The second week of our Climate Change Challenge is complete and we are half way through! As we head into week three, we are reflecting on everyone’s amazing efforts from the first two weeks.

CHALLENGE OVERVIEW

Day 8: RESET

Today is day 8 of our #climatechangechallange and today’s challenge is to RESET. There are many ways to reset, you can reset your mindset, your habits, or reset your plans to get your family on board with the challenge too. ⁣⁣

Today we decided to reset our thermostat. We know you love a cozy super toasty house in the middle of winter but can you think about lowering expected temps just 1-2 degrees cooler? Do you have a programmable thermostat to turn off or turn down your heat while you are away all day? This will help save electricity and ultimately your wallet. ⁣

Day 9: REDUCE

Day 9 of our #ClimateChangeChallenge is all about reducing. You can shift your habits in many ways like reducing the amount of food waste by giving yourself less food to start off with and adding more depending on how hungry you still are. This will reduce the amount of waste you produce by only taking what you need. You can also reduce food waste by having a smorgasbord of all the food in the fridge that is about to go bad. Reduce the amount of food waste by freezing everything you can when its about to go bad. Bananas are too ripe to eat? Make banana bread. ⁣Getting conscious about how we reduce will make a world of difference, even to the point of reducing how much you are buying.
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Below we chose to reduce today is to reduce the amount of time we spend in the shower. This will, in turn, reduce the amount of water we use – it’s a win-win.

Day 10: REMEMBER

Day 10 of our #Climatechangechallenge and today our challenge is to REMEMBER. ⁣
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We remembered to turn out the lights today and use natural light as much as we could. ⁣We also remembered to unplug as many appliances, chargers, and items we could. 10% of our household electricity is lost by phantom power (when things are plugged in but not actively being used)

A simple mindset shift but one that over time will be significant in our savings and impact.

Day 11: REALIZE

Is it Day 11 of our #climatechangechallenge and today’s challenge is to REALIZE. ⁣
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We have taken the time to realize the waste we accumulate. These items shown are not recyclable or can be re-used: bread clips, pop tabs, and elastic bands. ⁣
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We need to be more aware of these items and collecting them on the counter is a great way to see the packaging we consume and the waste we are producing by having them in plain sight. ⁣

Day 12: CHANGE

Today’s challenge is all about CHANGE. It is Day 12 already (almost halfway there!) and today we are making even more change! ⁣
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We’ve spent the last 11 days making small changes in our daily lives so today we are focusing on a different change… changing our light bulbs! ⁣
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Why does changing your light bulbs help the environment? The heat that is generated by your old incandescent light bulbs can heat up your home unintentionally, increasing your home AC costs. Over time you will be saving money as the energy-saving light bulbs (compact fluorescent) last up to 10,000 hours! ⁣
*as stated by the CS Monitor ⁣

Day 13: CONSIDER

There are so many things to consider when doing the #ClimateChangeChallenge and that’s why we are doing another day (day 13) focused on the challenge to CONSIDER. ⁣
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Last time we considered actionable tasks where we considered changing our behavior. Growing herbs at home, reduce consumption of packaging at the grocery store, pre planning your errand route to be more efficient and the list goes on. ⁣
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As we continue to make changes we need to stop and consider why we are doing this. Is it for our future? Is it for our children’s or grandchildren’s future? What is your driving force that keeps you accountable and encouraging you to make change for a greater purpose?

Day 14: PRESERVE

Make a sweet treat out of produce that’s about to go bad. As the fruit ripens it gets sweeter so as your fruit starts to get too ripe instead of tossing it out, making popsicles instead! Yum! ⁣
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Day 14 challenge is about preserving. We preserved our berries by making popsicles and bakes our old bananas into banana bread! ⁣
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Have a day of the week where you don’t plan dinner and instead eat all the leftovers and food left in your fridge and freezer. Doing this often will reduce your food waste and give you a break on planning dinner for a night, it’s a win-win! ⁣

JOIN US ANYTIME in the #ClimateChangeChallenge

A 30-day challenge around changing your habits to help fight climate change. 

Follow our social channels and use the word of the day to prompt a look at how you consume, conserve or waste. Share on social media using #ClimateChangeChallenge a change you are doing each day and follow the hashtag to learn from others the kind of climate hacks available to shift your habits and join the fight. 

Be sure to follow our social channels @FairPathForward on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest and our blog for more daily tips & resources on how you can join in the fight. 

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