Edgar Cortes

I will write or call 1 elected official(s) telling them not to support fossil fuel subsidies and instead support wind energy generation.

I will spend at least 10 minutes learning how to properly dispose of my refrigerator, freezer, and other refrigerants at the end of their useful lives.

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

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.

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.

I will source 1 percent of my food from local producers each day. This could include signing up for a local CSA, buying from a farmer's market, visiting a food co-op, foraging with a local group, or growing my own ingredients.

I will spend at least 15 minutes researching the impact of my diet to see how it contributes to deforestation.

I will Practice the "5 Rs" — refuse, reduce, reuse, repurpose, and recycle — to reduce my waste more than I can with just recycling alone.