Peninnah Ziegler

SCZ - Gorilla

"Making conscious decisions about plastic! "

POINTS TOTAL

0 TODAY
0 THIS WEEK
1,058 TOTAL

participant impact

UP TO

20

disposable cups

not sent to the landfill
UP TO

155

pieces of litter

picked up
UP TO

31

plastic straws

not sent to the landfill

Peninnah's actions

Community

Keep My Community Clean

I will pick up 5 piece(s) of litter each day.

COMPLETED 31
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 31
DAILY ACTIONS

Food

Minimize Packaging

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

COMPLETED 21
DAILY ACTIONS

Lifestyle

Buy Only What I Need

I will not buy anything except items required for health and safety.

COMPLETED 20
DAILY ACTIONS

Food

Use a Reusable Mug / Collapsible Cup

I will avoid sending 1 disposable cup(s) to the landfill per day by using a reusable mug or bringing my own collapsible cup.

COMPLETED 20
DAILY ACTIONS

Create Your Own Action

Cereal Bags

Inspired by Kayla, I will recycle my cereal bags here in the CLC this month.

COMPLETED 16
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?

Peninnah Ziegler 7/31/2019 9:43 AM

Today is the last day of our annual challenge! I've discovered some new products, limited what I buy, and generally had a lot of fun tracking my plastic-free progress. Much like last year, I hope to keep these new habits in place throughout the year.

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Peninnah Ziegler 7/28/2019 6:25 PM

How do you handle caustic people when you’re trying to be more plastic free? After the guy behind me on line at the grocery heard me talk about Plastic Free July, he asked the clerk to double bag all of his items in plastic because of “that hippy.” I didn’t know what to say. (I am a bit of a hippy.)

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- Roseann Giambro 7/31/2019 7:38 AM
  
  Personally I think it's guilt that makes people defensive and in his case ridiculous. I've had that happen to me while out eating with a group of people. One guy started to pick on my food choices because I'm a vegetarian. I shot back with "I don't have to justify my lifestyle to you. I'm not picking on your meat so leave my broccoli alone".
  
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- Peninnah Ziegler 7/30/2019 7:14 AM
  
  Thanks Anna & Laura!
  
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- Anna Towns 7/29/2019 6:03 PM
  
  Is it bad that I hope the clerk overloaded his bags? 😬 Maybe his reaction inspired an opposite reaction from the next person in line? Just try to remember that you are only responsible for your choices, and keep making good ones when you can!
  
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- Laura Meyers 7/28/2019 6:51 PM
  
  Just ignore the stupid
  
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Peninnah Ziegler 7/26/2019 9:53 AM

Hey team!! We're currently ranked 47 out of 774 total teams! Well done, SCZ team Gorilla!
With six days left including today, we can still make a difference!!

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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?

Peninnah Ziegler 7/26/2019 9:50 AM

I've been surprised at not only the number of items that have plastic packaging, but how many layers of plastic packaging some items have!! A food item I chose not to buy had a layer of plastic around the box, the cardboard box, and then a bag inside it!

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REFLECTION QUESTION
Lifestyle Buy Only What I Need

As you have reduced your spending, what have you noticed about your 'health and safety' purchasing habits? How might this change your longer term purchasing decisions?

Peninnah Ziegler 7/26/2019 9:43 AM

This one is actually made more easy by working here at the Zoo. I rarely purchase anything I don't need because I simply can't afford to do so. This year I have resisted the incredibly inexpensive school supplies showing up in stores, even the crayons.

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REFLECTION QUESTION
Food Use a Reusable Mug / Collapsible Cup

Great job on getting rid of your disposable cup habit! How does it make you feel? What's next on your list to reduce your waste?

Peninnah Ziegler 7/23/2019 7:40 AM

I've been using my reusable cup here at work for years. However, it's only been recently that I've been taking it into restaurants and convenience stores. I can refill it with ice and water most places for free or for a small charge! I'm doing something good for the environment and for me!

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Peninnah Ziegler 7/23/2019 7:36 AM

Hi team! We have a little over one week to go for Plastic Free July! I've been more aware of plastic this month. I hope that you have been too!

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Peninnah Ziegler 7/19/2019 10:20 AM

Hi team! I contacted Amazon about plastic packaging. Generally, what I order arrives in a box that is both made partially from recycled materials and is recyclable. However, what I ordered in June arrived in plastic bags. Grrrr. So I let them know that I prefer the boxes! I hope it will make a difference!

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Peninnah Ziegler 7/16/2019 2:08 PM

Here's something with which I struggle... once I use my reusable straw and it is wet with soda, I don't want to put it back into my purse.
What do you do with your used reusable straw at the end of a meal, especially at a restaurant.
I had thought about putting it in a plastic bag and then laughed because that sort of negates the good I'd have done using the straw in the first place!

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- Peninnah Ziegler 7/31/2019 9:34 AM
  
  I completely agree with the arbitrary nature of what drink gets a straw. The one that always confuses me is the milkshake. I generally eat those with a spoon :) And margaritas. The frozen one sometimes needs a stirring device and yet does not have one while a margarita on the rocks doesn't seem to me to need a stirring device and often one is provided. So weird?
  
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- Roseann Giambro 7/31/2019 7:47 AM
  
  In the past I didn't pay much attention to straws. Then the movie STRAWS came out and now I'm fanatical about not using them. What I don't understand is how it's decided which drinks need straws. A mixed drink gets a straw but a beer doesn't. An iced tea gets a straw but a hot tea or coffee doesn't. I understand a dental or medical issue may need a straw but other than that I'm confused. Any thoughts?
  
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- Catherine Calderwood 7/30/2019 12:55 PM
  
  I guess I'm weird because I don't tend to think about it. But I might have some leftover clear vinyl from a sewing project I could turn into a wet straw case...
  
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- Laura Meyers 7/19/2019 1:33 PM
  
  Sometimes I dry it off with my napkins n the put it behind my ear like a pencil😊
  
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- Peninnah Ziegler 7/17/2019 1:08 PM
  
  Thank you, everyone, for your input! The straws came with a canvas bag. I like the idea of a wet and dry option. I'll try some of these!
  
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- Micala Teetzen 7/16/2019 10:23 PM
  
  I feel the exact same way! Here is my setup. I have a handmade fabric sleeve (bought it at a zoo conference!) to keep my clean straws in. Then I put the used ones in a modified plastic bag with a zipper. I cut the bag down to only be a few inches deep and taped the end closed so it would be watertight. I wipe out the bag occasionally and have been using it for a year. I bundle it all together with a reusable tie (a regular twist tie would work too). Once I have used them all, I can wash them all at once and put them in the clean sleeve.
  
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- Anna Towns 7/16/2019 8:27 PM
  
  I have a wet/dry bag I use for draws and cutlery. The clean stuff stays in the front dry compartment, and the dirty/used ones go in the lined wet part.
  https://www.planetwiseinc.com/planet-wise-travel-wet-dry-bag.html
  
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- Krystina Jarvis 7/16/2019 3:19 PM
  
  Do you have a case for it?
  
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Peninnah Ziegler 7/09/2019 12:19 PM

I had a total fail with plastic bags today!
I picked up my previously ordered item. It was in a plastic bag that the clerk then put into another plastic bag even though I asked her not to do so.
Then I looked in those two bags to discover that my item was also originally packed in its own plastic bag as well.
One small item and three plastic bags.
I've sent an email to the company to let them know that I didn't need so much plastic!

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