Tony Keer

Maryland Zoo

POINTS TOTAL

0 TODAY
0 THIS WEEK
1,127 TOTAL

participant impact

UP TO

30

plastic straws

not sent to the landfill
UP TO

31

zero-waste meals

consumed
UP TO

60

pieces of plastic cutlery

not sent to the landfill

Tony's actions

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

Personal Care

Brusha Brusha Brusha

I will replace my plastic toothbrush with a bamboo toothbrush.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Food

Use Reusable Utensils

I will keep 2 plastic cutlery out of the landfill per day by using my own reusable cutlery.

COMPLETED 30
DAILY ACTIONS

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

Lather Up

I will replace my soaps, shampoos, and conditions with either a bar or refillable option.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

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 30
DAILY ACTIONS

Personal Care

See the Green

I will properly recycle used contact lenses and packaging.

COMPLETED 31
DAILY ACTIONS

Personal Care

That Was a Close Shave

I will replace my disposable razors with steel razors. Why not try using hair conditioner instead of shaving foam for that baby smooth feel?

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Food

Cook a Zero-Plastic Waste Meal

I will prepare 1 meal(s) at home each day without using any items packaged in single-use plastic.

COMPLETED 31
DAILY ACTIONS

Lifestyle

Natural Fibers

When available, I will purchase clothing made with natural fibers, such as cotton, linen, or wool, rather than synthetic fibers.

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?

REFLECTION QUESTION
Lifestyle Natural Fibers

What are the benefits (to people, animals, and the environment) of purchasing clothes made with natural fibers?

Tony Keer 7/30/2019 12:48 PM

I found this difficult to answer, as there are some negatives as well: largely, that there is over-farming, or especially so in certain areas, which can lead to drought, etc. HOWEVER, that could be remedied with reducing the amount of clothes we buy, as a whole. The benefits to purchasing from natural fibers is the lack of micro-plastics into our ecosystem.

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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?

Tony Keer 7/01/2019 2:56 PM

I am primarily dependent at work, where I usually forget to bring my own cutlery. They do give options not to--I can bring my own & refuse plastic cutlery--but it is remembering to do so that is difficult.

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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?

Tony Keer 6/30/2019 12:10 AM

I've tried to switch as much as I can, especially by buying fresh produce. The biggest offender seems to be pre-packaging. Such as a bag of fruit. I try to buy "free floating" fruit, such as oranges, and use a produce bag (I've been reusing plastic ones, but buying cloth produce bags is on my to-do list as money allows). However, some produce is sold only in plastic containers. I want to buy some sweet peppers, except they only came in plastic bags or boxes. A lot of greens like arugula or spinach are sold that way. Mushrooms are hard to find loose.

The biggest discussion in the household is if to use a plastic bag with raw meats. I don't see the need to put a wrapped cut of meat in a plastic produce bag, and then into the grocery cart, but my boyfriend is horrified by the idea. So if we buy meat, we always waste a plastic produce bag and I don't know what to do with it when we get home.

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REFLECTION QUESTION
Lifestyle Travel Smart

How can/did you prepare to be successful in this action? Did you engage in conversation with anyone about your new habit?

Tony Keer 6/30/2019 12:01 AM

We've been encouraged at work to bring reusable straws / drink containers etc. I recently found out that my typical grocery store sells cheap ($1) light weight cloth bags for bulk items, like grains. I've been reusing plastic produce bags, but they wear out eventually. A lot of my water bottles aren't very secure or good for the work I do (I'm a keeper; it's nice to be able to use the karabiner+cargo pocket combo) or have really thin necks & heinous to clean (fighting mold, especially in the top seal is a problem). Some of my favorite water bottles have lost the seal on their top, so they leak all over in my backpack, which is especially distressing when it is coffee & I'm on the bus & ruined whatever paperwork I had inside. I have about 6 different bottles & all of them have flaws!

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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.

Tony Keer 6/26/2019 9:22 PM

I've seen a lot more non-plastic options, such as at our favorite coffee shop: straws made of hay. We really like those. At work, which is a zoo, we talk about keeping reusable straws on hand. I prefer metal straws over silicon or hard (reusable) plastic, and at reenactment festivals, we use wooden ones sometimes.

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REFLECTION QUESTION
Personal Care Fresh as a Daisy

Do some research on the toxic side affects of aluminum deodorant. After reading the side effects, can you think of instances where you may have experienced the side effects from this form of deodorant?

Tony Keer 6/26/2019 9:11 PM

I have not used aluminum containing deodorant for awhile.

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REFLECTION QUESTION
Personal Care Brusha Brusha Brusha

What are the benefits of switching to bamboo toothbrushes? How would you implore others in your community to make this switch as well?

Tony Keer 6/26/2019 9:07 PM

They don't appear any more expensive and I like the feel of the bamboo handle more.

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REFLECTION QUESTION
Personal Care Lather Up

What are the economic and personal benefits of switching to bar soap/shampoo/conditioner or refillable bottle options?

Tony Keer 6/26/2019 9:06 PM

I opted to go for soap bars, but they're difficult to find in person. I truly cannot find them except, of all places, reenactment festivals. I live in a large city, yet everything is very homogenous, product-wise. Finding these sorts of soaps was easier in my very rural hometown.

There's also no refillable options available where I am.

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- Tony Keer 6/30/2019 12:20 AM
  
  I hope this works??
  
  -- Claire Downs:
  
  I don't shop at LUSH because they have had a fair number of anti-zoo issues (re: they purposefully fund anti-zoo efforts or they drop organizations if they receive funding from zoos, like the Little Fireface Project). Admittedly not a massive loss for me, because a lot of their products irritated my skin. :( I did love their deodorant, though. SIGH.
  
  I have one of Chagrin Valley's product & I'm really interested to try more !? It's their shave soap. It works pretty well, although my shave brush broke recently & that's frustrating (it was of cheap quality, apparently!). I'll have to check out more of their stuff!!
  
  Read More
- Claire Downs 6/27/2019 6:51 AM
  
  Do you live near a Lush? They have tons of bar options in soap, shampoo, and conditioner, not to mention all of their other products.
  
  I switched over to Chagrin Valley Soap and Salve last year, and I order the milk and honey shampoo from them. Not all of their products work well with my hair, but they have sample sizes so you can test out different products. And they deliver! I know since it's shipped it's not carbon neutral, but hopefully the more companies like this build up, the more local options will pop up as well.
  
  Read More
REFLECTION QUESTION
Personal Care That Was a Close Shave

What have you noticed about the economic and social impact of switching to steel razors? Was there ever really a need for disposable razors, or do you think it was just a way to sell more things?

Tony Keer 6/26/2019 8:56 PM

It's always felt very wasteful. I bought a straight razor, and found it very easy to use, even around tight spots. I don't know why we started with disposables to begin with.

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