Judy McComb

DNV GL Oak Brook IL

POINTS TOTAL

0 TODAY
0 THIS WEEK
825 TOTAL

participant impact

UP TO

1.0

documentary

watched
UP TO

8.0

hours

volunteered
UP TO

165

minutes

spent learning
UP TO

56

plastic containers

not sent to the landfill
UP TO

27

plastic straws

not sent to the landfill
UP TO

1.0

waste audit

conducted
UP TO

87

zero-waste meals

consumed

Judy's actions

Food

Minimize Packaging

I will purchase food items with the least amount of packaging.

COMPLETED 26
DAILY ACTIONS

Pets

Pet Waste

I will spend 75 minutes learning how to compost pet waste at home or research pet waste composting services available in my area.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Lifestyle

Watch a Documentary

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

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Food

Cook a Zero-Plastic Waste Meal

I will prepare 3 meal(s) at home each day without using any items packaged in single-use plastic.

COMPLETED 29
DAILY ACTIONS

Lifestyle

Complete a Waste Audit

I will conduct a waste audit - including recyclables and compost - to understand how much waste I create and where I can reduce the most.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Community

Volunteer in my Community

I will volunteer 8 hour(s) in my community.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Family

Swap the Snacks

I will swap out 1 prepackaged snacks a day for fresh fruits or veggies.

COMPLETED 29
DAILY ACTIONS

Food

Skip the Straw

I will keep 1 plastic straw(s) out of the landfill per day by refusing straws or using my own glass/metal straw.

COMPLETED 27
DAILY ACTIONS

Food

Use Reusable Containers

I will only use reusable containers instead of single-use plastic storage items (such as plastic wrap, single-use sandwich bags).

COMPLETED 27
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?

REFLECTION QUESTION
Pets Pet Waste

By composting your pet waste, you are turning waste into nutrients to feed the soil. In what other ways can you turn waste into a resource in your life?

Judy McComb 7/31/2019 7:38 AM

This topic was the perfect end to this challenge and relates to all of the waste I create - with some advanced planning (menu planning, making sure I have supplies in my car, determining what I want to buy - some recyclable plastics but the bulk in paper/cardboard/glass/aluminum), it is not hard to do better in reducing the waste I create. There is an art space here that always needs materials and scraps. This in turn creates art and is free for the artists/students. I think the main point is we always need to try to do better and if each of us does a little better, the end result will be tremendous for the planet.

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REFLECTION QUESTION
Food Minimize Packaging

With the added mindfulness of reducing your packaging, what have you noticed about the amount and type of single use plastics used for packaging when you shop in the grocery store?

Judy McComb 7/31/2019 7:29 AM

It seems like everything is packaged in plastic! It is hard to not choose something with plastic. Since I have been cooking at home for this month and I am trying to do whole foods and not prepackaged, it is easier to user my mesh bags for fruits and veggies and go to the bulk bins and use my own bags for those items as well.

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REFLECTION QUESTION
Food Use Reusable Containers

How can you think outside the box (or bag!) when it comes to disposables?

Judy McComb 7/31/2019 7:24 AM

I always make sure to have some pyrex containers in the trunk of my car in a nice bag. That way, if I am going to a restaurant or somewhere where I know I will need a container, I have it. I also have 10 mesh bags that I use for grocery shopping and when I go to the local farm to pick up produce.

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REFLECTION QUESTION
Family Swap the Snacks

How does swapping out prepackaged snacks for fresh fruit or veggies benefit your family?

Judy McComb 7/29/2019 2:48 PM

This has made me and my parents much healthier - prepackaged snacks were easy (at least I thought so), but now we have cut up veggies to have with almond butter or homemade hummus and then lots of fresh fruit that we can grab and munch on. The prep only takes a few minutes a day or every other day and it is tasty to eat fresh food throughout the day.

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REFLECTION QUESTION
Food Skip the Straw

Have you noticed a shift in your community as more messaging about reusable straws becomes mainstream? Cite some examples.

Judy McComb 7/29/2019 2:44 PM

In my local restaurants, they always put straws down as soon as you order your drink. One server told me that even if you do not use it, they have to throw away everything on the table when they are cleaning it. So now, I make sure to speak up and let them know that I have my own stainless steel straw (yes, I get lots of odd looks) and I don't need one of their straws.

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REFLECTION QUESTION
Lifestyle Watch a Documentary

Which documentary did you choose to watch? What did you learn?

Judy McComb 7/25/2019 7:14 AM

I watched Wasted! The Story of Food Waste. It was interesting, terrible (the waste), and very informative. I already compost, but it made me think about the scraps I am composting - how can I better use the whole plant in my cooking? It talks to many chefs to learn how they are using ingredients that would normally get tossed - or parts of animals or whole animals that normally aren't eaten, and changes that in order to waste nothing (or as little as possible). It shocked me how much we, as humans, throw away - we buy it and don't use it, we don't like what we buy, etc. - and how that is contributing to deforestation and climate change. I highly recommend this movie - it will change how you feel about the food you eat, prepare, and purchase.

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REFLECTION QUESTION
Food Cook a Zero-Plastic Waste Meal

Do an inventory of your kitchen to see how many single-use plastics you've used in the past. What are some resuable alternatives to these commonly used products? What would your impact be if you switched all the single-use products from your inventory to reusable?

Judy McComb 7/22/2019 7:01 AM

It has been a challenge to cook at home every day, but I have explored so many new recipes and have found great things that I will definitely continue to add to my repertoire. I also have replaced all of the plastics with reusable and sustainable alternatives. I find I use my dishwasher more often, so I am not sure if that is a sustainable alternative - but I am on a well, so at least I do not have to worry that my water bill has gone up.

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Judy McComb 7/18/2019 8:14 PM

I volunteer at a local organic farm where I subscribe every year (Community Supported Agriculture) for fresh fruits, veggies, and eggs that I pick up weekly from March 1 through November 15. So far this season I have worked 38 hours. It was easier when it was 60 degrees - when it is in the high 90s, it requires more dedication and breaks.

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Judy McComb 7/13/2019 9:15 AM

I am enjoying this challenge - it is a good way to reinforce positive actions, such as preparing meals at home with ingredients that are not in single-use plastic. It is hard to find some things, but I make different choices when faced with that situation. An example is bread. Instead of getting a pre-packaged loaf, I now go to a bakery and get fresh bread that they put in my cloth bread bag. The quality and taste are better! Next, I am going to try to make my own bread tomorrow...

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REFLECTION QUESTION
Lifestyle Complete a Waste Audit

What did you learn about the waste you create? Where can you reduce the most?

Judy McComb 7/10/2019 12:28 PM

It was interesting to conduct a waste audit! What I discovered is 30% of my waste is garbage, 10% is compost, and 60% is recyclables. I knew I constantly had several bins of recycling and only half a bag of trash when I went to the dump each week, but it never really registered with me what the difference is. I am now going to focus on eliminating the purchase of things that will need to be recycled or thrown in the trash. I have started using reusable jars or cloth bags for products that I can buy from the bulk bins. And, I joined a CSA this year and get most of my food from the farm, which I pick up in my own box. I will try to compost more things like cardboard and paper, as the earthworms that are in my compost piles are happy to eat those as well.

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