

Frida Velez
"I will help save the earth by reducing my carbon emissions, saving our waters/oceans, and defending human rights."
Points Total
- 0 Today
- 115 This Week
- 4,957 Total
Participant Impact
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up to89minutesspent learning
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up to131meatless or vegan mealsconsumed
Frida's Actions
Electricity
Carbon Footprint Calculator
Use the link below to calculate your own Carbon Footprint.
Industry
Recycle Everything I Can
Recycling
Contamination prevents what is recyclable from being recycled. I will research and recycle all materials that are accepted by local haulers or drop stations in my community, making sure to not contaminate recyclables with non-recyclables.
Action Track: Healing & Renewal
Climate Change Action
Watch the film and respond to the reflection question :)
Food, Agriculture, and Land Use
Eliminating food waste during Thanksgiving (or other big meals!)
Watch the video and respond to the reflection questions below :).
Land Sinks
Learning to Fly
Our surroundings, the environment--natural and manmade---have a huge impact on our life story. Watch the video together and then share a memory of your home, your neighborhood, or another special place that has helped you become who you are today.
Food, Agriculture, and Land Use
Reduce Animal Products
Plant-Rich Diets
I will enjoy 1 meatless or vegan meal(s) each day of the challenge.
Action Track: Justice for the Whole Community
Voting Rights
After you listen to the StoryCorp episode about voting rights, reflect on what it means to vote. Check in with the adults in your life-are they planning on voting? Why or why not?
Action Track: Justice for the Whole Community
Native Land and Practices Acknowledgement
Native Land Acknowledgement means to learn about, talk about, and show respect for the Native inhabitants of an area of land. We do this for many reasons: to correct history, protect and preserve the culture and identity of native peoples, acknowledge the role of European colonization in the loss of native lives and lands. For this activity, read about the Lenape. The tribe indigenous to Brooklyn, Queens , and Manhattan. Who are they, what was NYC like before colonization? How can we honor the Lenape today? (links below)
Health and Education
Sir David Attenborough: The Voice of Planet Earth Speaks on Climate Change
After you watch the video with your advisory, answer the reflection question below. For additional points, respond to a teammate's post!
Food, Agriculture, and Land Use
Climate Change and Wildfires: How is climate change affecting you? Our hometown? And what can we do now?
First, the article about the CA wildfires and climate change. Climate Change In Your Hometown The featured article discusses the connection between climate change and California wildfires. Another Times article, from 2018, lets you track how the number of days when temperatures hit 90 degrees Fahrenheit (32 degrees Celsius) or higher changes in your hometown over your lifetime. As you look at the graph created based on your hometown and the year you were born, what do you notice? (If you want, try entering the birth year of your parents or grandparents as well.) Then, scroll to see the climate predictions for your hometown when you are 80 years old. Continue to scroll to learn more about these predictions, and then see how your hometown compares to other parts of the country and the world using the interactive globe.
Health and Education
Become a certified Climate Ambassador!
The Climate Museum in NYC is working with local teens to form a Climate Volunteer Coalition! The first step is to educate yourself on the main talking points around climate change. Next, share your knowledge! To help you do this, the Climate Museum has produced a pocket-sized "Climate Ambassador" card. Read the instructions, print the card, cut/fold, and start talking to the people! If you don't have a printer--make your own! https://climatemuseum.org/ambassador **With parent permission** You can also sign up on the Climate Museum website for more info. You can even post a reflection that the Museum will publish on their website for all to see!
Action Track: Justice for the Whole Community
Sustainable BUGS
The goal of this action to create a more sustainable school experience for our students and staff :)
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.
Action Track: Justice for the Whole Community
Learn about 'Green Gentrification'
Multiple Solutions
I will spend at least 20 minutes learning about green gentrification and how it relates to city planning for climate action.
Action Track: Justice for the Whole Community
Learn about the Legacy of Redlining
Multiple Solutions
I will spend at least 20 minutes learning about the legacy of redlining and how city planning and environmental justice issues are interconnected.
Electricity
Learn More about Biomass
Biomass Power
I will spend at least 20 minutes learning more about the energy generation potential of biomass.
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.
Electricity
Choose Renewable Energy or Purchase Renewable Energy Credits
Onshore Wind Turbines, Utility-Scale Solar Photovoltaics
I will sign up for my utility company's clean/renewable energy option. If my utility does not offer one, I will purchase Renewable Energy Credits to match my usage.
Coastal, Ocean, and Engineered Sinks
For the love of nature
Post a photo of something from nature that you love and want to protect.
Action Track: Social Justice
Songwriting
I used my creativity and self expression to write a song about the current times. OR I researched and shared a song about the current times.
Feed
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Frida Velez 1/13/2021 6:03 AMI think Levi chose to end his memoir with the story of carbon because carbon is what makes up all life, and it's what keeps traveling from object to object, not dying even when the being that it's a part of is dying. Putting it at the end of a book kind of wraps it all up in a big idea, because carbon has to do with all of the other elements described in the book. -
Reflection QuestionElectricity Carbon Footprint CalculatorWhat can you do to either lower your carbon footprint OR "offset your carbon footprint. When you "offset" you basically pay it forward---you do something kind for the environment or another person to balance out your carbon use if you can't reduce it.
Frida Velez 1/06/2021 5:53 AMI can lower my carbon footprint by trying to replace some of my household items with more eco-friendly ones. For example, I can ask about buying low-flow toilets and showerheads, try to get an Energy Star printer, refrigerator, and/or computer, and line-dry my laundry instead of putting it in the dryer. -
Reflection QuestionIndustry Recycle Everything I CanHow could you incorporate other "R's" -- reduce, reuse, refuse, repair, repurpose, etc. -- into your lifestyle? How does considering implementing these "R's" make you feel?
Frida Velez 12/16/2020 6:01 AMI can incorporate other "R's" into my lifestyle by using as little single-use plastic as I can, putting the right things into recycling bins, using my own reusable items instead of taking disposable ones from grocery stores and restaurants, and trying to make art or something new out of the items I might not be able to recycle. Considering implementing these "R's" makes me feel satisfied, because if I do these, then I know that I've done my part to help the planet. -
Reflection QuestionAction Track: Healing & Renewal Climate Change ActionWhat's one thing you can do in your daily life to slow down and appreciate our world--the people and the planet? How can you concentrate on doing more "good" instead of competing for "the best"? How has competing to be the best contributed to human impact on the environment?
Frida Velez 12/02/2020 5:49 AMOne thing I can do in my daily life to slow down and appreciate our world is eating food locally, because I should try to appreciate the plants and animals from my area more. Also, a way that I can concentrate on doing more good instead of competing for the best is not wasting as much food, because it's okay to eat leftovers, and you don't need to throw out every leftover just so you can make a different meal every day. Finally, competing to be the best has contributed to human impact on the environment because big companies battle each other every day to buy pieces of land that they can get oil, water, wood, and other resources from. But it shouldn't be about constantly finding new resources, it should be about making good use of the ones we already have. -
Reflection QuestionFood, Agriculture, and Land Use Eliminating food waste during Thanksgiving (or other big meals!)What is one method of food waste reduction (or food saving!) Priya and Dominique talk about in the video What is one thing you can do this Thanksgiving weekend to cut down on food waste (and other types of waste!)
Frida Velez 11/25/2020 6:04 AMOne method of food waste reduction that Priya and Dominique talked about in the video was donating the seeds from the peppers they used to a local garden instead of throwing them out. One thing I can do to cut down on food waste is to use the wrappers of sticks of butter to coat pans and other things to keep the food from sticking to them. This stops me from having to use another stick of butter or bottle of oil, and it gives me a way to use the wrapper before it gets thrown out.-
Jess Norris 11/25/2020 6:08 AMthat is such a good idea Frida thanks!
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Reflection QuestionCoastal, Ocean, and Engineered Sinks For the love of natureDescribe your photo and why you chose it!
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Reflection QuestionLand Sinks Learning to FlyWatch the video together and then share a memory of your home, your neighborhood, or another special place that has helped you become who you are today.
Frida Velez 10/28/2020 5:51 AMA special place that has shaped who I am today is my grandmother's condo in Tennessee. It might not seem that important, but ever since I was little, my mom's side of the family has had a tradition of coming together there for Christmas. It doesn't matter where any of us are, or what we're doing, we still have to come to my grandmother's house and see each other once a year. It's really grounding, because it reminds me that if I want to do something important with my life, I have to still remember those close to me, and try to see them whenever I can. Fortunately, I've never had anything in the way of visiting my family during Christmas, but some of my cousins have, and it's really inspiring to picture them using their precious vacation days from work just to see me and everyone else for a few days. My grandmother's house is a place that we can always come back to, and it's been her home for so long that it feels like it'll always be there, bringing us together. -
Reflection QuestionAction Track: Justice for the Whole Community Voting RightsWhat does it mean to be able to vote? Should the voting age be lowered to 16?
Frida Velez 10/21/2020 5:45 AMWhat it means to be able to vote is to have a say in who leads, represents, and defends the place you live. Everyone has different interests and needs, which is why there are multiple candidates that run for every office. If a group of people with a certain interest or need aren't able to vote, or simply not wanting to vote, then their interests and needs will not be represented in the election, and someone might be elected who doesn't emphasize what they want.
The voting age should be lowered to 16, because even thought they're kids, they're still really smart and can mostly make good decisions. 16-year-olds and older still matter in the election, too, and lowering the voting age will help with the representation of younger people and kids more. -
Reflection QuestionAction Track: Justice for the Whole Community Native Land and Practices AcknowledgementWrite a native land acknowledgement. I stand on ___________ land. The _________________ took care of the land by _______________. I promise to preserve the story and culture of the Lenape by ___________.
Frida Velez 10/14/2020 5:50 AMI stand on Lenape land. The Lenape took care of the land by preserving its most vulnerable natural areas. I promise to preserve the story and culture of the Lenape by learning about these important sites and telling what I've learned to others. -
Reflection QuestionHealth and Education Sir David Attenborough: The Voice of Planet Earth Speaks on Climate ChangeWhat question would you ask Sir David Attenborough? Post a picture of your favorite outdoor spot in NY
Frida Velez 10/07/2020 5:57 AMA question I would ask Sir David Attenborough would be, "How do humans fit into the earth's ecosystem?"
https://images.app.goo.gl/HRrc7HSBAw1zKm7G8
Brooklyn Bridge Park-
Jay Sontag 10/08/2020 6:38 AMWhat a great question! I'm sure your science teachers have the answer :)
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