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October 11 - October 25, 2017
Paul Wolfe's avatar

Paul Wolfe

Inclusion Inc

"Working to reduce consumption, waste, and keep the watershed clean to reduce the strain our garbage and plastics have on sea life!"

POINTS TOTAL

  • 0 TODAY
  • 0 THIS WEEK
  • 1,342 TOTAL

participant impact

  • UP TO
    289
    gallons of water
    have been saved
  • UP TO
    7.0
    letters or emails
    sent to public officials or leaders
  • UP TO
    14
    locally sourced meals
    consumed
  • UP TO
    48
    pounds of CO2
    have been saved

Paul's actions

Energy

Consider Switching to an Electric Vehicle

I will research or test drive an electric car or bike.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Water

Install a Low-Flow Showerhead

I will save up to 15 gallons (56 L) of water a day by installing a low-flow showerhead.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Water

Install a Toilet Tank Bank

I will reduce the amount of water flushed and save up to 11 gallons (41 L) of water per day by installing a toilet tank bank.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Food

Advocate for More Food Options

I will advocate for local and/or organic food options at my school, grocery market, or workplace.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Water

Fix Leaky Faucets

I will fix faucets or report leaky faucets to facilities that have been wasting up to 9 gallons (34 L) of water per faucet every day.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Energy

Upgrade My Windows

I will upgrade the windows or weatherstripping in my home or office to reduce air leaks and save on energy costs.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Community

Raise Money For a Nonprofit

I will raise money to support Northwest Earth Institute or another local nonprofit.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Food

Try a New Way to Prep

I will try a new method of food preparation, such as canning, pickling, or baking bread.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Transportation

Drive Less

I will cut my car trip mileage by only taking necessary trips.

COMPLETED 3
DAILY ACTIONS

Energy

Online Energy Audit

I will complete an online energy audit of my home, office, or dorm room and identify my next steps for saving energy.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Energy

Power Down the Computer

I will power down my computer and monitor when not using it for more than 2 hours, saving up to (1.1) lbs of CO2 per day that I do this.

COMPLETED 11
DAILY ACTIONS

Waste

Lobby for Reusables

I will lobby my workplace to have reusable dishes and silverware in order to minimize disposables.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Simplicity

Eat Mindfully

I will eat all of my meals without distractions, e.g., phone, computer, TV, or newspaper.

COMPLETED 14
DAILY ACTIONS

Simplicity

Limit Social Media

I will limit my social media use to once per day.

COMPLETED 4
DAILY ACTIONS

Community

Share My Actions

I will make my environmental actions visible with a lawn sign or bumper sticker, or by posting to my social media networks.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Waste

Find Local Recycling Depots

I will find out where to recycle the recyclable items that I can't put in my curbside bin.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Food

Buy From a Farmers Market

I will purchase produce and meat from a local farmers market or food co-op.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Food

Locally-Sourced Meals

I will source 1 meal(s) per day from local producers.

COMPLETED 14
DAILY ACTIONS

Waste

Visit a Waste Management Facility

I will visit a local dump/transfer station, material recovery facility, and/or landfill to learn about the waste stream.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Community

Connect with a Nonprofit

I will connect with a local nonprofit, environmental or otherwise, and find out how I can get involved or become a member.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Simplicity

De-Clutter My Home

I will de-clutter, clean, and donate or recycle unneeded items in my home.

COMPLETED 11
DAILY ACTIONS

Nature

Join An Outdoor Project

I will join an outdoor restoration project in my community.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Waste

Reduce Unwanted Mail

I will reduce the amount of unwanted mail I receive (catalogs, phone books, etc.).

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Community

Express My Support

I will find out who in my state makes decisions that impact the environment and express my support for more environmental actions.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Health

Happiness

I will write down three things every day for two weeks that I am grateful for, or send one email every day thanking or praising someone.

COMPLETED 14
DAILY ACTIONS

Health

Support Pollution Reduction

I will learn about water and air quality issues in my area, how they are impacting human and environmental health, and how I can help.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Simplicity

Track my Purchases

I will maintain a record of all my purchases.

COMPLETED 15
DAILY ACTIONS

Food

Watch a Documentary

I will watch a documentary film about food with family and friends and talk about what we learned.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Water

5-Minute Showers

I will save up to 20 gallons (75 L) of water each day by taking 5-minute showers.

COMPLETED 8
DAILY ACTIONS

Community

Write Letters or Emails

I will write 1 letter(s) or email(s) per day to a public official or company to advocate for planet-friendly policies or something else I believe in.

COMPLETED 7
DAILY ACTIONS

Create Your Own Action

Clean a Beach

I surf a lot and always see litter on the beach. I usually remove what I see, however, this challenge is to actively look for litter for an extended period and remove it for trash/recycling

COMPLETED 2
DAILY ACTIONS

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?


  • Paul Wolfe's avatar
    Paul Wolfe 10/25/2017 4:30 PM
    Well those 5 years of hippie college finally paid off because I won the dang plant!  And despite whatever rumors Lara's been spreading around the office, I was NOT taking selfies with it in my office!  I was.. um.. just photographing the plant and... uh... the light was too bright and I needed to hold it at a certain angle to get the colors right.  Yeah that's the ticket!

    Thanks Inclusion for putting together the challenge!  It was very fun.  I tried to make it to the top 20 to rep us, but I was beat out by some middle-schoolers and a suspiciously prolific team that rallied out of nowhere to drop me out.  Whatever-- at least I have my new bud, Sally Fields, to keep me company while I sit in my office stewing with resentment! 

    jk-- eco cred's all well and good, but I got plant and an awesome new thermos/lunch bag, which is all I really wanted to begin with : )
         



    • Mitzi Sugar's avatar
      Mitzi Sugar 10/25/2017 11:36 PM
      Ha ha ha!  Please post said picture, Paul - we want to see your plant selfie...I mean the pictures you took of your plant.  ;)  And ranking in the top 30 out of over 12,000 participants is incredible!!  Great job!

  • Paul Wolfe's avatar
    Paul Wolfe 10/24/2017 10:05 PM
    Finally made it to a proper beach to do some cleaning. Daylight was limited and I had some business to attend to ( insert Shaka emoji here) so I didn't get to clean as much as I would have otherwise.

    HOWEVER I found, yet again, a bunch of broken glass on the beach and, yet again, picked up as much as I could. I cannot cannot cannot stand glass on the beach. Even if you're a somewhat decent human being and don't intend to smash your Miller High Life on the rocks (like someone evidently did today) accidents happen and it's really hard to clean up. Freaks me out just thinking about it, so here's a picture of the sunset!
    Please no glass on beach. 

    • DeeAnn Donaldson's avatar
      DeeAnn Donaldson 10/25/2017 11:15 AM
      Love that ocean shot so pretty.  I bet the surf was wonderful and such beautiful weather.  Plus you picked up some glass.  Congrats on getting that plant you deserve it but please keep it alive, ha!!

    • Mitzi Sugar's avatar
      Mitzi Sugar 10/24/2017 10:24 PM
      Gorgeous sunset!  I don't know how you find the hours in the day to do all you're doing. ;)  Thanks for keeping our beaches clean, Paul!

  • Paul Wolfe's avatar
    Paul Wolfe 10/23/2017 12:52 PM
    Finally decided to check off raising money for a nonprofit.  In response to #metoo, I've raised about $100 for Call to Safety, but feel conflicted about claiming plant points for this,  since  it feels disingenuous and also isn't exactly what motivated this effort.  However, I've also raised $90 for Surfrider and donated a painting to Musician's Union that they might be able to get at least $20 for, so I concluded that the combination effectively completes this challenge. 

    BTW, I learned last week that you can start fundraisers on Facebook.  It's really easy to use and somewhat effective too!  Just delete your payment info after contributing, because that's probably not info you want FB to have!  

  • Paul Wolfe's avatar
    Paul Wolfe 10/22/2017 10:54 AM
    Excited to have linked up with the Confluence Project and will be heading out to Sandy River Delta next week to help with trail maintenance.  I didn't know there was a Maya Lin sculpture out there (she designed the Vietnam Memorial in DC) and excited to not only see it, but also contribute to it's upkeep!   

  • Paul Wolfe's avatar
    Paul Wolfe 10/21/2017 8:23 PM
    Busy day today! Moved a whole bunch of clutter and hazardous chemicals to Central Transfer (see below pic, hazard station is kinda trippy). Afterwards did a bunch of plumbing projects, fixing a faulty toilet and installing low flow showerhead, plus installing low flow aerators on several sinks. Then shrink wrapped/weatherproofed a bunch of windows to save energy. Feeling proud of accomplishments and excited to save a little money as well! 



  • Paul Wolfe's avatar
    Paul Wolfe 10/20/2017 2:04 PM
    Donated a painting to Portland's Musician Union as part of my de-cluttering  effort.  This was really fun because I got to write a somewhat bizarre email to the teamsters explaining the content (which is pretty much a satirical take on the rapture, featuring Jimi Hendrix). and then drop it off and learn more about the work they're doing. The union board were fairly open to the gift, but my sec. treasurer, Mont Chris, was STOKED and may commandeer it for his office.   I suggested the union auction it off when they get bored of it and they were into that idea.  They think it'll raise some $$$, which is always nice for an artist to hear! 


  • Paul Wolfe's avatar
    Paul Wolfe 10/19/2017 2:12 PM
    I plan to go to Central Transfer this weekend to dump some clutter, but for some reason I thought going to a water treatment plant was it's own unique challenge and so I scheduled a tour at the Columbia Blvd. facility.  Turns out I'm doubling down on the same Visit Waste Facility goal, but that's ok-- the Columbia tour was informative and the site itself has this beautiful Frank Lloyd Wright aesthetic happening.  What impressed me most, is how the plant incorporates organic processes (such as large scale bacterial filtration) in the water treatment cycle, as well as how they're utilizing waste byproduct, specifically methane, to generate electricity to run the plant and also eventually be used to power city vehicles as well.  As for where all the solid waste goes, it's neutralized and shipped out to Eastern Oregon to be used as fertilizer for wheat and corn crops, as well as cattle land. 

    And for those wondering about the elephant in the river, YES, the Willamette is safe to swim in!  The Big Pipe isn't moving waste out of the river, but actually storing waste overflow that occurs on days when waste runoff exceeds what the treatment facility is capable of handling.  Sometimes there are spills from older pipes that fail, but the river moves runoff out pretty quickly, so by and large the river is safe for swimming, salmon fishing, boating, and all that fun stuff.  Phew!

  • Paul Wolfe's avatar
    Paul Wolfe 10/18/2017 12:08 PM
    Called Gov. Brown today to thank her for her continued conservation efforts and extend support for opposing any reduction of Cascade=Siskiyou NM.  Also plugged the Oregon Beach Bill (which turned 50 this year!)-- if you're unfamiliar with this legislation, it essentially preserved 100s of miles of Oregon coastline for public access.  Next time you drive down the 101 and see names like Samuel Boardman or Oswald West on the state park signs, tip your hat to them because they were key players in getting that bill passed!    

  • Paul Wolfe's avatar
    Paul Wolfe 10/17/2017 11:32 PM
    So I've been tracking my purchases, which is pretty easy for me, since over the past few years I've phased out a lot of unnecessary expenses (coffee shop, whole foods salad bar, alcohol, etc) .  One thing I've noticed is, despite my best efforts, how food costs really add up, especially if I go local or organic.  Does anyone have any advice on how to save money on food?  I eat pretty small portions throughout the day, but still I find it just adds up quicker than I expect.  Is anyone else tracking their purchases and if so, what are you spending on food throughout the week?  I'm at about $120 since the challenge began! Ack!        

    • Paul Wolfe's avatar
      Paul Wolfe 10/19/2017 3:35 PM
      DeeAnn, Mitzi-- thanks for the resources.  A good portion of my income goes toward burritos, so maybe I can use these resources to plan my burritos, determine appropriate amount of burrito ingredients, and (gulp) try to cook the burritos myself!

    • Mitzi Sugar's avatar
      Mitzi Sugar 10/19/2017 8:31 AM
      When I started focusing on eating more local/organic, I too was struck by how my monthly food costs were increasing.  Then I took a look at just how much food I was wasting (purchasing and then throwing away due to it going bad before I could eat it, not planning meals out thoughtfully, etc.).  I realized that every time I cleaned out my fridge or cupboard and threw away expired foods or past-its-prime produce and leftovers, it was like throwing cash away.  

      When I'm more mindful of how and when I purchase food, and when I make a more conscious effort to eat everything I buy, I find that my food costs are more manageable.  Here in the Metro area, there's an "Eat Smart, Waste Less" Campaign to try to address this common problem.  Here are a few resources/articles that you might find interesting:
      http://www.eatsmartwasteless.com/about-the-challenge
      http://www.oregonlive.com/cooking/2015/10/fighting_food_costs_cutting_th.html#incart_river_index_topics


    • DeeAnn Donaldson's avatar
      DeeAnn Donaldson 10/18/2017 6:58 PM
      I would suggest that you check out Imperfect Produce.  You can pick and choose what you want, have it delivered based on your request e.g weekly, monthly, it stops waste at local produce warehouses and is very cheap.  Here is the website.
      https://www.imperfectproduce.com/

    • Paul Wolfe's avatar
      Paul Wolfe 10/18/2017 2:38 PM
      Good advice, Andrea.  Thanks!  

    • Andrea Adee's avatar
      Andrea Adee 10/18/2017 11:53 AM
      Buy in bulk (costco is awesome).  Make enough dinner to last at least through the next day's lunch or dinner so you aren't scrambling for a meal and end up eating out.  While "going organic" is all the rage now, to be deemed organic, that doesn't necessarily mean "better." It just means that grower/farmer complies with the minimum requirement to be organic.  Research natural ways to wash veggies/fruit and buy grass-fed/pasture raised meats. :)

  • Paul Wolfe's avatar
    Paul Wolfe 10/16/2017 1:02 PM
    The other night my gal pal and I tried to watch "Food Choices" on Netflix.  Had to turn it off 15 minutes in  when an interviewee asserted that since poultry is our culture's major source of protein and that these are "vegetarian birds", we likewise can get protein primarily from plants just as chickens do.  Now I'm no biologist, but I'm pretty sure that's not how it works.  

    So, we watched Food Inc instead, the agenda of which was supplemented with facts, data and personal experiences, and proved far more effective in helping me and Becca reassess our diet and food sources.  At the very least, I want to commit to buying more humanely sourced meat and vegetables, as well as support local businesses/farmers.  Knew this was important already, but turned a blind-eye in order to save money.  Will work on this by buying better food and eating smaller portions.     

    • Paul Wolfe's avatar
      Paul Wolfe 10/17/2017 11:21 PM
      Thanks, Mitzi.  I'm glad we watched it.  We avoided it at first because we thought it would be too depressing, but it was really informative.  I even went back to the co op the next day and bought a week's worth of groceries... or a few day's worth at least : )    

    • Mitzi Sugar's avatar
      Mitzi Sugar 10/16/2017 9:20 PM
      Glad you found a good food documentary!  Watching Food Inc inspired significant changes to my food choices and purchases as well.