Kayla Vegas

At times it may not feel like it's up to us to keep our community clean and healthy, but we all have a role to play. Each day I am outside, I will pick up any litter I see.

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.

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.

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.

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.

One third of all food produced worldwide is wasted, and so is the energy it takes to produce and transport that food. I will reduce food waste and save money by planning a weekly menu, only buying the ingredients I need and eating what I planned each day.

Each day, I will learn about responsible ways to dispose of items and de-clutter, clean, donate, repurpose or recycle unneeded items in my home to make sure that what I get rid of doesn't go into the landfill.

Bees are vital to ecosystems. To help save the bees, I will learn which local flowers provide nectar and plant them in my backyard or in a pot on my balcony.

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.

A healthy world needs both our daily actions and support from larger systems. I will spend 45 minutes learning about how I can use my investments and savings to advance environmental sustainability.