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Laura Maple's avatar

Laura Maple

Community Team

POINTS TOTAL

  • 0 TODAY
  • 0 THIS WEEK
  • 0 TOTAL

participant impact

  • UP TO
    14
    whole food meals
    consumed
  • UP TO
    2.0
    miles
    traveled by bus
  • UP TO
    4.5
    pounds of CO2
    have been saved
  • UP TO
    2.0
    documentaries
    watched
  • UP TO
    2.0
    petitions
    signed

Laura's actions

Visions of Sustainability

Support a Sharing Economy

I will create or support a sharing economy with family, friends, and neighbors.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Consumption and Economy

Watch a Documentary

I will watch one of the films suggested in the additional resources and discuss it with friends or family.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Transportation

Use Public Transit

I will use public transit 2 mile(s) each day this week and avoid sending up to 4.54 lbs of CO2 into Earth's atmosphere.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Community

Sign a Petition

I will sign a petition in support of an environmental or social initiative in my state.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Water

Say No to Plastic

Plastic bags and small plastic pieces like straws are most likely to get swept into our waterways. This week, I'll say "no" to plastic bags at the store and plastic straws in all of my drinks.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Water

Learn About My Watershed

I will find local resources for learning about my watershed and the particular water issues my region faces.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Food

Whole Foods Diet

I will enjoy 2 meal(s) free of processed foods each day this week.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Ecological Principles

Recycle Everything I Can

I will recycle all materials that are accepted by local haulers or drop stations in my community this week.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

A Call to Sustainability

Watch a Documentary

I will watch a movie about a sustainability issue I would like to know more about.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

A Call to Sustainability

Explore My Area

I will explore at least one new hiking trail or nature walk in my area.

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?


  • Laura Maple's avatar
    Laura Maple 3/02/2022 9:21 PM
    My friend and I had a clothing swap and brought items we didn't feel like we were wearing anymore. We're not quite the same size, but close enough that we can share shirts and jackets. I think I made out way better than her in the end because my friend is very fashion-forward and does marketing for a clothing retailer. So I have some "new to me" shirts and a jacket that needs a button sewn on it. I would love to be able to expand the clothing swap to a larger group of people, but it may present some logistical issues. For one, not everyone is the same size. Second, I found it very vulnerable! It feels very vulnerable to show up with stuff to offer and watch someone decide whether or not they want it, even if it's your best friend. But it does feel good to know that the stuff we did swap is going to be enjoyed and worn and not thrown in a landfill or sit in a thrift store for eternity.

    • Naomi Bojorquez's avatar
      Naomi Bojorquez 3/03/2022 7:46 PM
      I wish I knew of more clothing swaps! It is something I will look into. I tend to have clothes that do not fit right or might get better use from someone else. It would be nice to trade, so it does not feel like I am losing money when I get rid of fashion pieces.

    • Reganne Harding's avatar
      Reganne Harding 3/02/2022 11:00 PM
      I think clothing swaps are pretty fun but I haven't done one in awhile. Like you mentioned none of my friends are really my size so it would be hard to find stuff that works for both of us to swap. It's definitely a good feeling to know someone is getting use out of your old stuff though!

  • Laura Maple's avatar
    Laura Maple 2/23/2022 10:11 PM
    I watched the first two episodes of a docu-series on Netflix about our consumerism culture called Broken. The first episode was about the makeup industry and the second episode was about the tobacco/vaping industry. Environmental consequences weren't discussed and I wish they were, but it wasn't too hard to imagine. The makeup one focuses on the marketing of makeup with social media and how that feeds into people buying counterfeit makeup. Apparently, most counterfeit makeup is purchased online and can contain harmful ingredients. Three environmental consequences came to my mind: 1) makeup products that get thrown away when the consumer wants to buy the next big thing 2) companies sending an excess of PR products to influencers so some of it never is used and it gets thrown away and 3) no regulation in counterfeit makeup production so who knows what toxic fumes or runoff they could be emitting? The environmental consequences were less obvious to me with the second episode, but I think marketing an addictive product is peak consumerism. I know cigarettes are a big plastic polluter, but I wonder how e-cigarettes compare in plastic pollution? The main component and the pods are made with plastic and there's also a battery. I will definitely be watching the rest of the series because it has been pretty eye-opening about how prevalent consumerism is and how efficient marketing is.

    • Kendyl Huston's avatar
      Kendyl Huston 2/23/2022 10:35 PM
      Hi Laura! This is very interesting, I definitely want to check it out! I personally don't use makeup so I don't think about it often and the environmental impacts it has. You talk about trends basically when you are saying that people throw stuff away to buy the next big thing. I feel like that applies to clothes as well! Fashion is going in and out of style and people throw away the clothes they don't think are "in" anymore. Super interesting, thanks for sharing!

  • Laura Maple's avatar
    Laura Maple 2/16/2022 9:32 PM
    This week I tried to be intentional about taking public transportation to campus. Unfortunately, there aren't great options for bus riding near me, so the bus isn't a practical option for me to use to get around my area. The max works great for getting to campus, though, and there's a park and ride pretty close to me. I did the math and taking the max to campus saves me 8.8 miles round trip. I typically go to campus twice a week so that's 17.6 miles saved per week. That's not quite a gallon of gas in my car, but it adds up, especially if I get a ride from someone else since I don't have a parking pass. If someone drops me off, goes back home, then comes back to pick me up then it would be 28.8 miles more than me taking the max just for one trip to class. Now that REALLY adds up. That really puts things into perspective because campus doesn't *seem* that far away since it's just right off the freeway. The park and ride system works really well for me because the buses in my area don't really feed into the transit centers/max stops. For example, the buses near me only go to Willow Creek TC (that's with a transfer, too) which is way more west than I want for heading into Portland, and it's not even the closest max transit center to me. Point is, I think the park and rides incentivize people to take max since it makes it easy. I'm happy because sunset tc is expanding the parking area and it's needed that for years. Before the pandemic, it was nearly impossible to get a parking spot in the garage on a weekday.

    • Daniel Tapia Silva's avatar
      Daniel Tapia Silva 2/16/2022 10:21 PM
      I had no idea about the Sunset TC parking lot expanding! As you said, it's been needing that for years. I do believe that more people would take public transit if it was more convenient and just as timely. 

  • Laura Maple's avatar
    Laura Maple 2/09/2022 9:51 PM
    I wanted to choose petitions from sources that seemed reputable and not just change.org petitions. The first one I found was a petition for electric car charging stations in Oregon state parks. I think that's a fantastic idea, especially since so many state parks require a car to get around them, but cars aren’t great for the environment, as we know. While we often talk about how gas-powered cars are bad collectively for the environment, the local impacts can be even more direct than greenhouse gases. The runoff from gas-powered cars can directly harm local watersheds, and the noise from gas-powered cars can disturb local wildlife. Here's a link if anyone else is interested in signing this one. I found another petition through that same site, Environment Oregon, about reducing single-use plastics, specifically foams like Styrofoam cups and containers. There was a linked article about how all of Oregon's waterways now contain microplastics. Which is.... unsurprising, but still depressing. This petition is linked here. Note: after signing these petitions, it will redirect you to a page asking to donate. I think the signature still counts without donating. I think finding a few local organizations and supporting them by donating, volunteering, and/or signing petitions is good and connects you to the community.

    • Janny  Lai's avatar
      Janny Lai 2/09/2022 11:08 PM
      The electric car charging stations in state parks is a great idea but definitely have a limited targeted audience. As you said, cars aren't great for the environment and electric cars are also expensive. I've talked to a coworker who recently moved from Chicago and he was talking to me about the differences in public transport and how Chicago has a much faster and more efficient system than ours. I think something that could reduce car use is having a better public transportation system! 

    • Reganne Harding's avatar
      Reganne Harding 2/09/2022 10:30 PM
      It's always depressing to hear about the expanse of micro plastics. Seems like such a hard problem to solve too. Styrofoam really should have been banned as soon as we learned about the negative effects of plastic, but I'm glad that many Portland businesses avoid using it. 

  • Laura Maple's avatar
    Laura Maple 2/02/2022 10:59 PM
    Okay this week I also learned a lot about our local watershed. The city of Portland has a bunch of information on the website. I found a report for 2019 (unfortunately I don't see a more recent report) that rated areas of our watershed on hydrology, habitat, fish and wildlife, and water quality. Fish & wildlife and habitat seem to be the worst areas. Hydrology isn't looking great either. Highly recommend you check it out here. Some main issues affecting our watershed is pollution, invasive species, and runoff from streets. There's a project going on called "Percent for Green Grants," providing grants to community organizations focused on "green infrastructure" that would benefit our local watersheds. There's also an initiative going on called "Green Street Stewards" in Portland which help absorb rainwater. One issue affecting the Bull Run Watershed especially, is the fact that our climate sort of acts like we have a wet/dry season. The summers are very dry and we use more than is replenished in the summer, which isn't good.


  • Laura Maple's avatar
    Laura Maple 2/02/2022 10:43 PM
    This week I tried to cut out as much plastic as I could. There were some successes and some fails. Using mesh produce bags at the store is a pretty easy switch instead of the plastic produce bags. Unfortunately, this is not always something that can be switched. The potatoes I bought the other day came in a plastic bag. I probably could have made sure to buy the potatoes individually or shopped somewhere else, but I honestly didn't think about that at the time. I did successfully avoid all pre-cut/pre-washed produce this week, which is a huge win as far as saving plastic. Instead of storing food in ziplocs I made sure to only use stashers or containers. There are so many containers designed for keeping greens and other produce fresh nowadays so you can really save plastic by washing and cutting up stuff in advance instead of buying pre-cut/pre-washed. (Side note: just the other day my friend pointed out how ironic it is that Trader Joes has compostable produce bags but a good majority of their produce is actually already packaged. I think we need to put pressure on companies like that to make a change or vote with our dollar by not buying those items.) All in all, I definitely thought about my plastic use more this week.

    • Kobie Arnold's avatar
      Kobie Arnold 2/03/2022 4:15 AM
      It is definitely best to buy produce in their "pure" form (whole). Mostly because you have more control over the plastic content but also because it keeps the food for longer. Some vegetables and herbs you can even store in a damp cloth, instead of containers, to keep them fresher longer. I think New Seasons is pretty good at using compostable bags with less packaging but certainly not great when it comes to other products.

    • Ethan Shubert's avatar
      Ethan Shubert 2/02/2022 11:41 PM
      I also tried to cut out plastics this week. I didn't have an issue with shopping bags, drinking straws, or plastic bottles, but I didn't consider the plastic bags for pre-cut/pre-washed produce. It would be cool if that produce already came in compostable bags. And yeah, it is always interesting to see hypocritical business practices in terms of sustainable options, like your example of Trader Joe's.

  • Laura Maple's avatar
    Laura Maple 1/26/2022 8:47 PM
    I think 2 meals a day free of processed foods is pretty manageable for me. It gives me room to get a meal out or eat something quick for a meal. My breakfast didn't need to be altered: I usually just eat plain oatmeal with nuts and dried fruit or apple butter. I've been eating a lot of salads and soups this week. I think prepping some of the ingredients ahead of time (anything that needs to be cooked or can be chopped and stored) would help me in the future, because making lunch from scratch can be a lot of work everyday. 

    • Kaylee Fujita's avatar
      Kaylee Fujita 1/27/2022 8:18 AM
      Hi Laura! Prepping ahead is one of my favorite things to save time. I don't know how much actual time it saves me throughout the week, but it feels so nice to be tired after a long day and only have to throw everything together for dinner. I agree, making lunch from scratch is pretty tough. I normally can't find the energy for that, so I mainly eat my leftovers for lunch. Props to you for making all these changes! 

    • Daniel Tapia Silva's avatar
      Daniel Tapia Silva 1/26/2022 10:01 PM
      I have the same struggle! Prepping things the night before is for sure the way to go, especially when trying to stay away from processed foods. Starting from scratch every day is time-consuming and sometimes we don't have that time. 

  • Laura Maple's avatar
    Laura Maple 1/19/2022 1:29 PM
    Here are some things I learned: 
    -Market of Choice takes corks to recycle
    -Metro has occasional hazardous waste events and they take batteries, among other hazardous waste items. It's not entirely clear from the website if those batteries actually get recycled or not, though.
    -some UPS stores will take packing peanuts
    -Agilyx is a company that takes hard to recycle items, like styrofoam, foam cups, bread bag clips, etc.
    -Metro may also take lightbulbs--but not in curbside recycling because that can be dangerous
    -Far West Recycling will take electronics and some metal items 

    • Kaylee Fujita's avatar
      Kaylee Fujita 1/19/2022 5:29 PM
      Hi Laura,
      Wow you found so many resources! This is really helpful for me. I've only ever recycled cans, bottles, and cardboard boxes so it's been on my mind that I need to start recycling other things too. I'll definitely have to look into these places. I wonder what they do with the bread bag clips? Those little plastic things are the worst -- I always end up ripping the plastic bag with them so I normally throw them out as soon as I get home and replace them with clothespins. Now I can take them somewhere!
      Thanks so much for sharing!

    • Jessie Quandt's avatar
      Jessie Quandt 1/19/2022 4:38 PM
      Hi Laura,
      This is an awesome post! I am starting recycling in my apartment for my eco change project so this post is super helpful. I really like finding places that take batteries to recycle because I never want to throw them out in the normal trash. Electronics are always really tricky because the materials used to make them are not easily recycled. Thank you so much for sharing!
      -Jessie :) 

  • Laura Maple's avatar
    Laura Maple 1/12/2022 12:58 PM
    I watched "Fantastic Fungi" on Netflix. It was really interesting and I learned a lot about fungi. My one criticism of the doc was that they presented the "Stoned Ape Theory" with no counterpoints. I looked it up afterwards and this theory seems to have little to no scientific evidence backing it up, so it's disappointing that they would present it as extremely plausible in a science-oriented documentary. 

    • Caeman Lipsey's avatar
      Caeman Lipsey 1/12/2022 7:25 PM
      Yeah, but the idea has some merit. I read the book "entangled life" about the connections between plants, fungi, and animals and it made the theory understandable as well as lay out a couple others theories about how it could have come about. Many animals seek inebriation, bees will drink intoxicating  nectar, a herd of elephants raided a liquor warehouse in India, and mongoose will eat hallucinogenic mushrooms, so the idea is not totally random. 

  • Laura Maple's avatar
    Laura Maple 1/11/2022 3:56 PM
    On Sunday it was nice outside so I decided to go for a nature walk. My boyfriend and I took his dog to Orchard Park, in Hillsboro, which has a short loop and some footbridges over water. There were a lot of people outside enjoying nature--playing disc golf, walking their dogs, etc. We saw a lot of birds and a fat squirrel. It was nice and the dog enjoyed walking a different route.