Coalition of North American Zoos and Aquariums

Plastic Free Ecochallenge 2019

July 1 - July 31, 2019

Sylvia Hatcher

ZooTampa Staff & Volunteers

POINTS TOTAL

0 TODAY
0 THIS WEEK
1,020 TOTAL

participant impact

UP TO

1.0

documentary

watched
UP TO

180

minutes

spent learning
UP TO

66

pieces of litter

picked up
UP TO

14

pieces of plastic cutlery

not sent to the landfill
UP TO

41

plastic containers

not sent to the landfill
UP TO

54

plastic straws

not sent to the landfill
UP TO

1.0

waste audit

conducted

Sylvia's actions

Food

Skip the Straw

I will keep 2 plastic straw(s) out of the landfill per day by refusing straws or using my own glass/metal straw.

COMPLETED 27
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

Food

Use Reusable Utensils

I will keep 1 plastic cutlery out of the landfill per day by using my own reusable cutlery.

COMPLETED 14
DAILY ACTIONS

Community

Keep My Community Clean

I will pick up 3 piece(s) of litter each day.

COMPLETED 22
DAILY ACTIONS

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

Pets

Pet Waste

I will spend 30 minutes learning how to compost pet waste at home or research pet waste composting services available in my area.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Community

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

Food

Use Reusable Bags

I will not accept any disposable bags when making purchases, including produce bags.

COMPLETED 19
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 22
DAILY ACTIONS

Personal Care

Brusha Brusha Brusha

I will replace my plastic toothbrush with a bamboo toothbrush.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Lifestyle

Travel Smart

If traveling, I will bring my own plastic free items (water bottle, grocery bags, collapsible food containers, utensils, straws, etc.) with me.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Pets

All Natural Pet Toys

I will give my pets natural alternatives to toys like femur bones and antlers, canvas, natural rubber, hemp, rope or cotton toys. Or I will make our own toys from recycled items found in our home!

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Personal Care

Pearly Whites

I will purchase toothpaste in an aluminum tube or in a glass jar or make my own!

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Personal Care

Fresh as a Daisy

I will use deodorant either from a bar or a jar or I will make my own.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Personal Care

Back in the Bowl

I will purchase refillable beauty products.

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?

Sylvia Hatcher 7/30/2019 8:41 AM

I finally settled on which toothpaste / powder I'm going to try....especially since they gave us a coupon! https://adropintheoceanshop.com/?utm_medium=Email&utm_campaign=website&utm_source=EcoChallengeOrg+Marketing

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Sylvia Hatcher 7/24/2019 6:08 AM

Help! Has anyone found a toothpaste in a jar that they like? I'm not sold on trying tablets.

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Sylvia Hatcher 7/21/2019 8:22 AM

I watched the documentary "Bag It" last night. Great insights! My hubby and I walked away with idea across several categories of how we can cut down on my plastic purchases. They interviewed one guy who took the step of keeping ALL of his garbage in his basement for a year. He used the experience each day, week, month, to progressively get creative and not make more trash. He ended up with only 30-something pounds of trash he personally created in a year...as compared to the one TON per person that they estimate most of us put in landfills.

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Sylvia Hatcher 7/17/2019 7:05 AM

Searching for a bamboo toothbrush like I was? This company seems great!! I'm trying them. https://www.brushwithbamboo.com/

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Sylvia Hatcher 7/14/2019 8:48 AM

Today's research was deodorant - specifically finding one that 's a bar or comes in a jar. https://shop.schmidts.com/products/bergamot-lime-deodorant-jar This one seems like a win-win because they will recycle the glass jar if you return it to them. https://ethiquebeauty.com/collections/body-personal-care This one is a bar and they offer many plastic free products. Has anyone found one they love and can recommend?

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Sylvia Hatcher 7/10/2019 9:12 AM

Trying to go zero waste for pets is hard, but here's something I'm trying: https://www.litterchamp.com/. It's like the litter genie that is available at most PetSmarts, but their bags are biodegradable. The idea is that instead of poop scooping into a fresh bag each time (maybe 4-7 bags per week), you're scooping into a 'bin' that is double sealed and will hold about 2 weeks worth without the smell (1 bag every 2 weeks). So far so good. I've been using it for almost a week. Email me if you want more feedback!

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Sylvia Hatcher 7/06/2019 1:47 PM

My eco-concious niece game me this as a gift last Christmas and wow - what a great idea! https://cleaningessentials.com/product/reusable-wet-wipes/ These are reusable wet wipes with the home-made cleaning recipe right on the jar! I gave myself a goal in January of incorporating these into my home and office cleaning routine with a goal of eliminating disposable cleaning wipes entirely by June. With a small investment to purchase three more for rotating refills as I use them, I accomplished this by the end of March. So Easy! I encourage you to check out their other products too.

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Sylvia Hatcher 7/05/2019 5:58 AM

While I was trying to find a way to recycle some surplus roof shingles, I discovered that the Lakeland Habitat for Humanity ReStore accepts donations of various items recycling..."More than 70% of all stained, ripped or worn-out clothing, towels, sheets and shoes wind up in the landfills as trash. At Lakeland Habitat we can recycle these items as insulation. Look for our containers, pictured on the right, at the Restore. Or for large donations, call the Restore at 863-688-4660. (Unfortunately, we cannot accept pillow or comforters.)"
https://www.habitatoflakeland.org/content/support-the-restore

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Sylvia Hatcher 7/04/2019 8:22 AM

Interesting article about something I've been wanting to do and haven't quite figured out: going zero waste with your pets.....https://adropintheoceanshop.com/blogs/blog/the-ultimate-guide-to-zero-waste-pets

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Sylvia Hatcher 7/03/2019 10:34 AM

Here's an interesting alternative to traditional toothpaste….. crush and make your own. http://lifewithoutplastic.com/lwpop-plastic-free-tooth-tabs-mint-charcoal/?mc_cid=d6d69b15fe&mc_eid=5e313d5557

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