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Welcome to Plastic Free Ecochallenge 2019!

Watch the short video below to learn the basics.
You'll be an Plastic Free Ecochallenge 2019 expert in no time!

Coalition of North American Zoos and Aquariums
Plastic Free Ecochallenge 2019
July 1 - July 31, 2019
Quinn Holton's avatar

Quinn Holton

PAE Engineers

POINTS TOTAL

  • 0 TODAY
  • 0 THIS WEEK
  • 724 TOTAL

participant impact

  • UP TO
    5.0
    conversations
    with people
  • UP TO
    1.0
    documentary
    watched
  • UP TO
    90
    minutes
    spent learning
  • UP TO
    72
    pieces of plastic cutlery
    not sent to the landfill
  • UP TO
    43
    plastic bottles
    not sent to the landfill
  • UP TO
    93
    plastic containers
    not sent to the landfill
  • UP TO
    19
    plastic straws
    not sent to the landfill
  • UP TO
    1.0
    waste audit
    conducted

Quinn's actions

Family

Make the Change to Cloth Diapers

I will replace single use diapers for reusable cloth diapers.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Food

Use Reusable Utensils

I will keep 3 plastic cutlery out of the landfill per day by using my own reusable cutlery.

COMPLETED 18
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

Lifestyle

Homemade Cleaners

I will make my own cleaning products at home.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Food

Advocate For More Food Packaging Options

I will advocate for alternatives to single use packaging at local grocery stores, markets, or work.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Family

Natural Paints

I will paint rooms in my home with low/no VOC or natural paints.

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

Family

Glass Bottle Baby

I will replace 5 plastic bottles with glass or stainless steel alternatives.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Family

Provide the Alternatives

I will provide daily plastic free alternatives (straws, water bottles, cuttlery, bar soap, bamboo toothbrushes, etc.) for my family to use.

COMPLETED 19
DAILY ACTIONS

Family

Plastic Free Lunch Boxes

I will only pack reusable cutlery, drinkware and tupperware-like containers in my children's lunches to reduce plastic waste.

COMPLETED 18
DAILY ACTIONS

Family

Swap the Snacks

I will swap out 2 prepackaged snacks a day for fresh fruits or veggies.

COMPLETED 18
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

Personal Care

Just Say No

I will avoid buying toxic plastics, including polycarbonate, polystyrene and polyvinyl.

COMPLETED 19
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?

  • Quinn Holton's avatar
    Quinn Holton 7/10/2019 9:02 AM
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  • Quinn Holton's avatar
    Quinn Holton 7/09/2019 9:01 AM
    With this challenge I have begun looking into composting. Honestly, the idea of composting kind of grossed me out...having a big pile of stinky food waste hanging around. However I have never actually composted myself before so how would I know? So I looked into small composters and found this little guy on amazon for 50$ and is BPA free! Im looking forward to see if i can grow extra tasty veggies this year :D https://www.amazon.com/Miracle-Gro-Small-Composter-Capacity-Gardening/dp/B0785GSKJ1/ref=asc_df_B0785GSKJ1/?tag=hyprod-20&linkCode=df0&hvadid=242120314056&hvpos=1o3&hvnetw=g&hvrand=15484485073396167598&hvpone=&hvptwo=&hvqmt=&hvdev=c&hvdvcmdl=&hvlocint=&hvlocphy=9060379&hvtargid=pla-401133517577&psc=1
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  • REFLECTION QUESTION
    Lifestyle Homemade Cleaners
    What did you learn by making your own cleaning products? What is the biggest difference in making vs buying?
    Quinn Holton's avatar
    Quinn Holton 7/08/2019 9:34 AM
    We decided to make our own window cleaner with vinegar as the main ingredient. In my opinion it is just as effective as using Windex as the vinegar helps break down the calcium buildup in the water spots. I like knowing exactly what it is i am spraying on my furniture, knowing that is it safe and unless there is a food allergy there wouldn't be any allergic reactions. Next week my wife and I are going to experiment with making homemade disinfectant! 
    Read More
  • REFLECTION QUESTION
    Lifestyle Complete a Waste Audit
    What did you learn about the waste you create? Where can you reduce the most?
    Quinn Holton's avatar
    Quinn Holton 7/08/2019 9:29 AM
    We used to buy various juices for cooking or drinking and after completing our audit we are going to put our juicer to use and start making our own. It tastes better anyway :D 
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  • Quinn Holton's avatar
    Quinn Holton 7/08/2019 9:21 AM
    I know the last plastic free meeting we had we discussed the plastic bags in the produce sections of most stores and different solutions. I found these re-usable produce bags that you can rinse the produce in as well!  https://www.amazon.com/Reusable-Washable-Breathable-Lightweight-Shopping/dp/B07FN3X5FB/ref=asc_df_B07FN3X5FB/?tag=hyprod-20&linkCode=df0&hvadid=242043655372&hvpos=1o2&hvnetw=g&hvrand=12730147290372040466&hvpone=&hvptwo=&hvqmt=&hvdev=c&hvdvcmdl=&hvlocint=&hvlocphy=1024543&hvtargid=pla-524213416485&psc=1
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    • Charles White's avatar
      Charles White 7/10/2019 12:01 PM
      Thanks for sharing, Quinn! I noticed that these are made of nylon, and they also have little plastic knobby things on the draw string. They do provide the benefit of being reusable, but during their rinsing/washing and end of life they may still introduce micro-plastics into the water systems. Micro-plastics/micro-fibers are a less-visible but still important part of the plastic waste discussion.

      I would suggest 100% cotton, or some other organic/natural material. You could still rinse in-bag and hang up to dry, and cloth bags are machine washable without the guilt of generating plastic micro-fibers!
      Read More
  • Quinn Holton's avatar
    Quinn Holton 7/07/2019 6:11 PM
    We purchased our cloth diapers this weekend! The rand is called Bum Genius (exactly what I would have named it) and it is awesome! When I first thought of switching to cloth diapers, I imagined using a safety pin and a large rag...little did I know that they make cloth diapers that will last possibly through you child’s diaper phase! They come with buttons to adjust size and re-usable pads. Great buy!
    Read More
  • REFLECTION QUESTION
    Family Make the Change to Cloth Diapers
    In what ways is diapering your child with cloth diapers better for your child, better for you, and better for the environment?
    Quinn Holton's avatar
    Quinn Holton 7/07/2019 6:06 PM
    My child my not be able to retain much but I hope that it would help him become  familiar with being green so he too can be a learn to be a vocal fighter for our planet. For myself, there is a serious economical gain...diapers are expensive! When I think about the environment it makes we minder how much  less waste there would be if everyone switched to cloth diapers. So much less plastic would need to be made.
    Read More
  • Quinn Holton's avatar
    Quinn Holton 7/02/2019 12:25 PM
    So I have learned something interesting today. My wife and I are considering using cloth diapers for the huge cost savings for our baby on the way. We are mostly on-board with the exception of when it comes time to wash them, particularly if they are messy...And i found this interesting article. Below is a little clip that will be our deal sealer! Link: https://www.arcticbabybottoms.com/blogs/education/pros-cons-cloth-diapering.

    The EPA and CFR actually require that toilet waste be disposed of through sanitary sewers and never in landfills. So, what does this mean for your diapering journey? It means that even if you were to use disposable diapers, you would need to empty solid waste into the toilet before disposing the diaper. Waste from exclusively breastf-ed babies, or EBF waste, is completely water soluble. This means that as long as your baby’s diet consists completely of breastmilk, there is no need to rinse your diapers before laundering them. They can go straight into your machine. There are several tools you can use to make this process easier and less messy! GroVia Bioliners allow moisture to pass through while keeping solids contained for easy clean-up. Just lay your Bioliner on top of your diaper surface and deposit solids into the toilet when you’re ready to change baby! If you want your diapering experience to remain as waste free as possible, you can also use a diaper sprayer to rinse your solids into the toilet and flush. Many diapers have a Stay Dry top layer which, besides keeping baby’s skin dry, allows solids to be quickly and easily deposited into the toilet. 
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    • Rachel Wrublik's avatar
      Rachel Wrublik 7/03/2019 10:55 PM
      Awesome that you are choosing cloth!  And very doable..  We used cloth diapers for our son and would do so again.  We started out with the Tidee Didee diaper service since we were unsure of what we were doing but within a few months we switched to washing the diapers ourselves.  It wasn't too difficult.  One thing that made a big difference (at least for my son who has sensitive skin) was the laundry detergent.  Our original detergent left too much residue and irritated his skin. We switched to Charlie's Soap, which is the same one used by Tidee Didee.  We were able to buy it directly from them though eventually we bought a 5 gallon bucket of it (less plastic containers and less $$) and have been using it on all of our laundry for several years.  As my son got older we also found that a pre-rinse with baking soda helped.  Good luck!!  
      Read More
  • REFLECTION QUESTION
    Food Use Reusable Utensils
    How can you be an advocate for using resusables instead of disposables for the rest of your community? Where are they currently dependent on disposable cutlery, and how can you convince them of the need for change?
    Quinn Holton's avatar
    Quinn Holton 7/02/2019 12:01 PM
    Portland has a plethora of food cart options at our disposal. One of the things i like to ask the food cart workers is if they participate in the GO BOX program. Most I have visited are not aware of it but all have agreed that it could open them to more business and seem interested in participating. 
    Read More
  • REFLECTION QUESTION
    Food Advocate For More Food Packaging Options
    Single use plastics have become normalized in our society to the point that most people don't see them as a problem. What would you say to a friend, colleague, or family member who may not understand why these disposables are an issue?
    Quinn Holton's avatar
    Quinn Holton 7/01/2019 3:31 PM
    One thing that almost everyone can agree on is that we all like to save money when we can. One of the people I spoke to was my mom. She likes to re-use the bags from the store for various things like packing, trash bags for road trips, bathrooms, etc. Re-using is one of the R's but bringing home plastic bags every trip creates waste so I talked her into trying for 3 grocery trips with re-usable bags. 
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