Earth Month Ecochallenge 2023: Sustainable Development Goals

April 1 - April 30, 2023

Allen Lee

WSP USA Northeast Region

"Building a Better World through Sustainable Actions!"

POINTS TOTAL

0 TODAY
0 THIS WEEK
894 TOTAL

participant impact

UP TO

540

gallons of water

have been saved
UP TO

1.0

documentary

watched
UP TO

1.0

water footprint

calculated
UP TO

1.0

donation

made
UP TO

328

miles

not traveled by car
UP TO

90

minutes

spent learning
UP TO

396

pounds of CO2

have been saved
UP TO

290

minutes

being mindful
UP TO

8.0

hours

volunteered
UP TO

59

conversations

with people

Allen's actions

Education & Livelihood

WSP - Climate Solutions Plan and Accelerator Course

Read WSP’s Climate Transition Plan, which details how we plan to reduce GHG emissions. We began implementation of our Low-Carbon Supplier Engagement Plan in January. Learn more about it by listening to our supplier kickoff webinar. Increase your climate literacy, take the 2-part Climate Solutions Accelerator Course on the WSP My Learning Platform.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Climate & Ecosystems

Calculate Your Carbon Impact

SDG 13

I will calculate the carbon emissions associated with my household and consider how lifestyle changes could reduce the carbon footprint and impacts on the environment.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Basic Needs & Security

Calculate Your Water Footprint

SDG 6

I will calculate my water footprint and look for a few ways I can reduce consumption or waste.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Basic Needs & Security

Know Your Produce

SDG 2

I will become a savvy produce shopper when buying organic and non-organic items.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Health & Equity

Communicate Constructively

SDG 16

I will use the communication methods I read about to practice effective, compassionate, and nonviolent communication with someone I interact with regularly (i.e., my roommate, parents, co-worker, partner, classmates, or children).

COMPLETED 21
DAILY ACTIONS

Climate & Ecosystems

WSP - Electrify & Reduce Your Carbon Footprint

Whether you rent or own, sign up with YellowTin to understand costs, savings and incentives for everything needed to transition to an all-electric home and car. Us the link below to register and get these one time action points.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Climate & Ecosystems

Drive Less

SDG 13

To reduce CO2 emissions each day, I will cut my car trip mileage by only taking necessary trips.

COMPLETED 20
DAILY ACTIONS

Health & Equity

Donate Food

SDG 3, 10

I will find out what food programs are in my area and donate food and/or other items that they request.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Basic Needs & Security

Take 5-Minute Or Less Showers

SDG 6

I will save up to 6 gallons (23 L) of water each day by taking 5-minute showers. Tip: Use a timer to practice or count to 60 a few times.

COMPLETED 26
DAILY ACTIONS

Climate & Ecosystems

WSP - Emerge Program

Spend 15 minutes learning about the Emerge Program at WSP. Emerge is WSP's strategic alliance program that seeks early-stage companies with novel solutions as strategic partners. Partners get access to in-house subject matter experts, an opportunity to pilot their products/technologies with WSP during the evaluation phase and have access to our client base. Emerge propels our partners by accelerating the product/technology adoption. Having recently launched our 4th cohort, Emerge has accelerated a number of companies whose mission aligns with UN SDGs. • Olokun Minerals • ecoSPEARS • PLAEX Building Systems

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Basic Needs & Security

Volunteer in My Community

SDG 1

I will volunteer 2 hours in my community.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Education & Livelihood

WSP - Create a Green Team in your office

Make a commitment to have a kick-off Green Team meeting to brainstorm for ideas on what your office will want to accomplish. Coordinate with your office director and DPN to facilitate.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Health & Equity

Practice Mindfulness

SDG 3

I will spend 10 minutes each day practicing mindfulness.

COMPLETED 17
DAILY ACTIONS

Health & Equity

Watch a Documentary About Equity, Gender, Health, or Peace

SDG 3, 5, 10, 16

I will watch 3 documentaries about equity, gender, health, or peace.

COMPLETED
ONE-TIME ACTION

Education & Livelihood

Work-Life Balance

SDG 8

During the workday, I will schedule time for daily breaks during work days to practice work-life balance.

COMPLETED 18
DAILY ACTIONS

Basic Needs & Security

Watch a Documentary About Food, Water, or Basic Needs

SDG 6

I will watch 1 documentaries about food, water, or basic needs.

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
Education & Livelihood

How does practicing a work-life balance create a more sustainable life for you? How might it contribute to sustainability more broadly?
Allen Lee 4/24/2023 1:21 PM
The work-life a balance provides me more opportunity to do those things that I like to do such as volunteer with food banks or working with charities to help those that are less fortunate. This is helpful in that we are supporting those in need with clothing drive that allow people to recycle their household and clothes, as well as food drives to sustain local food pantries with materials for people that are food insecure in the local area.

Read More
REFLECTION QUESTION
Climate & Ecosystems

What is one way you will reduce your carbon footprint? What is a practice you already have that helps you reduce your carbon footprint?
Allen Lee 4/24/2023 1:17 PM
With a new kitchen we had taken steps to have energy efficient appliances that will help to reduce the consumption of electricity and gas. we also have filtered water through our sink and refrigerator which will eliminate the use of disposable water bottles. In addition we have started using a AirStream to make our own carbonated water which will also support in eliminating the need to buy bottled sodas from the supermarket.

Read More
Allen Lee 4/20/2023 6:57 AM
Joining the challenge allowed me to investigate other opportunities to be more sustainable and be more conscious of my surroundings and habits. It is also extremely helpful in being introspective of the work/life balance and making sure things don't get too overwhelming. I chose the categories as being things I could succeed in and also expanding to other areas I'd like to learn more about.

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REFLECTION QUESTION
Health & Equity

What was it like to practice mindfulness? If this is a practice for you already, what was something new you understood in practicing during Earth Month?
Allen Lee 4/20/2023 6:54 AM
Mindfulness provides a great opportunity to clear your head and to help in prioritizing work and personal obligations. It really is important to reset sometimes to clear all the noise going on around you.

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REFLECTION QUESTION
Health & Equity

What is easy for you to do when having a constructive conversation and what is challenging? What tips do you have for having a constructive conversation?
Allen Lee 4/17/2023 7:29 PM
It is always easy to develop ideas that I think will be helpful to the other person in addressing issues or challenges. The difficult part for me is to refrain from jumping in to try to answer the question or provide the solution before listening to the whole story or waiting for the question to be asked. I have been working on that for years and that is something that does require effort and focused attention. communiction skills.

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REFLECTION QUESTION
Climate & Ecosystems

What are your thoughts on WSP partnering with smaller companies with the Emerge Program?
Allen Lee 4/14/2023 7:18 AM
The teaming with companies provides a great ability to support small businesses in creating a more sustainable future and fostering those ideas in its infancy. It's all about taking small steps to improve the environment and b e more sustainable and these companies are helping to get there with unique ideas and approaches.

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REFLECTION QUESTION
Health & Equity

What did you watch, and what was the most important thing you learned in the documentaries you watched? How does what you learned connect to your understanding of climate change and Earth Month?
Allen Lee 4/13/2023 11:31 AM
One of the more impactful documentaries I watched was "Found, about three asian girls across the U.S. that were adopted from China during the "one child per family" policy. Through DNA testing they found out that they were cousins and the three set out to find out about their heritage and try to find their biological parents. The relationship to climate change was that these laws were instituted by the Chinese government to limit population growth and to minimize on impacts to the environment in the future. Although this left many people leaving their children in orphanages they did decrease consumption and pollution my decreasing the overall population.

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REFLECTION QUESTION
Basic Needs & Security

With 5-minute or less showers reducing your water footprint, what do you plan to add next to your water conservation habits?
Allen Lee 4/08/2023 1:28 PM
The next would be to minimize water usage from washing of dishes and minimizing time in washing and utilizing dishwasher less when it is now full.

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REFLECTION QUESTION
Climate & Ecosystems

Do you think YellowTin will be useful?
Allen Lee 4/05/2023 11:11 AM
Yes I think it will be helpful in assessing the savings I could see by making my home and office more efficient.

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Allen Lee 4/04/2023 12:36 PM
I want to help in making a difference in our environment and support in educating others on how they can do better.

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