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April 1 - April 30, 2020
Jo-Ann Dawson's avatar

Jo-Ann Dawson

SMM Toronto

"Bring the world's needs into focus and make positive change."

POINTS TOTAL

  • 0 TODAY
  • 0 THIS WEEK
  • 512 TOTAL

participant impact

  • UP TO
    1.0
    advocacy action
    completed
  • UP TO
    15
    conversations
    with people
  • UP TO
    5.0
    documentaries
    watched
  • UP TO
    68
    gallons of water
    have been saved
  • UP TO
    3.0
    hours
    volunteered
  • UP TO
    10
    meatless or vegan meals
    consumed
  • UP TO
    630
    minutes
    spent learning
  • UP TO
    240
    minutes
    spent outdoors
  • UP TO
    240
    minutes
    not spent in front of a screen
  • UP TO
    1.4
    pounds
    food waste prevented
  • UP TO
    5.0
    pounds
    waste composted
  • UP TO
    2.8
    pounds of CO2
    have been saved

Jo-Ann's actions

Climate

Earth Day Action: Write a Love Letter, Poem, or Song to Earth

I will express my love and gratitude for our Earth by writing a love letter, poem, or song to Earth.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Food

Weekly Meal Planning

I will reduce food waste and save money by prepping for 2 meal(s) each day, only buying the ingredients I need.

COMPLETED 0
DAILY ACTIONS

Food

Education of residents of my building about waste management

I have found that people in my apartment building use the blue bin and the green bins for other than their intended purpose. I would like to educate the people of the building so they know how to sort their waste and will follow through to help redirect more waste from the dump.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Food

Compost Food Waste

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.

COMPLETED 0
DAILY ACTIONS

Food

Reduce Animal Products

I will enjoy 1 meatless meal(s) and/or 1 vegan meal(s) each day of the challenge.

COMPLETED 0
DAILY ACTIONS

Food

Learn the Truth About Expiration Dates

I will spend at least 60 minutes learning how to differentiate between sell by, use by, and best by dates.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Action Track: Building Resilience

Volunteer in my Community

I will volunteer 2 hour(s) in my community helping people who are most at need right now, including elderly and immunocompromised people, people without childcare, and people whose jobs have been affected by social distancing measures.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Action Track: Building Resilience

Watch a Documentary about Food Sovereignty

I will watch 5 documentary(ies) about food sovereignty: the right of local peoples to control their own food systems including markets, ecological resources, food cultures and production methods.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Action Track: Building Resilience

Research Benefits of Biodiversity

I will spend at least 120 minutes researching how biodiversity positively impacts our world and how the loss of biodiversity harms it.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Action Track: Building Resilience

Spend Time Outside

I will replace 30 minute(s) each day typically spent inside (computer time, watching television, etc.) with quality time outside that follows CDC guidelines for preventing disease spread.

COMPLETED 0
DAILY ACTIONS

People

Connect While Social Distancing

I will connect with at least 2 person/people a day through phone call or video chat to support mine and other’s mental and emotional health during this challenging time.

COMPLETED 0
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?


  • Jo-Ann Dawson's avatar
    Jo-Ann Dawson 5/04/2020 8:03 AM
    Thank you to all participants in this challenge. We did a great job! I think I will visit the ecochallenge site and continue daily activities. As Norah suggests, we should consider participating in this challenge every year.
    Thanks again.

  • Jo-Ann Dawson's avatar
    Jo-Ann Dawson 4/20/2020 8:45 PM
    I contacted the building mañager to see if we can put up reminder posters on the bins and by the elevators. They suggested we wait till the covid crisis is settled. I will get back to them.
  • REFLECTION QUESTION
    Food Reduce Animal Products
    Why do people in richer countries eat more meat than people in other places? How does eating more meat affect our planet and other people?

    Jo-Ann Dawson's avatar
    Jo-Ann Dawson 4/06/2020 8:32 PM
    People in richer countries eat more meat than other people in the world because it's more accessible and we can afford to pay for it. We have built an infrastructure in which we can move food around, sometimes over thousands of kilometres, The price of meat is climbing and many of us still continue to pay, no matter the cost.
    The cost is not just monitary.
    Raising animals for food costs the earth (pun intended). People hear about methane and other green house gases emitted from the animals, but it goes way beyond that. There are the farms, themselves which are no longer family owned, supplying food locally, instead there are industrial farms where multinational corporate owners would do almost anything to make more $$$, which is not good for the animals, the land or the people and communities.
    Mono culture farms destroy the land.
    The cost of transporting the animals to market burns fossil fuels, which increases greenhouse gases, which puts our earth in danger of overheating, causing climate change.
    The roads need repair from excessive use of transport trucks.
    The animals get stressed out from long trips which reduces the quality of the meat.

    Many people consume more meat than they need. This behaviour interferes with good health over time and then it costs the healthcare programs which increases the cost of insurance....

    If anyone can add to this, go ahead.I'm sure there's more.

  • Jo-Ann Dawson's avatar
    Jo-Ann Dawson 4/06/2020 8:01 PM
    Today, I spent a lot of time working with new software that will help me stitch together a virtual video, sung by Schola Magdalena. We couldn't gather with our audience to sing our Earth Day Concert, so we decided to try our hand at a virtual video. It's been great to connect with the six of us,to work on this project.
  • REFLECTION QUESTION
    Food Weekly Meal Planning
    An average American throws out about 240 lbs of food per year. The average family of four spends $1,500 a year on food that they throw out. Does this surprise you? Where would you rather use this money?

    Jo-Ann Dawson's avatar
    Jo-Ann Dawson 4/06/2020 7:54 PM
    I am not surprised that there is excessive food wastage, I, myself have found the occasional science experiment in the back of my fridge. I am trying hard to plan for meals, buy, and consume those meals and their leftovers before buying more food. It is working much better for us and the fridge is no longer stuffed.
    I could definitely use the $1500 to enjoy a holiday or two in the wilds of Ontario, or maybe elsewhere... I might even use some of it to start my community garden in Etobicoke.

    • Benjamin Connor's avatar
      Benjamin Connor 4/06/2020 8:05 PM
      That, unfortunately, isn't that suprising to me. My family is guilty of this too to a certain extent. We all need to make an effort to reduce this waste. 

  • Jo-Ann Dawson's avatar
    Jo-Ann Dawson 4/04/2020 8:32 PM
    I feel strongly about composting organic waste. I collect it and put it in the large green bins behind our building, but quite frequently, I find non-organic garbage in the bins. The same happens in the blue bins for recycling. Our building needs serious education and some way to control where our waste is supposed to go. I have spoken to our superintendent and she doesn't have time for it. I guess the next step is the manager of the building. 

    • Norah Bolton's avatar
      Norah Bolton 4/05/2020 11:07 AM
      Maybe you can ask the building management to put up reminders.  Our complex is quite good at that.  One of the advantages is having the property management in the buidling.
  • REFLECTION QUESTION
    Food Learn the Truth About Expiration Dates
    How does knowing the difference between use by, sell by, and best by dates empower you to make better decisions?

    Jo-Ann Dawson's avatar
    Jo-Ann Dawson 4/04/2020 7:48 PM
    In Canada, The "best before" date does not guarantee product safety, but it does give you information about the freshness and potential shelf-life of the unopened food you are buying.
    Use by date - This may appear instead of "best before" on pre-packaged fresh yeast only.
    Expiration date - This must appear on formulated liquid diets, foods for use in a very low-energy diet, meal replacements, nutritional supplements and infant formulas. If the expiration date is passed, throw it out.
    You can buy and eat foods after the "best before" date has passed. It may have lost some of its freshness, flavour and nutritional value, and its texture may have changed.
    Best before" dates are not indicators of food safety. They apply to unopened products only. Once opened, the shelf life of a food may change. Experts tell us never use your nose, eyes or taste buds to judge the safety of food. If in doubt, throw it out.
    Although, I can say I have done just that, especially eyes and nose. 
    The best thing to do is not to buy too much food at once. I plan what I need and limit myself to what I can consume within a safe time frame, especially fresh meat and produce.
  • REFLECTION QUESTION
    Action Track: Building Resilience Volunteer in my Community
    How does volunteering enhance your community and/or change your relationship with it?

    Jo-Ann Dawson's avatar
    Jo-Ann Dawson 4/03/2020 4:55 PM
    One Friday each month, I participate in preparing and serving a community for marginalized people in our downtown area. I appreciate more of what I have and see how people cope who have very little. I am happy to help them and get to know them as individuals.
    This month, we still hosted the dinner, however with social distancing in place, they lined up outside and we had a complete meal of sandwiches, veggies, boiled eggs and desert ready to hand out and take away. They are always very appreciative many thank us with a smile. One guest brought a bag of apples to add to the dinner.

    • Norah Bolton's avatar
      Norah Bolton 4/05/2020 11:16 AM
      That might be a first - to have the guest bring a contribution.  That rates as news for the Wednesday Group - and for the Rector's updates.
  • REFLECTION QUESTION
    Action Track: Building Resilience Watch a Documentary about Food Sovereignty
    How does food sovereignty address the complex agrarian transition to modern food systems?

    Jo-Ann Dawson's avatar
    Jo-Ann Dawson 4/02/2020 8:52 PM
    I am tired. I'll write my reflection tomorrow.

    • Jo-Ann Dawson's avatar
      Jo-Ann Dawson 4/04/2020 8:12 PM
      Food sovereignty" asserts that the people who produce, distribute, and consume food should control the mechanisms and policies of food production and distribution. This stands in contrast to the present corporate food system, in which corporations and market institutions dominate the global food system. Their aim is to make money, not necessarily feed people.
      Organizing Consumers: Coupled with rising demand for local and organic food, neighbourhood associations and consumers across Canada are organizing innovative food production initiatives and are actively forming food policy councils in municipal and provincial forums. These community organizations view food issues as integrally related to climate, energy, and health concerns. For example, as a way to connect social welfare and public nutrition programs to sustainable agricultural development, public food procurement programs like the University of Toronto’s Local Food Plus and community-nutrition and farm-to-school programs across Canada seek to recreate links between local food, public health, and climate-friendly agriculture.
      Training a New Generation of Farmers: Young farmer training programs like the FarmStart initiative in Ontario, the Richmond Farm School at the Kwantlan Polytechnic School in British Columbia, and Green Certificate Farm Training Programs in Alberta and Saskatchewan are preparing new curricula for sustainable, small-scale, urban, rural and mixed farming systems that are designed to foster “human-scale” agricultural systems that link food production, processing, adding value, distribution, marketing, and sales. These programs are attracting a new generation of agrarian and urban youth who don’t take their food for granted – and are interested in connecting food-related careers to larger concerns around energy, climate change, public health, and nutrition.
      Hopefully these are what we are considering modern food systems, Not the huge corporate entities that are not helpful in anything but making profits for multi-national companies.
      A project on my bucket list is to organize and plan to build a community garden in my neighbourhood. I am hoping that the families in our community will join me in learning to grow and consume our own food and, in the process give back to our community by collecting a percentage of our crop to give to local foodbanks.

  • Jo-Ann Dawson's avatar
    Jo-Ann Dawson 4/01/2020 8:45 PM
    We're off to a great start, everyone. Thanks for joining us. We are part of something bigger than ourselves. You are all making a difference.