Luke Dinger

Nature, God, and Social Justice Spring 2025

POINTS TOTAL

0 TODAY
0 THIS WEEK
710 TOTAL

participant impact

UP TO

451

pounds of CO2

have been saved
UP TO

17

plastic straws

not sent to the landfill
UP TO

23

plastic bottles

not sent to the landfill
UP TO

31

more servings

of fruits and vegetables
UP TO

529

minutes

spent exercising
UP TO

1.0

community event

hosted or attended
UP TO

45

minutes

spent learning

Luke's actions

Waste

Use a Reusable Water Bottle

I will keep 2 disposable plastic bottle(s) from entering the waste stream by using a reusable water bottle.

COMPLETED 8
DAILY ACTIONS

Food

Smart Seafood Choices

I will visit seafoodwatch.org or download the app and commit to making better seafood choices for a healthier ocean.

COMPLETED 3
DAILY ACTIONS

Health

More Fruits and Veggies

I will eat a heart healthy diet by adding 3 cup(s) of fruits and vegetables each day to achieve at least 4 cups per day.

COMPLETED 11
DAILY ACTIONS

Health

Exercise Daily

Exercise is a great stress blaster! I will exercise for 55 minute(s) each day.

COMPLETED 11
DAILY ACTIONS

Simplicity

Core Values

We may find more meaning and joy in life when our actions are aligned with our personal values. I will determine what my top 3-5 core values are so that I can better align my actions with them.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Energy

Adjust the Thermostat

I will adjust my thermostat down 2 degrees from usual when I use the heat, and up 2 degrees when I use air conditioning.

COMPLETED 10
DAILY ACTIONS

Community

Support Native Communities

I will use the resource links provided below and spend 30 minutes learning about the native populations that lived in my area prior to colonization, and what I can do to support those that still exist.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Water

Say No to Plastic Straws

An estimated 71% of seabirds and 30% of turtles have been found with plastics in their stomachs. When they ingest plastic, marine life has a 50% mortality rate. By asking for no straw when placing a drink order, I will keep 3 plastic straw(s) of out of the ocean each day.

COMPLETED 7
DAILY ACTIONS

Community

Host A Watch Party

I will host a watch party to screen a documentary about an issue that matters to me.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Transportation

Choose a Carbon Offset

If buying a plane ticket, I will also buy a carbon offset.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Energy

Switch to Cold Water

I will switch to washing my clothes in cold water, saving up to 133 lbs of CO2 a month and 1,600 lbs of CO2 over the course of the next year.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

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?

Luke Dinger 4/22/2025 2:16 PM
On the final day of the ecochallenge, I just wanted to take a second and express my gratitude for the opportunity to take part in such a transformative process. Over the last 22 days, I've been presented with unique challenges that I'm not sure I would have been presented this without the opportunity for an ecochallenge. I've learned numerous things from seafood to indigenous communities, and I just wanted to say thank you for this wonderful challenge.

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Luke Dinger 4/21/2025 9:00 AM
I'm sure we all woke up this morning a bit worse seeing the death of the beloved Pope Francis an author we have spent an extended period of time covering in class. However, his death presents a personal opportunity for reflection and remembrance. How can we carry forward his legacy? He was a true trailblazer within the Catholic Church, and how can we hope to carry out the transformation that he had proposed? I hope that the next conclave may bring us a Bishop with equal compassion in his heart for the earth and its inhabitants.

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Luke Dinger 4/20/2025 4:18 PM
As we get closer to the end of our time at the Eco Challenge I urge all of you all not to get complacent, with the fact that we only have two more days to achieve our personal goals and make meaningful impact, not to slack off now. Furthermore, just because the challenge ends in two days it doesn't mean that we can continue to disregard the energy decisions that we are making on a daily basis, so I hope all of you continue to act with intention and effort even after the challenge is over.

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- Annie Zhai 4/20/2025 7:55 PM
  I definitely agree and resonate with what you said. Through this challenge, I have definitely picked up a lot of positive habits that I never thought would be so beneficial to my day-to-day life. For instance, I never thought that getting an additional 1~2 hours of sleep and meditating for just 5 minutes a day would make such a big difference in my daily life. Now, I feel much more energetic and at peace every day because I've been keeping up with these habits for a while. I think I will definitely keep doing what I'm already doing after the Ecochallenge ends and make my life more sustainable!
  
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REFLECTION QUESTION
Water

What single-use items (e.g. straws, coffee cups, vegetable bags, plastic bags) do you regularly use? What could be substituted instead?
Luke Dinger 4/19/2025 2:22 PM
The small things matter, plastic water bottles, plastic straws, plastic bags, all things that we use and then immediately disregard not thinking about where it goes afterwards. Intentionality with ourselves and our things is something that throughout this challenge, and I'm very thankful to be applying these lessons over and over.

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REFLECTION QUESTION
Health

How does eating more fruits and vegetables and less meat positively affect yourself, other people, and our planet?
Luke Dinger 4/15/2025 2:30 PM
You so rarely think that making positive health choices have a symbiotic relationship with the sustainable development of our world, but it does. By consuming a couple of extra servings of fruits and veggies once every couple days you are not only improving your own nutrition but you are feeding the pockets of farmers who care about creating real, sustainable food. Thus creating a global movement to sell healthier food.

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REFLECTION QUESTION
Food

Many states and countries have advisories on eating fish. Find out what is advised for your region. Do you think your diet choices fall within these guidelines? What steps do you need to take to make sure that they do?
Luke Dinger 4/12/2025 12:29 PM
I honestly never would have thought about the type of seafood that I eat. Firstly, I don't eat that much fish, so I the times that I do I never think about the possible repercussions of where the fish is coming from. However, after doing research on sustainable seafood, and making sure you're not fish-farming, and getting them from the ocean, and not damaging the environment, I will be sure to research my seafood before I go to a restaurant or buy it from the store.

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REFLECTION QUESTION
Energy

Your utility company is able to tell you your average energy usage. Ask them how your energy usage compares to others in your ZIP code, region, and/or state. What other steps can you take each day to reduce your electricity usage?
Luke Dinger 4/09/2025 6:15 PM
Turning off the lights is something that has always been preached to me and makes a huge difference. Also setting your phone on efficient charging makes it so that your phone is not wasting energy the entire night.

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Luke Dinger 4/08/2025 2:56 PM
This process has continued to humble me, and I hope that the process has been the same for the rest of you all. That little bit of extra reflection and intentionality has proven very fruitful in my own spiritual experience, and I hope that everyone has felt those same effects.

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Luke Dinger 4/06/2025 12:22 PM
As we continue to strive for sustainability, I hope everyone continues to reflect on what the experience has not only done for climate mitigation, but how it has affected their personal spiritual experience.

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Luke Dinger 4/02/2025 1:41 PM
Everyday I'm just feeling more and more aware of the carbon footprint that I'm spreading. We got this y'all, keep it going!!

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