Earth Month Ecochallenge: Drawdown

April 1 - April 30, 2021

Terry Tarr

CSU Channel Islands (CSUCI)

"To be more ECO for EKHO"

POINTS TOTAL

0 TODAY
0 THIS WEEK
581 TOTAL

participant impact

UP TO

450

gallons of water

have been saved
UP TO

435

minutes

spent learning
UP TO

50

minutes

spent outdoors
UP TO

1.0

person

helped
UP TO

1.0

public official or leader

contacted

Terry's actions

Health and Education

Learn about the Need for Family Planning

Health and Education

I will spend at least 15 minutes learning more about the need for family planning globally.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Buildings

Existing Building Reuse and Reno Study

Goal - to explore the potential of an existing vacant building for reuse or demolition - with preference for reuse; the decision is optional depending on what is established for goals for the project. I will push for less demo and more reno. I chose this because I have an opportunity to promote reuse as the most sustainable option but must convince others who may see programmatic need for newer larger buildings instead. Hoping for incremental gains at least. :)

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

Electricity

Explore Other Electricity Solutions

All Electricity Solutions

I will spend at least 30 minutes researching other Drawdown Electricity Solutions.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Electricity

Earth Hour

Turn off the lights for one hour on April 20th from 8-9pm.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Buildings

Explore Other Buildings Solutions

All Buildings Solutions

I will spend at least 30 minutes researching other Drawdown Buildings Solutions.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Buildings

Replace Manual Thermostats

Smart Thermostats

I will replace manual thermostats with smart ones.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Buildings

Install a Low-Flow Showerhead

Low-Flow Fixtures

I will save up to 15 gallons (56 L) of water a day or 450 gallons (1,680 L) a month by installing a low-flow showerhead.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Buildings

Research Heat Pumps

High-Efficiency Heat Pumps

I will spend at least 25 minutes researching heat pumps to see if installing one makes sense for my home/building.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Action Track: Accelerating Solutions

Choose Renewable Energy or Purchase Renewable Energy Credits

Onshore Wind Turbines, Utility-Scale Solar Photovoltaics

I will sign up for my utility company's clean/renewable energy option. If my utility does not offer one, I will purchase Renewable Energy Credits to match my usage.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Land Sinks

Habitat deed restriction land

Goal is to request to USACE designation of deeded habitat area of .1 acre to protect specific species of plants and animals known to the area alongside a creek-bed. This will add to the existing protected area between the creek and the adjacent mountain.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Land Sinks

Learn about Temperate Forests

Temperate Forest Restoration

I will spend at least 30 minutes learning more about the environmental services provided by and the environmental issues affecting temperate forests.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Land Sinks

Explore My Area

Sometimes protecting nature requires feeling connected to nature. I will invest 30 minutes in exploring and appreciating a natural area in my region, whether a forest, wetland, coastal area, or somewhere else.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Transportation

Research and Consider Switching to a Hybrid or Electric Vehicle

Electric Cars, Hybrid Cars

I will spend at least 30 minutes researching and weighing my options to see if a hybrid or electric vehicle makes sense for my lifestyle.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Transportation

Conduct Virtual Meetings

Telepresence

I will encourage my office to hold meetings virtually whenever possible instead of requiring travel.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Food, Agriculture, and Land Use

Learn the Truth About Expiration Dates

Reduced Food Waste

I will spend at least 20 minutes learning how to differentiate between sell by, use by, and best by dates.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Industry

Research Cement Alternatives

Alternative Cement

I will spend at least 20 minutes researching cement alternatives that reduce the carbon footprint of concrete.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Transportation

Explore Other Transportation Solutions

All Transportation Solutions

I will spend at least 30 minutes researching other Drawdown Transportation Solutions.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Transportation

Express My Support For Equitable Biking Infrastructure

Bicycle Infrastructure

I will find out who in my city makes decisions that impact bike routes and express my support for better biking infrastructure.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Food, Agriculture, and Land Use

Give a Microloan

Sustainable Intensification for Smallholders

I will give 1 microloan(s) to women who need help starting a business.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Electricity

Learn More About Geothermal Energy

Geothermal Power

I will spend at least 25 minutes learning more about the energy generation potential of geothermal energy and consider investing in this technology.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Action Track: Climate Resilience

Plant Trees

Temperate Forest Restoration

I will plant 1 tree(s) in my community, public parks, or backyard.

UNCOMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Action Track: Climate Resilience

Learn More about Silvopasture

Silvopasture

I will spend at least 25 minutes watching videos and/or reading about the environmental benefits of silvopasture.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Action Track: Climate Resilience

Advocate for Solar Installation

Distributed Solar Photovoltaics

I will create a plan to and advocate for solar installation at my business, apartment building, or campus.

COMPLETED
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?

REFLECTION QUESTION
Transportation Research and Consider Switching to a Hybrid or Electric Vehicle

Reducing (or eliminating) exhaust emissions and improving public health are two benefits of green vehicles. What other motivators inspire you to consider switching to a more fuel-efficient vehicle?

Terry Tarr 4/22/2021 10:06 AM

In the process of studying this topic, I also realized that there are some amazing electric bikes out there - fabulous changes in last 5 years really. Given our incredible weather in SoCal I am considering that as an alternative too. If I can get one that can offer 25mph speed instead of 18-20 of the past, I can get to work almost as fast as in my car assuming I can find a good safe route - that may be a challenge!! The savings on parking costs alone would amortize the purchase and upkeep, plus the savings on fuel would stay in the pocket :), and reduction in emissions would be excellent!! I could keep my cool car and just drive it infrequently instead of commuting daily, drive it when it rains.

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REFLECTION QUESTION
Electricity Earth Hour

How was your experience with the lights out? Did you find that it changed your normal habits?

Terry Tarr 4/21/2021 3:26 PM

Well I turned off almost all the lights on the 20th. I did have a task I was working on and left one 15w lamp on so I could do that task - does that count against me? I don't work well in the dark - ha! Normal habits were pretty much same, I often have the house pretty dim, and use my cell phone to avoid running into things in dark rooms - wonder what my neighbors think... ha! so that was not much different although I had to move a bit slower.

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Terry Tarr 4/16/2021 4:18 PM

Work load doesn't seem to let me log in daily, but feel good about what I have learned at least. Some action steps have occurred. I still need to go get a tree to plant :). My last tree I planted was a guava tree - produced over 150 in year 3 - amazing!! and fun to eat what I grow - and has more than paid for itself!!

Read More
- Roxane Beigel-Coryell 4/20/2021 8:27 AM
  
  What a generous guava tree! There is nothing like harvesting food you've grown yourself. I'm not much of a gardener, but whenever I get to pick produce from my trees or cut kale from the garden it is so fulfilling and I feel like I enjoy the food more knowing where it came from.
  
  Read More
REFLECTION QUESTION
Coastal, Ocean, and Engineered Sinks Smart Seafood Choices

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?

Terry Tarr 4/16/2021 4:14 PM

I don't often eat seafood, but when I do... actually for the occasions when I do order seafood, I will now be more careful to consider where it is coming from, how it is caught, is it a sustainable fishery, or should I skip it and order something else? I have noticed that more restaurants post information, but I don't know if iit is trustworthy - but at least shows some consciousness about the topic.

Read More
REFLECTION QUESTION
Buildings Install a Low-Flow Showerhead

What would a sustainable water future in your region look like? What needs to change?

Terry Tarr 4/15/2021 12:48 PM

btw: City of Oxnard was offering free low flow shower heads, faucet aerators, and plant soil sensors so you know when to water and not to. Easy - just place order online and drop by to pick them up. Love it!! Now to sustainable water future: Less lawn, more groundcover and that also saves on energy and pollution by avoiding mowing. Everyone changing out their fixtures to low flow - helps if organizations subsidize this for low income areas, but also requires knowledge/info dissemination or many people don't know about wasting. Teach "if it's yellow let it mellow, if it's brown send it down" to all the kids in households - saves a ton of water if a family agrees to only flush urine about every 3rd or 4th usage, and announce "I'm gonna flush" and maybe someone else will urinate before flushing - one more gallon saved!! Urine is almost sterile - it does have a smell of course so some people object. We've done this for years and save many gallons per day this way. Avoid hosing to clean exterior as much as possible - just live with more dust like 80% of the world does that can't hose due to lack of water. If you have a reverse osmosis water filter instead of running it into the drain, divert the pipe to outside and it will fill a barrel of water that can be used to water plants. More rainwater capture for plants, and a barrel of water also acts as a reservoir for an emergency if the water gets turned off due to pumps out, or grid problems, etc. :)

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REFLECTION QUESTION
Action Track: Accelerating Solutions Choose Renewable Energy or Purchase Renewable Energy Credits

Your utility company is able to tell you your average energy usage. Ask them how your energy usage compares to others in your ZIP code, region, and/or state. What other steps can you take each day to reduce your electricity usage?

Terry Tarr 4/15/2021 12:30 PM

Long ago changed to fluorescent over incandescent, but now as they burn out am replacing with LEDs for better efficiency. I removed the grass in my front yard (not that much but something) and replaced with ground cover and other plants - much more beautiful, more green and colorful, some flowers, etc. and it uses 1/5th the water (in turn saves energy too), now no mower needed (although I had an electric). Changed thermostat to programmable so heat runs less often as it now has "away" and "sleep" cycles with lower temp setting - saves gas and electricity :). In summer use fans - could install AC cooling but have avoided that. Added solar motion area exterior lighting - now we leave the old wall lights off and avoid forgetting to turn them off before bed (down side is embedded energy to produce them, and don't know how long the batteries will last - hopefully may years).

Read More
REFLECTION QUESTION
Transportation Express My Support For Equitable Biking Infrastructure

What do you like most about biking in your city? What would you like to improve?

Terry Tarr 4/15/2021 12:19 PM

Wide bike lanes where they exist are adequate but rarely used it appears. Road speeds are quite high so there is some concern about traffic. The biggest concern regarding improvement is connectivity, i.e. there are some roads with good bike lanes, others with none, and no connectivity between towns in some locations. When using bike mapping (like Google) the route may be there, but if one has to go several miles out of the way to get to destination, the selection ends up being short route without a bike path if it is too long or inadequate time to take the longer route. Safety is compromised for speed. When a bike route crosses back and forth from one side to the other of a freeway for instance, it can be 3 miles of route to make 1 mile of progress at times.

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Terry Tarr 4/12/2021 9:41 AM

Interesting weekend. On a property I own, there is a previous house foundation (burned down 15 years ago - I bought only a year ago) my intention is to build a new house reusing the old concrete slab and some masonry walls that did not burn (rather than demolish and landfill). They did not demolish the 2 fireplace 2 story chimney but it does not meet today's fire code, nor would I put in a fireplace in today's world, so I started demolition of that. Taking it down brick by brick I discovered that about 1/2 the bricks chip off intact. So I will re-use them to make a patio area. The broken pieces I will try to bury in the backfill around a new foundation so none go into landfill. The concrete masonry pieces I intend to crush and use as aggregate in the new foundations.

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REFLECTION QUESTION
Action Track: Climate Resilience Advocate for Solar Installation

How does advocating for rooftop solar connect to your values? How might you be able to get others involved in advocating for the shift to clean energy?

Terry Tarr 4/07/2021 2:51 PM

By recommending rooftop solar in small increments, in spite of not being viable for most of the campus roofs, we can not only provide incremental renewable power, but provide the right optics for the campus and student demands. In addition to PV I am recommending on our next project we provide a solar hot water heating system. Both could become living lab opportunities and part of a tour that students could take to see systems in operatation here on campus. This fits my values as an architect to a T - we studied these possibilities when I was in college - but the technology simply was not viable enough yet, but it certainly is now, and we have great opportunities ahead!!

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REFLECTION QUESTION
Land Sinks Explore My Area

How can spending more time outdoors enhance your sense of place -- your deep knowledge of and appreciation for your surroundings?

Terry Tarr 4/07/2021 11:09 AM

Hearing and observing the birds in a habitat area adjacent to a solar farm project and learning the boundaries of the habitat and relationship to the adjacent wetlands gave me a renewed appreciation for the need to protect. It is also interesting to ponder the technology directly adjacent to habitat and how those might work together in some way, the conflicts that presents, and how can we find a balance between human energy needs and protecting wildlife - this is not an easy task.

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