Ella Waldrop

For this week's eco challenge, I wanted to take notice of all the ways I may be using access to water in my daily routines. The first part of this week was just focusing on observation, I noticed I may be using access water when I dont load my dishwaher fully, run laundry loads of heavy, and wait for the water to warm up while I shower and wash my face, which sometimes takes minutes of additonal unnessary running water. The latter part of the week, I tried to change those actions by being mindful of how much water is coming out of the seemingly infinite supply of the magic faucet. All of these were straightforward changes that I will continue beyond this week of water conservation and mindfulness. Going to try and collect some rainfall this coming week to water my plants ! Woohoo:)

Hi Everyone, maybe a little less optimistic report this week. So basically, I get Black Rock (drive-through coffee) at least every Tuesday (student day woohoo). This is pretty much the only time I am doing single-use plastic cups and that sort of thing, but it definitely does add up. I can see that in my trash can and also feel that in my soul. For my water themed action this week I was going to ask the nice people if I could use my own 16 oz cup instead of the disposable ones and they said no:( I was maybe half expecting this because when I worked at Starbucks a long time ago we had to say no to stuff like this but I thought it was a COVID thing not always a declinable request. Today, I got my BlackRock in a single-use plastic cup, just like every week, only this time I know that I at least asked. Moving forward I will try my hardest to reduce my cosumption to maybe every other week, its one of my only vices and so its hard to rewire my Tuesday brain if anyone can relate...

Hi everyone, for the food prompt this week, I planted an herb garden, which is something I have been wanting to do since I really started to get into cooking/ baking these past few months. I cooked a really awesome dinner a couple of weeks ago, and I asked my roommate to grab some herbs, and they were packaged in the most outrageous plastic packaging and I knew I had to make a change! I really lucked out because I already had soil and some pot like vessels from random projects over the years. I have a friends boyfriend that was able to hook me up so there was so barriers for me which felt really cool! I am a little nervous to see how we do together because I havent been so great with plants in the past, but I keep a sourdough starter alive which is equallly demanding! Will update on growth progress hehe :))

For my second ecochallenge, also focusing on waste, I decided to free myself from all of the random mail I get sent by taking the time to go paperless. I do not receive tons and tons of mail, however, I do get lots from OHP, food stamps, my old car insurance ( I don't even have a car anymore..), and my phone provider! It took me around 20 minutes to unsubscribe from additional sales/ offers, thanks to my laptop knowing all my passwords! While I was at it, I started unsubscribing from random email spam too, just for fun; I will be curious if I actually stop receiving mail from OHP because if you know, you know that they are ruthless:,) Overall, it took a lot less time than I assumed, maybe in the following weeks I will update!

Hey everyone, just checking in about the eco-challenge that I chose for this week, which was to learn about and practice sustainable fashion. I would say about 90% of my wardrobe is gifted/ purchased second-hand, so I wanted to focus on investigating which materials are the most durable for the 2nd handpieces I welcome in, and I wanted to check out some sustainable undergarments. Durable fabrics to look for on clothing tags: hemp, linen, silk, wool, cotton, and other natural fibers. Some good companies: Pico, Mighty Good Basics, and The Very Good Bra! Sidenote: When I first googled ethical and sustainable underwear the first 5 companies that came up were nothing of the sort upon further inspection! (I used Good on You to look into each brand)