Elaine Kang

I will spend 15 minutes researching environmental justice and environmental racism concerns in my region, who is affected by them, and local initiatives to address these concerns.

I will save up to 20 gallons (75 L) of water each day by taking 5-minute showers.

Contamination prevents what is recyclable from being recycled. I will spend 15 minutes researching which materials are accepted by local haulers or drop stations in my community and recycle only those items.

I will write down three things every day that I am grateful for, or send one email every day thanking or praising someone.

I will spend 15 minutes finding out where landfills and/or toxic waste sites are situated in my region and which communities are most impacted by these sites.

I will avoid sending up to .69 lbs (.31 kg) of food waste to the landfill each day by composting my food or learning how to.

If at all possible, I will not accept any disposable bags when making purchases.

I will learn about sustainable fashion and begin trying to practice it in my own life.

I will keep track and reduce my consumption of refined sugars, including sweetened beverages, candy, and processed foods.

I will spend 10 minutes practicing Loving-Kindness Meditation to nurture love and compassion for myself and others.

I will spend at least 15 minutes learning about water and air quality issues in my area, how they are impacting human and environmental health, and how I can help.

I will power down my computer and monitor when not using it for more than 2 hours, saving up to (1.1) lbs of CO2 each day that I do this.

I will switch to washing my clothes in cold water, saving up to 133 lbs of CO2 a month and 1,600 lbs of CO2 over the course of the next year.

I will eat all of my meals without distractions, e.g., phone, computer, TV, or newspaper.

An estimated 71% of seabirds and 30% of turtles have been found with plastics in their stomachs. When they ingest plastic, marine life has a 50% mortality rate. By asking for no straw when placing a drink order, I will keep 1 plastic straw(s) of out of the ocean each day.