Kris Walsh

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!

There's value in our old electronics! This month, I will properly recycle any old laptops, tablets, cell phones, or other electronics I have lying around so the raw materials can be reused and reduce demand for virgin materials - thereby also protecting critical wildlife habitat for animals such as gorillas and forest elephants.

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.

Greenwashing can fool even the most experienced eco-advocate. This month, I will spend 30 minutes learning what greenwashing is, how to spot it, and what I can do about it.

Single-use plastics are everywhere, but that wasn't always the case. I will spend at least 30 minutes learning about the history of single-use plastics and how it became ubiquitous in our daily lives.

Instead of buying new plastic highlighters, I will simply use colored pencils instead for all of my highlighting needs.

Our tax dollars are subsidizing the fossil fuel industry, making the cost of plastics artificially low and encouraging further plastics production. I will spend 30 minutes learning about oil subsidies and how I can advocate for their elimination.

I will spend at least 30 minutes researching the impacts of bioplastics and how to properly dispose of them in my city, and I will share this information with 1 friends, family, and/or colleagues.

Produce doesn't need to be stored in plastic bags to stay fresh! I will learn how to properly store my produce to extend its freshness without single-use plastic.