Kirsten Robinson

Regenerative agriculture focuses on farming and ranching in a way that supports life and restores the soil. I will spend 10 minutes learning about regenerative agriculture and find out if any nearby farms practice regenerative agriculture.

When we explore natural spaces around us, our connections with them change. I will spend 30 minutes exploring a new area around my neighborhood, office, or campus (e.g., park, water body, nearby trail, community garden, green space, etc.).

The impacts of our waste are far reaching. I will create zero waste for an entire day and share my reflections and learnings on the feed.

We need to support healthy seafood populations. I will spend 10 minutes learning about sustainable seafood choices, commit to making better seafood choices for a healthier ocean, and share what I learned on the feed.

Understanding cleaning product ingredients and their effect on water and biodiversity is helpful to our consumer choices. I will spend 20 minutes learning about how cleaning products affect our water and try making my own cleaning products to reduce pollutants.

Learning in a social setting can inspire connection and change. I will work with a friend or colleague to plan and host a lunch and learn at work, school, in my neighborhood or other location to learn more about an environmental topic important to me. After the lunch and learn, I will share more about it on the feed.

Energy use and waste is often invisible. I will complete an online energy audit of my home, office, or dorm room and identify my next steps for saving energy.

Synthetic clothing can contain plastic and shed harmful microplastics into our water. I will use a microplastics catcher in my laundry, or install a microplastics filter for my washing machine.

Beauty and personal products can create a lot of waste. I will spend 30 minutes learning about the beauty and body products I use to see if they are refillable or recyclable. If not, I will reach out to the manufacturer to advocate for those options.

Carbon is emitted into the atmosphere in a variety of ways, including through the foods we eat and food we waste. I will learn about low carbon foods and replace higher carbon foods with them in my diet.

Studies have shown that when we spend consistent time in nature, our health improves, our creativity increases, and our connection to the planet gets stronger. Each day of the Ecochallenge, I will spend 30 minutes outside (in a large or small patch of nature), then share my observations, reflections, and learnings on the feed.

Trees provide food and habitat for local wildlife species, shade our streets and homes, and help keep our air and water clean by capturing pollutants. Buying products that help protect forests makes a difference. I will only purchase wood, furniture, and paper products from ecologically certified sources such as Forest Stewardship Council.

Hand washing dishes can use more energy and hot water than a dishwasher. To save water, I will use a dishwasher and scrape, rather than rinse, dishes before loading them into the dishwasher.

Pouring cooking oil down the drain can cause damage to waterways and ecosystems. I will learn how to properly dispose of cooking oil to help support healthy ecosystems.

Millions of tons of plastic is produced each year worldwide. Each day, I will conduct a plastics audit of what I buy and use throughout the challenge (kitchen, bathroom, personal care products, etc.), to see how single-use plastic shows up in my life. I will find plastic-free alternatives to these products and advocate for alternatives to single-use packaging at local grocery stores, product manufacturers, at work, or on campus.

Each of us has a water footprint, directly linked to our daily activities as well as the water required in the production of things we use each day. Understanding our water use is important for a healthy planet. I will calculate my water footprint and look for a few ways I can reduce consumption or waste, then share what I learned on the feed.

Why buy something I will only use once or a few times if someone nearby has it for me to borrow, and why not share something I have that someone may only need a few times a year? To reduce my consumption and waste, I will create or support the sharing economy with friends, family, colleagues or neighbors.

I will organize or participate in a trash pickup at a local river, beach, or natural body of water.