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Faye Goodwin's avatar

Faye Goodwin

NCMNS-Ecochallenge

POINTS TOTAL

  • 0 TODAY
  • 0 THIS WEEK
  • 405 TOTAL

participant impact

  • UP TO
    2.2
    pounds
    food waste prevented
  • UP TO
    10
    pieces of litter
    picked up
  • UP TO
    1.0
    conversation
    with a person
  • UP TO
    70
    minutes
    spent outdoors
  • UP TO
    25
    minutes
    spent learning

Faye's actions

Bathroom

A Greener Shower

Most conventional shower curtain liners are made from polyvinyl chloride (or PVC), which contains chlorine, phthalates, and plasticizers, and typically need replaced often. When it's time to replace my shower curtain liner, I will replace it with a plastic-free option and research the best ways to care for it.

UNCOMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Kitchen

Embrace Imperfection

Eliminating 100% of all plastic from our lives simply isn't possible. Throughout this month, I will embrace imperfection in my plastic-free journey while exploring and testing new ways to reduce my plastic footprint.

COMPLETED 2
DAILY ACTIONS

Bedroom

Practice Sustainable Fashion

I will spend 30 minutes learning about the costs of fast fashion and begin trying to practice sustainable fashion in my own life.

UNCOMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Bedroom

Rethink Returns

While most stores offer lenient return policies, what actually happens to all of those returns? I will spend 10 minutes learning about what happens to returns and how I can make better purchasing decisions to avoid returns in the future.

UNCOMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Kitchen

Use What You Have

The only thing worse than a single-use item is a zero-use item! I will use (and use up) what I already have in my home before buying something new.

COMPLETED 2
DAILY ACTIONS

Kitchen

Fight Local Food Waste

Who says saving money and saving the planet don't go together? Using an app like Too Good To Go or Flashfood, I'll help rescue food from local bakeries, restaurants, and grocery stores that would otherwise go to waste.

COMPLETED 1
DAILY ACTION

Bedroom

Proper Clothing Care

All those symbols on our clothes, sheets, and towels actually have meanings! To ensure that I'm caring for my clothes properly, I will spend 20 minutes learning what the care symbols mean and laundry best practices to make all of my textiles last as long as possible.

UNCOMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Community

Keep My Community Clean

In addition to refusing and reducing my consumption of single-use plastics, I will pick up 5 piece(s) of litter each day of the Plastic Free Ecochallenge.

COMPLETED 2
DAILY ACTIONS

Family + Pets

Discover Together

I will spend 20 minutes educating my family on the basics of living a reduced/no-plastic lifestyle.

UNCOMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Bathroom

Take the pre-survey!

Help us make the Plastic Free Ecochallenge the best it can be! Take the challenge pre-survey (and look out for the post-survey at the end of the challenge!) so we can better understand the impact the challenge has and how we can improve in the future. Plus, you'll earn points for completing it! Thank you!

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Kitchen

Dive Into Expiration Dates

Just because something is past its "expiration date," it might not actually be expired! I will spend 20 minutes learning about the difference between best by, use by, and sell by dates and how to tell if my food is actually expired.

UNCOMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Bedroom

Clean the Dryer Vent

Every time we tumble dry our laundry, our clothes' lifespans get a little shorter. The lint trap is evidence of the shedding fibers and our clothes slowly losing their quality. The less time our clothes need to be in the dryer, the longer they'll last. So this month, I will clean my dryer's interior and exterior air vents to help the dryer work more efficiently (and extend the life of the dryer!).

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Bathroom

Homemade or Refillable Cleaners

Surface cleaners, glass cleaners, floor cleaners, oven cleaners, toilet cleaners...there's a whole lot of plastic waste involved in cleaning our homes - plus ingredients that can be harmful to aquatic ecosystems and our health. This month, I will make my own cleaning products or choose plastic-free, refillable options.

UNCOMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Community

Research Local Waste Sites

I will spend 20 minutes finding out where landfills and/or toxic waste sites are situated in my region and which communities are most impacted by these sites.

UNCOMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Bedroom

Ditch Dryer Sheets

Plastic sheets coated in softeners, lubricants, and fragrances, dryer sheets just aren't great for the planet or our bodies. Instead, I will use wool dryer balls or another plastic-free alternative to dryer sheets to keep my clothes static-free.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Study

Estimate Your Ecological Footprint

I will calculate my ecological footprint, and from the results brainstorm and take action on ways I can reduce my annual footprint.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Study

Dig into Bioplastics

I will spend at least 20 minutes researching the impacts of bioplastics and how to properly dispose of them in my city, and I will share this information with 5 friends, family, and/or colleagues.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Community

Go For a Walk

Science has shown that focused time in nature calms our over-worked frontal lobe and gives space for the areas of our brain associated with emotions, pleasure, and empathy to take over, providing a sense of calm that is measurable in brain scans and even blood tests. Each day this month, I will spend 20 minutes outside in nature, and share my observations, reflections, and learnings on the Participant Feed.

COMPLETED 2
DAILY ACTIONS

Bathroom

Travel Toiletries

Travel-size toiletries aren't just more expensive per ounce, they also have a higher plastic-to-contents ratio, and result in over 980 tonnes (2.2 million pounds) of plastic waste each year. If traveling this month, I will reuse my old travel tubes to refill with my soaps or only bring bar soaps with me.

UNCOMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Bedroom

Catch Those Microfibers

When we wash our clothes, the heat and friction causes our clothes to wear down, releasing microfibers into the water stream. To combat and prevent these microfibers as much as possible, in addition to following best laundry practices, I will use a microfiber catcher in my laundry, or install a microfiber filter for my washing machine.

UNCOMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Study

Numbers Everywhere

The numbers #1-7 on plastics tell us a lot - and can help us be better recyclers. I will learn what these numbers mean and which types of plastics are accepted for recycling in my area.

UNCOMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Bedroom

Mend and Repair

We've all got it - that thing in the back of our closet we keep saying we'll fix "one day." I will make today that day by learning how to mend or repair ripped or broken items in my home - or by finding a local offering to do it for me.

UNCOMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Bedroom

Natural Fibers

When available, I will purchase clothing and bedding made with natural fibers, such as cotton, linen, or wool, rather than synthetic fibers.

UNCOMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Community

Share upcycling project

Are you the kind of person who makes something useful out of junk? Something you can use in your garden to attract wildlife? We would LOVE to know! Please share a picture and instructions for those who want to try it. Spoiler alert...we might use some of these ideas in our Investigate lab to share with the public.

UNCOMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Kitchen

Whole Foods Meals

Prioritizing whole foods is one of the most effective ways to avoid single-use plastic in the kitchen, since most whole foods can be purchased without any packaging. This month, I will prepare 1 whole foods-based meals at home each day.

COMPLETED 0
DAILY ACTIONS

Kitchen

Choose Unpackaged Produce

I will purchase unpackaged produce at the grocery store or at the farmer's market.

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?