Kristen Rauch

Because many tea bags and most sleeves and sachets contain plastic, I will switch to using loose leaf tea.

Ditch the plastic jugs, artificial dyes, and harmful ingredients! When it's time to replace my current laundry detergent, I will switch to a natural laundry detergent that is packaged in glass or aluminum, or an alternative like soap nuts.

In the UK, the average person creates 512kg (1,129lbs) of waste in the bathroom over the course of their lifetime - 50% of which ends up in a landfill. As they run out, I will replace my soaps, shampoos, conditioners, and lotions with sustainable, unpackaged, or refillable options.

Whether I'm at work, on the go, or having food delivered, I will keep 1 plastic cutlery out of the landfill per day by using my own reusable cutlery.

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.

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.

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.

Most toilet paper is wrapped in plastic #4, or low-density polyethylene - a thin plastic film that cannot be recycled back into more plastic film. To avoid this plastic wrapping, I will purchase toilet paper wrapped in paper instead, or use a reusable toilet paper option.

Does your savings account, retirement account, or investment account support the fossil fuel (and plastics) industry? This month, I will spend 60 minutes investigating where my investments (and where my bank's investments) are going, divest from the fossil fuel industry, and reinvest in ways that are more in alignment with my values.

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.

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.

I will not buy anything except items required for health and safety.

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.

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

I will hang-dry my laundry to use the sun as a natural bleach alternative, or use another natural bleach alternative.

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!

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.

While it can be tempting to throw away (or drop off at Goodwill) any and everything that no longer brings us joy, there are so many options that are better for the planet! This month, I will declutter my home and properly dispose or re-home the things I no longer want.

The chasing arrows symbol we associate with recycling doesn't always actually mean something is recyclable. I will spend at least 30 minutes learning the different meanings the symbol can have.

I will conduct a waste audit of my trash and recycling to understand how much waste I create and create a plan for where I can reduce the most.

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

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.

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.