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Natalie Kraeske's avatar

Natalie Kraeske

UTKSUST21

POINTS TOTAL

  • 0 TODAY
  • 0 THIS WEEK
  • 661 TOTAL

participant impact

  • UP TO
    3.0
    meatless or vegan meals
    consumed
  • UP TO
    7.0
    plastic containers
    not sent to the landfill

Natalie's actions

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.

UNCOMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Industry

Calculate the carbon footprint of my household

I will calculate the carbon emissions associated with my household and consider how different lifestyle choices could reduce our carbon footprint and our impact on the environment.

UNCOMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Food, Agriculture, and Land Use

Reduce Animal Products

Plant-Rich Diets

I will enjoy 3 meatless or vegan meal(s) each day of the challenge.

COMPLETED 1
DAILY ACTION

Food, Agriculture, and Land Use

Explore Other Food, Agriculture, and Land Use Solutions

All Food, Agriculture, and Land Use Solutions

I will spend at least 25 minutes researching other Drawdown Food, Agriculture, and Land Use Solutions.

UNCOMPLETED
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 1
DAILY ACTION

Industry

Invite a friend to calculate the carbon footprint of their household

Individual actions are important, but people and organizations working together can make a real impact. I will share a carbon calculator with a friend and invite them to calculate the carbon footprint of their household.

UNCOMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

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.

UNCOMPLETED
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 17
DAILY ACTIONS

Industry

Reduce Single-Use Disposables

Bioplastics

I will avoid buying and using 3 single-use plastics and instead replace them with durable options.

COMPLETED 3
DAILY ACTIONS

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.

COMPLETED 12
DAILY ACTIONS

Industry

Learn about the impact of old refrigerants

I will spend 20 minute(s) learning about the climate impact of refrigerants and what climate-friendly refrigerants are by using the links provided

UNCOMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Industry

Learn about Carbon Offsets

I will visit Tradewater’s website to learn more about carbon offsets, and why they are a necessary solution in combating a climate crisis.

UNCOMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Industry

Find a Local Climate-Friendly Supermarket

Refrigerant Management

I will explore the interactive map in the links below to find a supermarket that does not use HFC refrigerants near my home.

UNCOMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Industry

Listen to the Planet Money Podcast – “Sell Me Your Climate Bombs”

Planet Money recently interviewed the co-founders of Tradewater to learn about the dangerous impact that old refrigerants have on our environment. I will listen to the podcast to learn more about this necessary solution in fighting a climate crisis.

UNCOMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Industry

Research the Climate Impact of Refrigerants

Refrigerant Management

I will spend 20 minute(s) learning about the climate impact of refrigerants and what climate-friendly refrigerants are by using the links below.

UNCOMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Industry

Properly Dispose of Refrigerants

Refrigerant Management

I will spend at least 15 minutes learning how to properly dispose of my refrigerator, freezer, and other refrigerants at the end of their useful lives.

UNCOMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Industry

Research Cement Alternatives

Alternative Cement

I will spend at least 15 minutes researching cement alternatives that reduce the carbon footprint of concrete.

UNCOMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Industry

Launch a Recycling Program

Recycling

I will set up a recycling center at my workplace or school.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Participant Feed

  • REFLECTION QUESTION
    Industry
    How can you take your commitment to sustainable living beyond yourself? How can you, personally, work toward broader change?

    Natalie Kraeske's avatar
    Natalie Kraeske 4/21/2021 2:31 PM
    My career goal is essentially to promote sustainability and sustainable lifestyles beyond just myself. My attempt to improve recycling in my apartment building is a step in the right direction for me to expand sustainable living beyond just myself. In the future, I would like to be a part of marketing campaigns aimed to promote sustainability or improve some aspect of it. 

  • Natalie Kraeske's avatar
    Natalie Kraeske 4/21/2021 2:28 PM
    I am technically in the process of launching a recycling program, but I have a project underway to. Over the past few months, I have been working with an employee at the apartment I currently live to set up some sort of recycling for the residents. Currently, the building does not have a recycling system in place, but residents can take their own recycle to the public dropoff. However, I know that many people might not think to do this, as it is a little inconvenient. My plan is to give people their own personal bins to use to take to the dropoff. I would love for there to be recycling pickup at the apartment building, but that is a big task, so right now, I am in the process of a slow plan to improve recycling at my apartment building.
  • REFLECTION QUESTION
    Industry
    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?

    Natalie Kraeske's avatar
    Natalie Kraeske 4/21/2021 2:07 PM
    I could further incorporate the five R's into my lifestyle by reducing my takeout food and drink consumption. I am decently strict on how sustainably I live, but I could always improve. The thought of going farther with implementing the five R's makes me excited because I take it as a personal challenge and always try to improve. I have improved my personal sustainability a lot in the past couple years by composting, using less plastic by incorporating zero waste products into my life, reducing what I buy and trying to reduce food waste, going vegetarian, and more. I really try to incorporate the 5 R's into my daily life, but could always improve.

  • Natalie Kraeske's avatar
    Natalie Kraeske 4/21/2021 2:02 PM
    I make an effort to recycle everything I can and practice the 5 R's on a daily basis, and the ecochallenge has helped me even further on this. I take my roommate and I's recycling to the dropoff center once a week if not more, and it feels good to be making an effort to improve recycling. 

  • Natalie Kraeske's avatar
    Natalie Kraeske 4/21/2021 1:56 PM
    I went on a weekend trip to a vacation home where there was no recycling pickup or drop-off, and I made the conscious effort to bring a bag for recycling.  I feel like this effort was a good way to show that I am impacted by my Eco-Challenge, as I made a point to recycle everything I could.

  • Natalie Kraeske's avatar
    Natalie Kraeske 4/20/2021 6:27 AM
    My posts are delayed, but throughout the time, I made a more conscious effort to recycle, more than I already did. I have a roommate who is not used to recycling, and I find myself looking at the trash to make sure nothing recyclable is in there; if there is, I pull it out, wash it, and put it in the recycling bin.