The past couple weeks have had me going out of my way to recycle as much as I can, making a personal vow to the sustainability cause. I looked up what qualifies to go in the recycling bin and made sure my roomates and I were fully on board with only putting recyclable items in the bin. I started by making separate bins in my apartment to recycle paper, plastic, glass, and metal (I aimed to recycle metals, but we did not have any to recycle). Every time that I used something, like a plastic takeout container, an empty shampoo bottle, or an empty cereal box, I washed it/made sure it was clean and placed it in its designated bin.
Aside from regular household items, I also kept an eye out for the small things like bread tags and receipts. I stored things in jars, repurposed old clothes as cleaning rags, and donated what was still usable. It made me more mindful of what I consume and what I throw away. It's easy to forget how much trash we create, but by recycling intentionally, I felt like I was learning more about my impact and more responsible for what I leave behind. It's a tiny switch in behavior, but it makes a difference.

I found a women owned bakery and bagel shop last Summer and have since consistently returned and supported this business. I began going because it was all gluten free, but my family has always believed in supporting small businesses, especially those owned by women and people of color. Supporting such businesses are important to me because everyone has a life and often family to support, and some groups need a little more support and resources to achieve success when they are not a predominant group in a field.

During my research on waste I decided to contribute to cleaning the beach in Santa Monica where many trash was found such as plastic, styrofoam, and even sanitary products. It was a nice way to spend time with friends and it made me realize that many people are willing to help our planet since there was a huge crowd waiting to help along with me. It was so mischievous fun and I can’t wait to do it again if the occasion arises.

Throughout the week, I tried to reduce the amount of meat I consume and implement other alternatives. For instance, I tried to incorporate more tofu, nuts, beans, and additional fruits and vegetables. I found this switch to be great as I diversified the meals I typically ate and focused on types of food I liked. Additionally, I was able to create new recipes by replacing the chicken or salmon with another protein alternative. After doing this for a week, I think I would definitely incorporate more meatless meals and possible try a restaurant focused on meatless meals.

For this Eco Challenge, I committed to starting a compost bin at home. I decided to use just an old food container to use for composting. I began by collecting kitchen scraps like fruit peels, coffee grounds, and vegetable remains. The process was surprisingly straightforward, I just had to remember to put them in my little composting bin instead of in the regular trash. It felt pretty good to take a tangible step toward reducing my environmental impact.​ Reflecting on this action, I was reminded of a statistic from Project Drawdown: “Roughly one-third of all food produced worldwide is wasted. Where income is low, waste is generally unintentional and occurs on farms or during storage or distribution. In regions of higher income, food waste dominates further along the supply chain. Retailers and consumers reject food based on bumps, bruises, and coloring, or simply order, buy, and serve too much.” This made me realize how often I fall into the patterns it describes. I’ve definitely thrown out food just because it looked a little off, either too soft, too brown, or just not fresh enough, even when it was perfectly edible. I’ve also definitely been guilty of overbuying groceries, tossing out uneaten food just days later. Starting a compost bin hasn’t erased those habits overnight, but it’s made me more aware of them. Every time I clear my food remains into the compost or toss in uneaten rotten food, I think about how I could've prevented it. I consider how with a little more planning or awareness, it might not have ended up as waste at all. This challenge has shifted the way I think about food, not just what I eat, but what I waste. Composting is just one small piece of a much bigger system, but it feels like a way of taking responsibility for my impact. This challenge, along with all of the Eco Challenges, serves as a reminder that change doesn’t always have to be massive to be meaningful. I hope I can not only compost more of my waste, but figure out how to create less of it in the first place. Below is a picture of the makeshift compost bin I have been using.

For this Eco Challenge, I set aside 180 minutes to explore and appreciate a natural area near my home. I chose to visit a hiking trail that is very close to my house. While I had been there many times, I wanted to go again and experience it without any distractions. I made sure to not bring my headphones and made sure to walk and appreciate my surroundings instead of running the trail like I normally do. It was honestly a very different experience from what it usually was. Without music or a workout to focus on, I noticed many details I had overlooked before. I noticed the birds chirping, the breeze rustling through the bushes, and I noticed the other people completely neglecting their surroundings. Slowing down allowed me to feel more present and more connected to the space I was in. It made the trail feel completely different from the trail I was familiar with. One of the most interesting moments of this EcoChallenge came when I reached the peak of the trail. From there, I could see all of downtown Los Angeles spread out below me. The contrast was striking. Surrounding me were hills, trees, shrubbery, and wildlife, while in front of me was a vast landscape of buildings, roads, and human infrastructure. It made me reflect on how disconnected our urban environments can be from the natural world, and how easy it is to forget the value of the ecosystems that exist just outside of our view. This moment tied in deeply with something I read on Project Drawdown: “Emissions from tropical deforestation and forest degradation alone today are estimated at 5.1–8.4 gigatons of carbon dioxide equivalent per year—a staggering 14–21 percent of anthropogenic emissions.” Standing between nature and city, I saw firsthand the divide between the natural systems that sustain our own lives and the human systems putting it at risk. With the trail I could see the carbon being absorbed, the biodiversity being protected, and the air being cleaned. While with the city below, I saw the human energy and innovation, but also the pressures that that innovation puts on our planet. This challenge helped me realize that protecting nature starts with experiencing it and respecting it. I’ve always cared about environmental issues, but something about being physically present in that space made the urgency of our climate crisis more real. It also made me want to prioritize time in nature more regularly, not only to remind me of the wonder and excitement it brought me as a kid (as I discuss in my first paper), but also as a reminder of what we stand to lose if we don’t act. This challenge has also made me consider how I could carry this connection with nature and trees that I felt on the trail into the rest of my daily life, even when I’m at school or in the city. I’ve shared a photo from the trail at its highest point showing the divide between the city and nature, serving as a great representation of my ideas discussed in this post.