eating at home, you spend less money at the store because food lasts longer (if it's not quickly perishable). -
REFLECTION QUESTIONCoastal, Ocean, and Engineered Sinks Smart Seafood ChoicesMany 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?
Blessing Apkarian 5/01/2021 12:27 PMI believe my diet is sustainable and healthy for the planet. I make sure to only buy from shops that caught their fish in a sustainable way. Additionally, I only buy canned albacore tuna from Wild Planet who use pole & line.