TAYLOR SCHAFFER

Blue and Gold Greenies

POINTS TOTAL

0 TODAY
0 THIS WEEK
120 TOTAL

participant impact

UP TO

300

minutes

spent learning

TAYLOR's actions

Transportation

Go for a Daily Walk

Walkable Cities

I will take a walk for 15 minutes each day and take note of the infrastructure that makes walking more or less enjoyable, accessible, and possible.

COMPLETED 0
DAILY ACTIONS

Food, Agriculture, and Land Use

Learn the Truth About Expiration Dates

Reduced Food Waste

I will spend at least 30 minutes learning how to differentiate between sell by, use by, and best by dates.

UNCOMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Industry

Launch a Recycling Program

Recycling

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

UNCOMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Action Track: Healing & Renewal

Eat Mindfully

I will eat all of my meals without distractions, e.g., phone, computer, TV, or newspaper.

COMPLETED 0
DAILY ACTIONS

Transportation

Explore Other Transportation Solutions

All Transportation Solutions

I will spend at least 60 minutes researching other Drawdown Transportation Solutions.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Transportation

Go by Bike

Bicycle Infrastructure

I will commute by bike 3 mile(s) each day and avoid sending up to (___) lbs of CO2 into Earth's atmosphere.

COMPLETED 0
DAILY ACTIONS

Food, Agriculture, and Land Use

Reduce Animal Products

Plant-Rich Diets

I will enjoy 1 meatless or vegan meal(s) each day of the challenge.

COMPLETED 0
DAILY ACTIONS

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 0
DAILY ACTIONS

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
Action Track: Healing & Renewal Eat Mindfully

Mindful eating is healthier for us than eating with distractions. How does your eating experience differ when practicing mindfulness?

TAYLOR SCHAFFER 6/07/2023 8:31 PM

I rarely go on my phone when I eat because I know that I am not mindful and I do not enjoy food as much this way. However, I do always eat with my friends and talking to them serves as a distraction. Although it is very fun to sit and chat with them, I notice that I eat more because I just shove food down my throat in between stories and jokes. I focus more on the conversation than the food, and overeat and do not taste the flavors as much because my mind is elsewhere. When I eat alone, I do not find it as enjoyable because I feel lonely and kind of awkward, but I am able to focus more on what I am eating, so there are tradeoffs, and I am searching to find balance somewhere in between.

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REFLECTION QUESTION
Industry Launch a Recycling Program

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

TAYLOR SCHAFFER 6/07/2023 8:12 PM

In my 4 person dorm room, we collect so much trash like Amazon boxes, snack wrappers, paper cups, we have to tack out the trashcan almost every day. We normally just toss it all into the garbage dumpster outside our room, but recently, we have used an old grocery bag as our makeshift recycling bin. This has been good because we are recycling, and it also saves us trips down to the dumpster because we now take the time to deconstruct boxes and fold them up before we dispose of them which saves a lot of space. I think recycling bins are very important for living sustainably and I am happy to see them all over our campus. Next year when I live in a real apartment, I want to have a compost bin as well to properly dispose of food waste.

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- Talulla Chow 6/07/2023 11:02 PM
  
  Hi Taylor! I too live in a dorm room and was having difficulty thinking of ways to improve recycling in the dorms, but I love your idea of repurposing an old grocery bag as a recycling bin. Not only is it promoting reusing, but it shows that we can all take action, no matter what living arrangements we're in!
  
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TAYLOR SCHAFFER 6/06/2023 8:08 PM

Something I have done a way better job of this quarter is walking or using my electric scooter for short trips. My friends and I used to drive into Westwood to grab just a couple grocery items a few times a week, and all of these trips add up and create a large carbon footprint, even though Westwood is less than a mile away, but this is exactly why it is avoidable! We try to walk when we have the energy, but often times we are tired and we use our electric scooters to make the trip. It is nice because then we do not have to worry about parking in Westwood which is always a pain, and getting fresh air is always great, so this has been a change I have really enjoyed!

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TAYLOR SCHAFFER 6/04/2023 7:01 PM

I decided this week that I would commit to eating smaller portion sizes to reduce waste. In the dining hall, I find I get very excited with so many options, so I run around B Plate right when I get there and get one of everything to be able to experience it all. However, I end up only having a few bites of everything, and throw away half of what I got which is extremely wasteful. Instead, I have been looking at menus before and deciding what foods I want to get my hands on, grab a couple plates and eat those before venturing to something else if I still want more food. Being intentional about my portion sizes to reduce waste I find also makes meals more enjoyable because I am not so excited to move on to the next thing, I am able to focus on what I have in front of me one thing at a time.

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- Lisbeth Rodriguez 6/05/2023 2:29 PM
  
  Hi!
  OMG I could not relate to this more. My freshman year I definitely overindulged in all the different options at every dining hall. Especially since I had direct access to the DeNeve, my choices were limitless. I would often get a burger, a slice of pizza, a salad (have to have balance), and desert of course. I would take about 3 bites of the burger, eat half of the fries, leave the pizza crust, leave half of the salad, and take dessert to go. Like you, I realized how wasteful others and myself were being every time I dropped off my dishes at the washing station. There would be other plates that looked like mine; half eaten burger, leftover pizza. I think what helped me was realizing that certain menu items would be back at a later time so there was no need to treat the food as if it would never return. When I realized that, I prioritized what I wanted to get and saw myself finishing my meals too. Yay for us being more conscientious about our life choices and how they affect our planet!
  
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REFLECTION QUESTION
Transportation Go for a Daily Walk

What have you noticed on your daily walks? What have you enjoyed? What infrastructure changes could make your walks more enjoyable or possible?

TAYLOR SCHAFFER 5/05/2023 11:50 AM

I have noticed that actually a lot of people walk in my area. At stoplights waiting to cross the street, I find that I normally collect about 8 other walkers with me, which I think is awesome! I have enjoyed using the time on a walk to call my parents who I do not call often enough, and a 15 minute walk into Westwood or to class is the perfect amount of time to chat and stay in touch. I think keeping the sidewalks in better shape would make it more enjoyable because the sidewalks are very uneven in some places and are a trip hazard.

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- Sophia Dinh 6/06/2023 9:41 AM
  
  Hi Taylor, I totally agree! I've been walking more since starting the Eco Drawdown challenge, and I've also noticed that quite a lot of people walk as well. I've definitely been guilty of driving to class or to the library when I'm tired or running late, and since I've been walking more, I've noticed that I've had more time to call my parents or my siblings, or even just listen to music and enjoy the weather. I definitely agree that the sidewalks are a hazard, with all the cracks and trash, so I think if they were better, more people would walk and not get injured.
  
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REFLECTION QUESTION
Food, Agriculture, and Land Use Learn the Truth About Expiration Dates

How does knowing the difference between use by, sell by, and best by dates empower you to make better decisions?

TAYLOR SCHAFFER 4/10/2023 4:40 PM

All of the labels are advisements for best quality, not safety of the consumer. In fact, the Food Safety and Inspection Services does not even require dating on foods, only on infant formula. The quality of the food may diminish overtime as bacteria can grow and the food will smell or look unpleasant, but most of the time the bacteria does not cause illness in humans. Knowing that "use by" dates are not hard cut offs will help you to be less wasteful because you can realize that you do not have to throw your food out right when that day comes. Perhaps if you see a date for your food has come and gone, just consume it sooner rather than later, because the quality will diminish overtime.

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