Ecochallenge.org

Drawdown Ecochallenge

Zach Miller

The Millers

"To bring awareness to sustainable practices while also encouraging students to pursue post secondary education. "

POINTS TOTAL

0 TODAY
0 THIS WEEK
196 TOTAL

participant impact

UP TO

2.0

miles

traveled by carpool
UP TO

2.0

miles

not traveled by car
UP TO

2.0

lightbulbs

replaced
UP TO

1.0

pounds of CO2

have been saved
UP TO

60

minutes

spent exercising
UP TO

4.0

conversations

with people
UP TO

2.0

educational videos

watched
UP TO

132

minutes

spent learning

Zach's actions

Transportation

Research and Consider Switching to a Hybrid or Electric Vehicle

Electric Cars, Hybrid Cars

I will spend at least 20 minutes researching and weighing my options to see if a hybrid or electric vehicle makes sense for my lifestyle.

UNCOMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Transportation

Try Carpooling

Carpooling

I will commute by carpool 1 miles per day and avoid sending up to (___) lbs of CO2 into Earth's atmosphere.

COMPLETED 1
DAILY ACTION

Transportation

Go for a Daily Walk

Walkable Cities

I will take a walk for 60 minutes each day and take note of the infrastructure that makes walking more or less enjoyable, accessible, and possible.

COMPLETED 1
DAILY ACTION

Transportation

Explore Other Transportation Solutions

All Transportation Solutions

I will spend at least 20 minutes researching other Drawdown Transportation Solutions.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Food, Agriculture, and Land Use

Learn About Aquaculture

Improved Aquaculture

Each day, I will spend at least 10 minutes learning about sustainable aquaculture.

COMPLETED 2
DAILY ACTIONS

Transportation

Improve a Bus Stop

Public Transit

I will improve a bus stop in my neighborhood by posting the stop schedule, adding seating or shelter, adding art or flowers, picking up litter, or implementing some other small improvement.

UNCOMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Health and Education

Watch Drawdown's Climate Solutions 101 Series

Family Planning and Education

I will watch Drawdown’s Climate Solutions 101 and share what I learned with others.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Electricity

Advocate for Solar Installation

Distributed Solar Photovoltaics

I will create a plan to and advocate for solar installation at my business, apartment building, or campus.

UNCOMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Electricity

Spread the Word about Energy Alternatives

All Electricity Solutions

I will research and tell 3 people each day about the benefits of alternative energy sources like wind turbines, solar energy, geothermal energy, and methane digesters.

COMPLETED 2
DAILY ACTIONS

Electricity

Learn More about Micro Wind

Micro Wind Turbines

I will spend at least 10 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

Electricity

Learn More about Wave and Tidal Energy

Ocean Power

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

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

Choose LED Bulbs

LED Lighting

I will replace 6 incandescent lightbulbs with Energy Star-certified LED bulbs, saving up to $14 per fixture per 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?

REFLECTION QUESTION
Transportation Explore Other Transportation Solutions

What did you find out? What is the most interesting fact you learned?

Zach Miller 4/24/2024 8:20 AM

European nations are far ahead the United States in creating sustainable scooter, bike, and walking friendly cities. Sweden and France have initiatives to transform their cities into areas where people only ever need to walk or bike a max of 15 minutes to get to all local amenities including grocery stores, banks, and work. They are creating new road infrastructure that is tailored to bikes, scooters, and walking only.

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!

Zach Miller 4/24/2024 8:12 AM

I have heard of biomass technology before this challenge. One surprising fact I learned about biomass energy is that it was the largest source of energy consumption in the United States leading into the mid 1800's before fossil fuels took over.

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?

Zach Miller 4/24/2024 7:47 AM

Micro turbines could be installed at the top of large residential buildings or skyscrapers in Providence. Providence place mall and the Omni hotel are tall buildings that could potentially add micro wind.

Read More
REFLECTION QUESTION
Transportation Go for a Daily Walk

What have you noticed on your daily walks? What have you enjoyed? What infrastructure changes could make your walks more enjoyable or possible?

Zach Miller 4/24/2024 7:39 AM

I enjoy daily hour long walks on the eastern side of Providence where there are lots of plants and trees lining the sidewalks. It masks/ protects from car exhaust very well. I avoid roads where there are less trees, too much traffic because of the smell. India point park and bike parks are other areas that I frequent. They are quieter, sheltered from heavy traffic.

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REFLECTION QUESTION
Transportation Try Carpooling

List some of the places you frequent often (work, grocery store, natural areas). Could you choose one or two days a week to schedule driving with a friend, neighbor or co-worker to these places?

Zach Miller 4/24/2024 7:35 AM

I can drive with my neighbors to do our grocery shopping and we often commute together to get our takeout food.

Read More
REFLECTION QUESTION
Food, Agriculture, and Land Use Learn About Aquaculture

What was the most interesting thing to learn about sustainable aquaculture practices?

Zach Miller 4/23/2024 11:37 AM

Increasing the sustainable aquaculture practices increases the medium and long term profit margin of aquaculture farms which will allow more aquaculture investment. The faster farms begin to convert to sustainable practices, the more they will save on energy and further invest into more aquaculture farms. This is projected to also reduce the strain on oceanic fishing.

Read More
REFLECTION QUESTION
Health and Education Watch Drawdown's Climate Solutions 101 Series

What was an inspiring thing you learned in Drawdown's Climate Solutions 101 Series?

Zach Miller 4/22/2024 7:07 AM

I learned that despite several observable and non observable factors of climate change that there is room for hope for the future. Family sizes are decreasing, humans are more educated, communication is easier and people on average are healthier and living longer. That gives me hope that despite what it looks like humanity is doing to the planet, we have the tools and the capacity to educate the population en masse and create meaningful change to live more sustainably.

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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?

Zach Miller 4/22/2024 6:13 AM

I can invest in geothermal energy by educating others on the process of how it works. I was unaware about the depth that you have to go to benefit from geothermal energy. I thought that geothermal energy had to come from much further than a depth of 10-20 feet so that the installation of heatpumps below houses would be a much larger project that I realized. I think it is important to inform people of how geothermal energy works in that it is both useful in heating and cooling due to the constant temperature of the Earth just 10 feet below the surface.

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REFLECTION QUESTION
Electricity Choose LED Bulbs

Changing lightbulbs is an excellent first step toward energy efficiency! What's next for you?

Zach Miller 4/22/2024 6:07 AM

I will continue to swap low efficiency lightbulbs with high efficiency bulbs. There are also certain computer batteries and power supplies that I am going to swap to have higher efficiency and lower my energy costs.

Read More
REFLECTION QUESTION
Electricity Learn More about Wave and Tidal Energy

What did you learn about wave and tidal energy? How do they compare to other energy sources?

Zach Miller 4/22/2024 6:04 AM

Wave and tidal energy when compared to other forms of renewable energy are still relatively in their infancy stage. They are not as commonly found as solar and wind and require areas with longer tide frames to generate energy. They are typically located subsurface with turbine/paddles that turn in the ocean currents. Some of the first Tidal energy plants have been located off the coast of France.

Read More