Ecochallenge.org

Drawdown Ecochallenge

Ena Farkas

Asheville High School Spring 2024!

POINTS TOTAL

0 TODAY
181 THIS WEEK
595 TOTAL

participant impact

UP TO

60

miles

not traveled by car
UP TO

60

miles

traveled by bus
UP TO

122

pounds of CO2

have been saved
UP TO

11

more servings

of fruits and vegetables
UP TO

243

minutes

spent learning

Ena's actions

Health and Education

Research Barriers to Participation and Representation

Family Planning and Education

I will spend at least 30 minutes learning more about the barriers to women's equal participation and representation around the world.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Food, Agriculture, and Land Use

Tend A Garden

Conservation Agriculture

I will tend to a garden, or prepare for one, each day using sustainable gardening practices.

COMPLETED 0
DAILY ACTIONS

Health and Education

Learn about the Need for Family Planning

Family Planning and Education

I will spend at least 20 minutes learning more about the need for family planning globally.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Electricity

Learn More About Geothermal Energy

Geothermal Power

I will spend at least 20 minutes learning more about the energy generation potential of geothermal energy and consider investing in this technology.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Electricity

Learn More about Micro Wind

Micro Wind Turbines

I will spend at least 20 minutes learning more about the energy generation potential of micro wind.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Electricity

Learn More about Biomass

Biomass Power

I will spend at least 20 minutes learning more about the energy generation potential of biomass.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Land Sinks

Research Peatlands

Peatland Protection and Rewetting

I will spend 30 minutes researching the environmental benefits of peatlands and what is being done around the world to conserve and restore them.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Transportation

Use Muscle Power

Multiple Transportation Solutions

I will cut my car trip mileage by only taking necessary trips, and I will only use muscle-powered transportation for all other trips.

COMPLETED 2
DAILY ACTIONS

Food, Agriculture, and Land Use

More Fruits And Veggies

I will eat a heart healthy diet by adding 1 cups of fruits and vegetables each day to achieve at least 4 cups per day.

COMPLETED 3
DAILY ACTIONS

Food, Agriculture, and Land Use

Reduce Food Waste

Reduced Food Waste

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

COMPLETED 0
DAILY ACTIONS

Industry

Research the Climate Impact of Refrigerants

Refrigerant Management

I will spend 30 minutes learning about the climate impact of refrigerants and what climate-friendly refrigerants are by using the links below.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Industry

Research Local Waste and Recycling Depots

To learn more about what is and is not recyclable in our area as well as how to properly dispose of hard to recycle materials to reduce my harmful impacts on the local environment AND learn how indigenous peoples and POC are more likely to be impacted by waste sites and pollution on a global scale.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Transportation

Use Public Transit

Public Transit

I will use public transit 8 miles per day and avoid sending up to (___) lbs of CO2 into Earth's atmosphere.

COMPLETED 11
DAILY ACTIONS

Food, Agriculture, and Land Use

Learn the Truth About Expiration Dates

Reduced Food Waste

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

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?

REFLECTION QUESTION
Health and Education Research Barriers to Participation and Representation

What are some of the barriers that exist to women's equal participation and/or representation in your community?

Ena Farkas 5/17/2024 11:05 AM

Some of the main barriers that prevent women from equally participating and getting opportunities is their lack of education which is centered around their period. In poor communities they are usually pulled out of school and sold into marriage after this occurs. This keeps them from any possibilities of home owning and jobs in their future. In my community specifically, is the belief that women are not equal and are underestimated by the male commitment government. This makes it harder for women to get jobs equal to or higher than men without working extra hard. These barriers exist because of an ancient mentality based on women's physical limitations to men which base other assumptions of women not being good enough. Moving forward women should be given equal education, opportunities and control over their healthcare so they are safe, have a lower risk of mortality and have the ability to earn a living if they want or need to.

Read More
REFLECTION QUESTION
Health and Education Learn about the Need for Family Planning

What did you learn about the need for family planning? How do the needs of different people in different places compare to each other?

Ena Farkas 5/15/2024 11:47 AM

Family planning is not outright a solution to climate change but it paves the way. If people have equal access to family planning and education about their sexual rights and health they will be able to make better decisions about having children. By using family planning techniques you could prevent unplanned pregnancies and cut down on fertility rates which will slow our population's growth. This will lead to a more sustainable environment that doesn’t have an overwhelming population.
People who live in poorer countries don’t have access to as many resources, especially education which is fundamental with family planning. So people in poorer countries lack the education needed to learn about fertility and sexual intercourse which leads to higher unplanned pregnancy rates which puts a strain on their population due to lack of resources. Wealthier countries however, have the resources and education and have been more successful with the family planning methods in reducing population growth rates.

Read More
REFLECTION QUESTION
Electricity Learn More About Geothermal Energy

Geothermal energy is reliable, abundant, and efficient. Project Drawdown states that public investment will play a crucial role in its expansion. In what ways (i.e. with money, time, advocacy) can you invest in geothermal energy?

Ena Farkas 5/14/2024 11:48 AM

The most feasible investment would be on individual homes; if everyone who could afford it chipped in and added a passive geothermal heating pump under ground by their home we could save a lot of energy. Usually cities can’t afford widespread expensive projects such as these, if most people did it, and it added up we could save almost as much energy and not to mention money on the individual's electric bill.

Read More
REFLECTION QUESTION
Electricity Learn More about Micro Wind

Micro turbines can be placed on large structures to take advantage of stronger, steadier breezes. The Eiffel Tower now sports vertical axis turbines that produce electricity for use on site. Where could micro turbines potentially be installed in your city?

Ena Farkas 5/13/2024 11:48 AM

In my city there are a lot of tall, straight buildings since I live up in the mountains. The microturbines can be placed in the top of these buildings (hotels, town hall, business centers etc.) and generate electricity from the strong wind currents.

Read More
REFLECTION QUESTION
Electricity Learn More about Biomass

Had you ever heard of biomass technology before you took this challenge? What did you learn that surprised you? Share your new knowledge with your friends!

Ena Farkas 5/09/2024 11:28 AM

I had heard certain things about biofuels but I never looked into it because I didn’t know how prominent it was. I learned a lot of things that surprised me, like how biomass materials can be burned to access their methane (even animal waste) and how plants can be fermented to replace gasoline. Overall, I was mostly surprised how effective and fairly easy this solution was. It could bring down fossil fuel emissions hugely and create a much healthier environment. It's honestly surprising that we haven’t done more to make this a priority. In conclusion, biomass material is amazingly effective and completely clean and renewable. It can even be used to create renewable plastics, there is just so much it can do.

Read More
REFLECTION QUESTION
Food, Agriculture, and Land Use More Fruits And Veggies

How does eating more fruits and vegetables and less meat positively affect yourself, other people, and our planet?

Ena Farkas 5/07/2024 7:21 PM

By eating less meat I am supporting more sustainable agriculture since the meat industry creates most of the agricultural CO2 emissions. By reducing the meat I eat and eating more fruits and vegetables I am supporting business that use less energy and are better for the planet and people's health.

Read More
REFLECTION QUESTION
Land Sinks Research Peatlands

Much of Indonesia's peatlands have been drained so they could be replaced with palm oil or pulp and paper plantations. How can you make choices that help to protect peatlands, even if you live far away from one?

Ena Farkas 5/05/2024 11:15 AM

Protecting wetlands can be supported like any other conservation project; there are many things you as an individual can do. You can speak up on social media for the restoration and protection of peatlands, engage in local communities that support the managing of peatlands sustainably, support programs that help restore and protect peatlands, and donate to the cause. If you are actively involved in agriculture then you can use your connections with other agricultural workers to attempt and conserve the peatlands before most of them get drained. You can also start petitions and protest against the drainage of peatlands. Also, you can source the stuff you buy so that you do not support companies who use peatland habitat to make their products. It is not easy to protect peatlands, especially if you don’t have legal rights over them, however advocating especially on social media is a good place to start.

Read More
REFLECTION QUESTION
Transportation Use Muscle Power

How do your transportation choices affect your engagement in your community? Does your experience or enjoyment differ while walking, riding transit, biking or driving?

Ena Farkas 5/05/2024 11:13 AM

By using my own body to transport myself I am helping protect my community from the emissions I would create otherwise. It can also be engaging especially if you walk with someone. It is also much more enjoyable when you are walking because you are getting healthy excersize.

Read More
REFLECTION QUESTION
Industry Research the Climate Impact of Refrigerants

What did you learn about the climate impact of refrigerants? How do supermarkets contribute to this impact?

Ena Farkas 5/02/2024 10:34 AM

The refrigerants used to keep our food cool and create our air conditioning are very harmful to the environment. Even though CFCs have been banned, HFCs are still causing harmful effects to the environment and still will until their end of life. These refrigerants contain chemicals that, once released into the atmosphere, break down the ozone in our stratosphere. This is the main cause of ozone layer depletion since mass amounts of these chemicals are still leaking into our atmosphere and eating up the ozone. The Montreal Protocol Agreement is enacted but more emissions will still be generated before they can be reduced. This, in the long term, can cause harmful effects on the environment if the ozone layer can’t protect from harmful UV rays. Supermarkets contribute greatly to these chemical emissions because of the amount of refrigerators, freezers and air conditioners they use to keep their food cool and preserved. Without them, they couldn’t keep or sell as much food so any and every supermarket has a lot of them. This creates massive emissions from refrigerants just from one market which makes it a huge contributor.

Read More
REFLECTION QUESTION
Transportation Use Public Transit

How has your access to various kinds of transportation throughout your life influenced your current attitudes about transportation and your transportation behavior?

Ena Farkas 4/29/2024 8:34 AM

Traveling by car is much nicer, however, the public transportation provided is still easy, convenient and saves a lot more fuel. Overall, it's much smarter to use public transit because it reduces emissions and it can be just as easy as taking a car.

Read More