Anita Roberts

What I've noticed is that I haven't taken any of the daily walks I planned this month. It's been a busy period and I just haven't prioritized it. But I can always turn over a new leaf in May! :)

What inspires me? A desire to conserve natural resources for future generations and the fact that we have only one earth to call home and we should be good stewards of it. I think many of the problems we face in terms of environmental damage are due to business leaders and governments being too short-sighted and thinking in terms of their quarterly earnings or re-election cycles rather than what's best for society at large. I get that businesses need to be profitable to continue operations, but when CEOs are being paid ~300 times as much as their employees, and then avoiding paying taxes on that income, it's not hard to see that things are skewed. I'm glad President Biden is leading on climate and I hope we can make some real progress in the coming years. So in short I'm inspired by a sense of responsibility and a bit of outrage. 

Lots of reasons come to mind: Ease of access, marketing, tradition, convenience. Western culture is very disconnected from the sources of our food. The science on the benefits and risks of eating meat seems to conflict, from what I've read, but it's clear that the environmental impact of cattle-produced methane is a real problem.  Biodigesters seem to be a way to help address that. I remember reading about how rain forests are being cleared to make room for more cattle, as if we don't have enough. That just seems crazy to me.

I will be better able to answer this question later this year when I'm more involved with direct client service, but I think I would be comfortable asking. 

In the meantime, I'm thinking it might be good to if DNV were to collaborate with climatetrace.org in some manner (if we aren't already doing so). 

I try to avoid food waste by planning meals ahead of time and sticking to a list when I shop so that I just buy what I need to make the planned menu for the week. The approach is good for my bottom line but it doesn't allow for much spontaneity. 

But to answer the question, if I had an extra $1500 sitting around it would undoubtedly go into my home improvement fund. I'm saving to build a laundry room so I can get my washer and dryer out of the garage. :)

The obvious answer here is fewer calories consumed which, in theory, if done consistently, should lead to a healthy weight (paired with a bit of exercise) and in the long run fewer health risks and associated costs. 

One of the actions I chose this year was mindful eating because it dovetails with some things I'm already doing to change my relationship with food so this reinforces what I'm trying to do. 

I have been a stress eater for as long as I can remember and that has resulted in over-eating, which led to weight gain and the whole cycle of over-eating, feeling guilty about it, and then consoling myself with food in response to that guilt. I finally reached a tipping point where that pattern was no longer acceptable to me.

For the last few months, I've been making a conscious effort to slow down and really savor the food I eat, to only eat when I'm physically hungry (not in response to emotional or environmental triggers), and to make more conscious choices about what I eat. I've been far from perfect at this but I feel like I'm learning about what triggers me and it's enabling me to make better, healthier, and more eco-friendly choices.  So now, when I start to feel the urge to eat, I'm pausing and questioning whether I'm truly hungry or if what I really need is to hydrate, or call a friend to vent, or go for a walk, or something else. This practice is helping me appreciate what I eat more and is helping me build more sustainable eating habits.