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Setera Miller's avatar

Setera Miller

"SAY" No to Plastic! (Sustain Alaska & the Yukon)

"I aim to learn as much as I can so I can make changes that will improve my home, community and world!"

POINTS TOTAL

  • 0 TODAY
  • 0 THIS WEEK
  • 735 TOTAL

participant impact

  • UP TO
    46
    plastic bottles
    not sent to the landfill
  • UP TO
    5.0
    plastic containers
    not sent to the landfill
  • UP TO
    175
    minutes
    spent outdoors
  • UP TO
    15
    minutes
    spent learning

Setera's actions

Family + Pets

Use Cloth Diapers

I will replace single use diapers with reusable cloth diapers.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Bathroom

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 17
DAILY ACTIONS

Community

Share my "why"

I will record a 15-20 second video sharing why I am taking action for the planet.

UNCOMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Community

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

Skip Plastic Bags

Whenever possible, I will not accept any disposable bags when shopping, including produce bags. I will either use my own reusable bags, or keep my items loose.

COMPLETED 2
DAILY ACTIONS

Kitchen

Fill a Water Bottle

Bottled water corporations make plastic bottles, not water. If the tap water in my area is safe for consumption, I will use a reusable bottle instead and stop purchasing bottled water, saving 3 disposable plastic bottles a day.

COMPLETED 14
DAILY ACTIONS

Bedroom

Rethink Returns

While most stores offer lenient return policies, what actually happens to all of those returns? I will spend 30 minutes learning about what happens to returns and how I can make better purchasing decisions to avoid returns in the future.

COMPLETED
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.

COMPLETED
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

Plastic History Buff

Single-use plastics are everywhere, but that wasn't always the case. I will spend at least 15 minutes learning about the history of single-use plastics and how it became ubiquitous in our daily lives.

UNCOMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Study

Print in Draft Mode

To extend the life of my ink cartridges, I will set my printer default to draft mode to use less ink or toner per print job.

UNCOMPLETED
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 30 minutes outside in nature, and share my observations, reflections, and learnings on the Participant Feed.

COMPLETED 7
DAILY ACTIONS

Kitchen

Get Scrappy

Get creative in the kitchen (or the garden)! Before tossing food scraps, I'll explore other ways to utilize the scraps and give them another life.

COMPLETED 1
DAILY ACTION

Study

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 15
DAILY ACTIONS

Community

Keep My Community Clean

In addition to refusing and reducing my consumption of single-use plastics, I will pick up 10 piece(s) of litter each day of the Plastic Free Ecochallenge.

COMPLETED 0
DAILY ACTIONS

Study

Borrowed Books

The average paperback book has the same carbon footprint of driving about 7 miles (11 km) in an average car. Instead of purchasing new books this month, I will borrow books, e-books, and/or audiobooks from my local library or library-affiliated apps, or host a book swap with my friends.

COMPLETED 10
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?


  • Setera Miller's avatar
    Setera Miller 7/06/2024 9:11 PM
    Today, I was very particular in my choices today. I decided in two instances not to use plastic. In my mind I know that if I don’t use it someone else will, however I can know I am not contributing to the harm of plastic use. Little by little.
  • REFLECTION QUESTION
    Kitchen Fill a Water Bottle
    Investigate the bottling practices of water corporations. There have been many cases where the water rights of the local people have been violated or even completely disregarded when a corporation decides to bottle water from a particular water source. How can you advocate for those who have been harmed by this bottling process?

    Setera Miller's avatar
    Setera Miller 7/06/2024 9:03 PM
    I feel one of the greatest ways to be an advocate is to share truthful information so that others are represented in all conversations. When it comes to bottled water that is being sourced from particular water sources that harm people in those communities we are to share the information and those companies so that others are not exploited.
  • REFLECTION QUESTION
    Study Embrace Imperfection
    How has embracing imperfection impacted your plastic-free journey?

    Setera Miller's avatar
    Setera Miller 7/05/2024 12:35 AM
    I believe embracing the imperfections throughout this journey is how I am able to make the changes in my life. Knowing I don’t have to go cold turkey in something and instead just make small changes at a time, gives me motivation to keep trying!

  • Setera Miller's avatar
    Setera Miller 7/03/2024 11:07 PM
    I am becoming more conscientious every day. I was looking into a new deodorant company that does refills instead of single use plastics! Makes me excited to try something new that will have a good impact!
  • REFLECTION QUESTION
    Study Borrowed Books
    Libraries have immense benefits for society. What are some cool resources your library has that might not be as well-known as book borrowing? What are some ways you advocate for libraries and share these resources with your community?

    Setera Miller's avatar
    Setera Miller 7/02/2024 9:30 PM
    The Skagway library is known to have many different items to check out. Everything from movies and tv series to sewing machines! I feel like access to books is really important, but knowing the impact public libraries have makes me want to support them in all ways I can!

  • Setera Miller's avatar
    Setera Miller 7/01/2024 9:38 PM
    I love becoming more aware and learning new information on why plastic production and disposal is harmful. I want to help the planet on plastic bottle at a time!
  • REFLECTION QUESTION
    Bathroom Use What You Have
    Besides the economic benefits of using the things we already own, how can this practice impact our lives in other ways and influence the way we interact with "things"?

    Setera Miller's avatar
    Setera Miller 7/01/2024 9:20 PM
    Being aware of our needs and wants are important practices that help us to better ourselves and our environment. Too cluttered or too much stuff causes more stress!