Kristi Erickson

St. Peder's Earth Stewards

Points Total

0 Today
0 This Week
916 Total

Participant Impact

up to

9.1

pounds of CO2

have been saved
up to

3.0

plastic bottles

not sent to the landfill
up to

20

pieces of litter

picked up
up to

9.0

pounds

waste recycled
up to

1.0

documentaries

watched
up to

95

minutes

spent learning

Kristi 's Actions

On-the-go

Use Reusable Bags

I will not accept any disposable bags when making purchases, including produce bags.

COMPLETED 4
DAILY ACTIONS

At Home

Recycle Plastic Caps

I will recycle 1 plastic caps each day by placing them back on the (plastic) bottles before placing them in my recycling bin.

COMPLETED 9
DAILY ACTIONS

At Home

Watch a Documentary

I will watch a documentary film about plastic waste with family and friends and talk about what we learned.

Completed
One-Time Action

Personal Care

Transition to the use of earth friendly personal care products.

I will reduce my consumption of plastic by searching for and purchasing 4 health and personal products that are earth friendly, with refillable or earth friendly containers,

COMPLETED 4
DAILY ACTIONS

Community

Pick Up Plastic Litter

I will pick up 2 piece(s) of plastic litter each day and dispose of it responsibly.

COMPLETED 10
DAILY ACTIONS

Community

Donate Zero Waste Period Products

I will contact a local support organization and donate reusable menstrual products to reduce the financial burden to access them.

Completed
One-Time Action

Community

Estimate Your Plastic Footprint

I will complete a plastic consumption calculator to learn about my plastic footprint.

Completed
One-Time Action

At Home

Make Green Cleaners

I will make 3 of my own cleaning products (cleaners, detergents, soaps) instead of buying them in new spray bottles each time.

Completed
One-Time Action

Feed

Kristi Erickson 2/28/2022 6:35 PM

Met almost all my challenges, few pieces short on litter and plastic bottles with caps. I’ve learned much, need to continue all my new habits and do more, including advocating for less use of plastic everywhere.

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Kristi Erickson 2/26/2022 12:49 PM

QUESTION: Where have people donated waste free period products? Would food shelves take them?
Originally planned to donate these products at a local high school but was informed by the social worker the students attending there would probably not be interested. Wondering if there are cultural reasons some women wouldn’t use them. Also considered a homeless shelter but the required maintenance of the products likely makes them challenging for homeless women.

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- karen vetsch 2/26/2022 8:54 PM
  
  I know at the food shelf that I volunteer with, they offer a small toiletry selection of varying items and clients can scan the donations and take something they can use.
  
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Reflection Question
Community Donate Zero Waste Period Products

How can having access to zero waste period products help people who menstruate overcome barriers to education or other opportunities?

Kristi Erickson 2/24/2022 5:51 PM

After initial investment in zero waste menstrual products, the cost of monthly periods is eliminated, freeing up funds that can be used for education or other purposes. The idea of donating these products would be extremely helpful for people with limited budgets.

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Kristi Erickson 2/18/2022 11:04 AM

Ok, I’m finding more plastic litter. Parking lots are full of plastic and other litter. At this time of year much of the plastic is dirty which I assume means it can’t be recycled.😞

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- Elisa Gustafson 2/19/2022 4:54 AM
  
  But it can at least be picked up so it doesn't end up in the lakes! I live in a neighborhood that has a huge litter problem, and have adopted a litter container from the city for my corner. If I were braver and maybe the neighborhood a bit more collaborative, I'd also get one for recycle. But people do take advantage of it, and it also helps me when I need to pick up litter on the street to have a handy place to leave it until the bag gets full. I've also picked up a lot of clothes from the street over the years, and if it's in good shape I'll just wash and donate it.
  
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Kristi Erickson 2/17/2022 2:20 PM

While grocery shopping today I avoided plastic, but I was reminded how it became so popular at least three different times. I realized my cloth produce bags needed washing, I had to search for an alternative product to avoid harmful packaging. And I drove to a second store to purchase another product with more environmentally friendly packaging. (The later seems a trade off between harmful packaging and by products of combustion). It’s complicated. Plastic made daily living easier and saved time. I’m not saying I’m giving up my efforts to reduce my use of plastic, just realizing the climate/environmental problem is very complex and there is so much more to do..

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- Darrick Jensen 2/27/2022 9:45 AM
  
  I wonder why more paper (or other fiber) based products can't be substituted. its still trash but seems much more degradable.
  
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Kristi Erickson 2/16/2022 6:23 PM

I find myself thinking about alternatives for packaging or product whenever I handle something packaged in plastic these days.

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Kristi Erickson 2/14/2022 2:32 PM

There has not been much plastic waste around, or even other trash. I’m not meeting my goal for picking up plastic waste, maybe that’s a good thing. Not sure if it is the snow cover or people stay inside with these cold temperatures but have seen little litter on my recent outings. I’ll have to continue to work on this goal beyond February.

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Reflection Question
At Home Make Green Cleaners

Which household cleaners did you try making? Have you been able to simplify your cleaning routine?

Kristi Erickson 2/13/2022 6:47 PM

I’ve made and tried the toilet cleaner, the tub and tile cleaner and the dishwasher soap. Now I want to see if the cleaning supplies will keep so I don’t have to make them every time I clean, that will be the game changer, although they are easy to make.

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Kristi Erickson 2/11/2022 8:17 PM

Participating in the Plastic Free Challenge has made me so much more aware of the plastic we use. It’s everywhere, not just in our kitchens, bathrooms, laundry, and toy boxes, it’s even in our clothes, furniture, food, and even more. Have to say the fossil fuel industry has managed to permeate our whole environment. We can do our part but the industry needs to be held accountable and develop processes to reduce, collect, reclaim and eliminate plastic. We need alternatives to plastic, maybe it wouldn’t be bad to go back to glass, tin/metal, paper, products before plastics.

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- Kristi Erickson 2/11/2022 8:20 PM
  
  As the Lake Harriet ice Shanty says.
  
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Kristi Erickson 2/10/2022 5:13 PM

Making progress! Made cleaner for tub and tile with sparkling results, two for two now. Also got my first two personal care products in eco friendly packaging and look forward to trying them.

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