Earth Month Ecochallenge: Drawdown

April 1 - April 30, 2021

Terry Morgan

Deloitte Chicago

POINTS TOTAL

0 TODAY
0 THIS WEEK
723 TOTAL

participant impact

UP TO

1.0

documentary

watched
UP TO

125

minutes

spent learning

Terry's actions

Land Sinks

Buy Bamboo

Bamboo Production

When they are available, I will purchase products made from bamboo instead of wood, plastic, or metal.

UNCOMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Land Sinks

Forest-Friendly Foods 1

Tropical Forest Restoration

I will spend at least 10 minutes researching the impact of my diet to see how it contributes to deforestation.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Electricity

Watch a Video about Methane Digesters

Methane Digesters

I will watch a video about methane digesters (also commonly known as anaerobic digesters).

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

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.

COMPLETED 4
DAILY ACTIONS

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 5 single-use plastics and instead replace them with durable options.

COMPLETED 0
DAILY ACTIONS

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.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

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.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

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.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Health and Education

Explore the Deloitte WorldClimate Hub

Spend 15 minutes browsing the new World Climate Hub website, hosted by Deloitte US Sustainability!

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Food, Agriculture, and Land Use

Smaller Portions

Reduced Food Waste

I will use smaller plates and/or serve smaller portions when dishing out food.

COMPLETED 5
DAILY ACTIONS

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.

COMPLETED 3
DAILY ACTIONS

Health and Education

Get your family involved in greening the dot!

If you have kids at home, encourage them to create a logo for Deloitte NPSI using scrap paper and any crayons, markers, or materials you have in your home. Email a photo of the final product to Emma Howe (emhowe@deloitte.com) for a chance to be featured in our Earth Month recap email and potential future internal communications!

UNCOMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Land Sinks

Sign up for Plant Your Change

Sign up for Plant Your Change to round up your purchases and plant one tree for every transaction on your personal credit card. Link to sign up found below!

UNCOMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Health and Education

Explore the Deloitte World Climate Hub

Spend 15 minutes browsing the new World Climate Hub website, hosted by Deloitte US Sustainability! Link to be added soon.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Health and Education

Donate to the NPSI Earth Month Giving Campaign

NPSI will be hosting a month-long giving campaign during April. Donate via the NPSI philanthropy cloud website linked below!

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Health and Education

Attend the NPSI Intersections Panel on April 28th

On Wednesday, April 28th, Deloitte NPSI is hosting a panel with senior leaders at the firm to discuss the intersections between climate, health and justice. Invite to be added soon!

UNCOMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Transportation

Stay on the Ground

Telepresence, High-Speed Rail

Instead of traveling by plane, I will find an alternative way to accomplish the goals of an upcoming trip (i.e. telepresence, vacation locally).

UNCOMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

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.

UNCOMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

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?

Terry Morgan 4/28/2021 1:59 PM

Today was a little out of my control which made me unable to attend the NPSI Intersections Panel that was scheduled for today.

Read More
REFLECTION QUESTION
Land Sinks Forest-Friendly Foods 1

How is your diet currently impacting deforestation? What can you do to decrease your negative impact and increase your positive impact?

Terry Morgan 4/22/2021 8:38 AM

My coffee is purchased from organizations that state they source their coffees in a sustainable manner (Starbucks, Roast2Order, a local company). While I still eat meat, it is less often (4-5 times/month). My foods are mainly plant based. I also consume less dairy. When purchasing meat or eggs, I tend to pay more because I want to purchase from places that treat their animals as humanely as possible.

Read More
REFLECTION QUESTION
Industry Reduce Single-Use Disposables

What single-use items (e.g. straws, coffee cups, vegetable bags, plastic bags) do you regularly use? What could be substituted instead?

Terry Morgan 4/19/2021 2:13 PM

Before work at home life began, I would purchase my coffee in a single use cup. That is less often now as I make coffee at home. I usually refuse plastic straws when I get the occasional Frappuccino as I have reusable silicone straws with me. I have reusable bags for produce but if I forget them, I buy my produce without the plastic bags offered in the store. When reusable grocery bags are allowed, I will use mine again. Only 1 store (Trader Joe's) has welcomed back the reusable bags. If I only need a few items at a store like Target, I use self-check out and put everything in a large tote bag that I bring with me.

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REFLECTION QUESTION
Industry Recycle Everything I Can

How could you incorporate other "R's" -- reduce, reuse, refuse, repair, repurpose, etc. -- into your lifestyle? How does considering implementing these "R's" make you feel?

Terry Morgan 4/19/2021 1:52 PM

What a challenge to incorporate the "R's" into my everyday life! Since being home and ordering more items online, I am striving to reuse or recycle any packaging and boxes that my items come in. I save bubble wrap to use for packing and sending items. Some items come in plastic bags which I save and use in other ways like giving friends produce from my garden. I also save the brown wrapping papers from my Grove orders to wrap glass items before tossing them in the recycle bin. I save coffee grounds and egg shells in plastic ice cream or yogurt containers to add to my garden. I am now going to use some of the larger plastic tubs from yogurt, ice cream or condiment jars for re-growing green onions, celery and romaine before finally tossing them in the recycle bin. Small steps taken to use plastic items as much as possible. As grocery stores allow reusable bags again, I keep mine handy and have even purchased net bags for produce so I don't need extra bags at the store. I also inform the bagger to use fewer plastic bags when packing my groceries. At Target, I bring a large tote bag and use self-check out so I don't use their bags very often.

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REFLECTION QUESTION
Industry Learn About & Practice Sustainable Fashion

How can you express your personality, creativity, and values in ways that don't require fast fashion or buying more clothes and accessories?

Terry Morgan 4/16/2021 1:47 PM

Fashion has always been one of my interests. I like to mix pieces and add accessories to change the look. What works for me is to buy classic styles that are of high quality. It's a little embarrassing, but I have jackets, boots and accessories that are 20+ years old, yet are in good condition. I tend to buy solid shades vs. patterns that might look dated. Some pieces like black capris or a black skirt never seem to go out of style. The key is to buy quality items so you are not always replacing them and to take care of what you own. Another thing I do is wash in cold water and often hang items to dry instead of using the dryer. It helps my clothes to last longer.

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Terry Morgan 4/05/2021 2:12 PM

In honor of Earth Month, I decided to take a plastic bag (and gloves) with me when I have time and take a walk around the neighborhood specifically to pick up any trash. It doesn't take long to fill a bag! One evening as I was making my rounds at the entrance of our subdivision a man on his walk saw me picking up trash and assisted me with a few additional pieces along his way. I felt good about his gesture and hope I raised some awareness in the process that he would do on his own some other time too.

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- Sophia Paul 4/09/2021 1:24 PM
  
  Love this - a great way to inspire others to do the same through your good works!
  
  Read More
Terry Morgan 4/02/2021 2:32 PM

Today I explored the Deloitte World Climate Hub site and took the quiz. I scored 38% so I have some work to do. I'll start by making sure any unused appliances are not plugged in and using natural light vs. electricity during the day.

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REFLECTION QUESTION
Food, Agriculture, and Land Use Smaller Portions

While 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?

Terry Morgan 4/01/2021 7:24 AM

Using smaller plates will also give you an added health benefit of eating fewer calories and stretching your food a little further. When I cook and make too large a meal, I can freeze it or save a portion for leftovers when I don't have time to cook.

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REFLECTION QUESTION
Food, Agriculture, and Land Use Keep Track of Wasted Food

An average American throws out about 240 lbs of food per year. The average family of four spends $1,500 a year on food that they throw out. How would you rather use this money?

Terry Morgan 4/01/2021 7:17 AM

Wasting on average $1,500 a year on food is a staggering amount of money!! Just think what you could do with that money instead - take a vacation, improve your home, donate to a worthy cause.

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