Kendyl Huston

For this week I decided to install a low flow shower head in my apartment. I had one at my parent's house so I just stopped by and asked if I could take it and use it at my apartment since that bathroom isn't really being used. My dad actually had an extra one in the garage so I took that one and installed it in my shower. It's a pretty easy process and it doesn't take too long. The shower head has different settings as well as a way to change how much water flows through. I made the flow of water as low as possible with still having the ability to shower like I usually do. I don't take very long showers (usually about 6 minutes) so I think that adds to lessening my water use. I will definitely continue to use this shower head and take it with me whenever I move!

This week I decided to track my purchases. It was an interesting week to track because it was so different compared to my weeks are normally. I did not really go grocery shopping this week except once to buy some food for my film crew. I went to Costco and found out that 12 muffins were only 8 dollars. This was a shock to me because some reason I didn't personally ever buy the muffins from Costco. I also bought a lot of gas because I commute to school which makes sense. The last thing that I really noticed was that I bought fast food a few times because I didn't have time to go to the store because of how busy I was. This was definitely mentally challenging because I didn't want to go through the drive through but I didn't feel like I had the time to go to the store. This is something I noticed that I definitely want to change!

This week I decided to walk as much as I could. I live in Vancouver WA so I have to drive to school or else it would take me multiple hours. As a student I just don't have that kind of time. So I walked where I could. I have a store across the street that I can walk to so I went there. It's a decent walk and I only cross one busy street. This makes me feel a lot better about not driving my car even though it's not that far. Any difference matters right? I walk a lot once I am on campus as well, and if I have to go somewhere else in Portland I try to take the MAX. It's definitely difficult to not drive where I live but I tried to make the most of it this week!

This week I wanted to look into what kind of petitions were circling around Washington State. Since I live in Washington (and have for basically my entire life), I was interested in what my state was doing to reduce carbon emissions. When I looked for petitions online, I came across one that our Governor, Jay Inslee, was pushing to get signed. This petition was focused on the railroads that we have crossing through populated areas and polluting everywhere they go. This petition was pushed after an oil train crashed in Oregon. The petition said it was a reminder that these railroads were harming us and the Earth that we live on. The petition was for a more sustainable railway that uses renewable energy. I think this petition is important because once we start the change from oil to renewable energy, things can start to change quickly for the average car and other things that use oil daily. I decided to sign this petition and I hope that someday it gains traction. Unfortunately, it seems like it was started many years ago, and I'm not sure what to do about that other than spread the word!

This week I decided to take a test on my ecological footprint to see what I could change about my lifestyle. I also had some friends take the test so I could compare my life to theirs, and we could talk about it. I found out that if everyone lived like me, we would need 3.4 Earths! I thought that was wild because I don't think I live a super unsustainable life. I looked back through the questions and noticed that I could reduce my garbage waste and increase my purchasing of local products. Unfortunately there isn't much I can do about where I live and how sustainable my apartment complex is, but I can do my best. I noticed with my friends that the ones of us who drove more often during the week had a higher earth count. We talked about how we could reduce our footprints and it was honestly a very insightful and helpful experience!
 
Here's a screenshot of my results! This is from footprintcalculator.org if anyone is interested in finding out their ecological footprint!

This week I decided to be more conscious about what I purchased and ate. I personally am not very good at eating leftovers, I tend to forget about them until they've gone bad. This leads to a lot of food waste which is not what I want to do. I also have noticed I eat out a lot at fast food places because it's quick and convenient for my life. This is what I decided to change this week. I didn't eat any fast food and I only had one meal that was delivered because it was my grandpa's birthday and I didn't have a say in what we were doing (however I did spend the time to educate my family on what I was learning in this class). I also tried to include more fruits and vegetables in my meals to have a more balanced diet. I feel like I could continue this past this week, and it has made me more conscious about leftovers and what I'm putting in my body in general.

This week I watched The Story of Bottled Water. I know of many people who drink bottled water, and I was curious what exactly bottled water does to our planet. Bottled water companies use energy and oil to make their plastic water bottles. They use as much oil a year as it takes to fuel a million cars. I couldn't believe that this much oil was used to package water, which is basically free in our own homes. Bottled water costs 2000 times more than tap water, and many bottled water companies use filtered tap water as their product. The fact that these companies scared Americans into believing tap water was bad for them is mind boggling. I can't help but notice that information like this continues to prove that US Companies don't care about the wellbeing of people or the planet, but only care to earn more money.

I watched Food Inc. and I was scarred but not surprised at what I saw. The way the food industry treats the animals we eat is ridiculous. I think this all goes back to that American mentality of money being the most important thing. The people who own these huge businesses like Tyson will ruin workers lives just so they can have more money and more product to sell. It felt quite unsettling and upsetting that people were treated this way. And I'm sure everyone knows how horribly the meat industry treats the animals. I think this was an important documentary to see because it showed me where my food is coming from, something that I believe everyone deserves to know.