Emily Lo

Sometimes protecting nature requires feeling connected to nature. I will invest 30 minutes in exploring and appreciating a natural area in my region, whether a forest, wetland, coastal area, or somewhere else.

I will spend at least 60 minutes finding out if my city, region, province, or country offers incentives for retrofitting existing buildings.

I will keep a daily log of food I throw away during the Ecochallenge, either because it went bad before I ate it, I put too much on my plate, or it was scraps from food preparation.

I will reduce the amount of paper mail that I receive by 1.5kg a month or 18.6kg a year by opting into paperless billing, ending unwanted subscriptions and opting out of junk mail.

I will spend at least 30 minutes learning how to differentiate between sell by, use by, and best by dates.

If at all possible, I will not accept any disposable bags when making purchases.

Contamination prevents what is recyclable from being recycled. I will spend 30 minutes researching which materials are accepted by local haulers or drop stations in my community and recycle only those items.

I will spend at least 60 minutes researching heat pumps to see if installing one makes sense for my home/building.

I will keep lights, electronics, and appliances turned off when not using them.

I will switch to washing my clothes in cold water, saving up to 725 kgs of CO2 over the course of the next year.

I will spend at least 60 minutes learning more about the energy generation potential of geothermal energy and consider investing in this technology.