Ella Van Benschoten

My food challenge is to have one meal a day that is free of processed foods. This one is also an adjustment for me because even the healthier meals I cook tend to have some sort of “processed” ingredient (cheese, frozen vegetables, sauces, etc.). Typically, the easiest meal for me to prepare for this challenge is brown rice with vegetables. It’s difficult for me to find protein for this type of meal because I am a vegetarian and rely on plant-based proteins and canned beans that are technically processed. While I think after this challenge I could incorporate the idea of eating more whole, unprocessed foods into my diet in the future, I don’t know if it is necessarily sustainable for me to fully cut them out of meals due to issues with getting enough protein in. Finally, my health challenge is to prioritize sleep and get 2 more hours to reach at least 7 hours of sleep a night. This has been difficult for me, but rewarding because I already have more energy in the morning. Getting enough sleep is a challenge for me because I am definitely a night owl and not a morning person (which is difficult for someone with 8:30’s Monday through Thursday). However, getting more sleep has greatly improved my functioning in the morning and how easy it is to wake up, and I am excited to see the added benefits of it in the future.

2) Through my daily challenges, I have learned more about my own individual impacts to the environment. While I typically thought of myself as aware of my impact on the environment, I learned further about what I can do further to limit it. Most of the things I wasn’t aware of before are simple, everyday habits that can also easily be changed, like turning off the lights and appliances when not in direct use, eating more whole foods, and using reusable straws and utensils. Also, the eco-challenge has made me feel more connected to the environment. Challenges like spending 20 doing nature-related activities, eating less processed foods, and getting more sleep have made me have more energy but also feel connected to the Earth. I have also started to see health benefits of these things. One of my eco challenge resources, “Whole-Foods, Plant-Based Diet: A Detailed Beginner's Guide,” describes the benefits and basics of a plant-based, whole-food diet. I am a vegetarian and knowledgeable on eating more plant-based and reducing animal products in my diet, but eating vegetarian doesn’t necessarily mean healthy. This article and my challenge of one processed-free meal a day has helped me adjust my diet in eliminating some of the less healthy choices I make and even pushed me to cook more nights than I typically do.

3) The origins of conservation are involved in my daily challenges related to water and energy as these challenges are related to reducing my impacts on the environment. My energy challenge of turning off appliances and lights when not in direct use is related to conservation in using less energy, which means less fossil fuels and resources in my daily life. Also, my water challenge of not using plastic straws or single-use utensils work to reduce how much waste I generate which is directly related to reducing the energy and resources that are consumed to create those things. Overall, my challenges reduce my environmental impact by reducing how much energy and resources are used, which is related to the article/class reading, “The Intersection of Renewable Energy and Water Conservation” and the ties between reducing water and energy consumption and their benefits.

Also, the counterculture food movement is related to my daily and one-time challenges I selected from the food category. My daily challenge was to eat one meal a day free of processed foods which is related to the counterculture food movement as described in “The Gathering Storm” by McGrath where baby boomers saw eating whole foods as a way to distance themselves from a mainstream culture of TV dinners, processed foods, and quick meals. They also took more time to grow their own food and cook more healthy meals, which related to the one-time challenge I completed of baking bread / learning a new form of cooking. Baking bread was super rewarding and tasty and I hope to keep up with it to avoid buying bread at the grocery store that is processed and oftentimes packaged in plastic (which also helps reduce some of the waste I generate).

I think the biggest challenge in making these lifestyle changes permanent is staying consistent. I have a bad habit of sacrificing self-care or a life-work balance during busier weeks with school and my on-campus jobs. With regard to these daily challenges, I think to make them permanent I need to stay consistent and make time for them even if I am super busy, which will be a challenge. When I am stressed, I struggle to want to go for a walk as I usually want to spend that time trying to finish whatever work I need to complete. It’s definitely something I am trying to work on and hope that I can stay consistent to make these changes permanent. Another challenge in making these lifestyle changes permanent is that I am soon entering a new chapter in my life. I am graduating in May and will spend my summer at home before starting graduate school. While I think it will be manageable to make these changes stick for the semester and even the summer, I am not 100% sure what graduate school will be like. However, I think that may also be an advantage if I use it correctly as I will definitely have a routine in graduate school and think I could make these changes permanent if I stay consistent from day 1. I also think setting realistic goals will help me make these changes permanent.

I think what will help me make these lifestyle changes more permanent is seeing the benefits of them for myself and the environment. People tend to treat more eco-friendly actions as giving up a luxury or something, but I think they do benefit us whether that be our health, finances, our environment as a whole etc.. One of my resources called “Ecopsychology: How Immersion in Nature Benefits Your Health” discusses some of the personal benefits of being in nature, “It can lower blood pressure and stress hormone levels, reduce nervous system arousal, enhance immune system function, increase self-esteem, reduce anxiety, and improve mood” (Robbins). There are many benefits to these changes and I know if I stay consistent, I can gain them while also being kinder to the planet. I really hope to make these changes permanent as I think they can help me be a better environmentalist, activist, and human being! :)

I think the daily and one-time challenges under the energy category will have the most impact on my ecological footprint. As the ClimateScience article “Does Personal Action Matter?” states, “76% of global greenhouse gas emissions come from energy (electricity, fuels, heating, etc.), which is mostly produced by fossil fuel companies and backed by governments’” (ClimateScience). With the exception of the solar panel field on campus, the majority of the electricity and heating at Bucknell is powered by fossil fuels (more specifically, I believe we use natural gas). Reducing my energy consumption will reduce the amount of fossil fuels I am using and thus the amount of greenhouse gasses emitted by my impact and carbon footprint. I can achieve this by lowering the thermostat, unplugging and turning off appliances and lights when not in use, and turning off my computer when I won’t use it for an extended period of time.

I believe that some daily and one-time challenges will address the political, social, and economic drivers of the climate crisis, however not substantially. Relating this to our in class discussion last Wednesday, personal actions can make a difference, but the largest impact in addressing climate change and its drivers will come from collective action. In the article “Big oil coined ‘carbon footprints’ to blame us for their greed. Keep them on the hook,” Solnit writes, “Individual choices do add up (they just don’t, in McKibben’s terms, multiply)” (Solnit). Personal action taken during the eco-challenge will have impact, but not as greatly as a collective movement. However, this should not reduce the importance of the eco-challenge as it may inspire more collective action and any impact, no matter how small, is still important. These daily and one-time challenges can also address the political, social, and economic drivers of the climate crisis. Large corporations that are a driving force of the climate crisis rely on your consumption to operate and profit and this challenge may change your consumption habits. For example, challenges like buying local produce / products, switching to reusable energy, changing your diet, and buying more sustainable / less harmful cleaning products will change your consumption patterns and can collectively show these corporations that there is incentive for sustainable and eco-friendly products. More broadly, this challenge also involves a lot of education in each category that may influence participants to get involved in creating a collective movement or activism that can also address the drivers of climate change.