365 Sustainable Decisions Challenge

Although #artificialIntelligence can make #recycling easier, it is best to prevent waste in the first place. For example, I used an old DVD case as photo frame. Old DVD cases make excellent photo frames, as you can put one picture at the front, one at the back, and you can store further pictures inside! Learn more on why #AI is helpful for recycling and how it works: https://medium.com/climate-conscious/how-artificial-intelligence-makes-recycling-easier-bc56f7ba138a

Water can be used as a battery, when two basins are filled, with one higher than the other. When energy needs to be stored, water from the lower basin is pumped to the higher basin. When this energy is needed, the water flows down again and can be converted into electricity. Learn more about excessive renewable energy can be stored:   https://medium.com/climate-conscious/how-energy-from-renewable-sources-can-be-stored-696b425c302 To be able to balance the supply and demand for electricity in the grid, storing energy is essential (credit:  mipan  on  Shutterstock )

When we eat fish, we often eat #microplastics too. What can we do to prevent plastic from reaching oceans and entering the food chain? I went litter-picking today, and picked several pieces of plastic out of the water and the area around it. Learn more about the negative impact of plastic on aquatic animals: https://medium.com/the-environment/how-plastic-that-ends-up-or-is-dumped-in-the-ocean-affects-aquatic-organisms-a7452d60f55 I cleaned up a whole bucket today

Climate change seems impact so much more than we realize! Even things we may not realize are possible. For example, more rain due to climate change causes more male turtles to hatch. Here is explained how this works: https://medium.com/@ErlijnG/how-does-rain-influence-the-number-of-female-turtles-baddce8c21ca Sea turtle (credit:  Kris-Mikael Krister  on  Unsplash )

Buy 1, get 1 for free: When I use a spring onion I cut off the lower 6 cm (2.4 inch), put the roots in about 2 cm (0.8 inch) of water in a glass, change the water every 2 days, and soon have a new spring onion! More advantages of urban gardening: https://medium.com/the-environment/how-urban-gardening-contributes-to-sustainable-development-goals-785df8d72af5 With urban gardening, you can make a positive difference (credit:  AYA images  on  Shutterstock )

Did you realize that our current economy is focused on growth instead of well-being? But when growth contributes to well-being, why not go for well-being directly instead? To achieve this, our current global economy needs to change. This is how: https://medium.com/age-of-awareness/6-ways-we-need-to-change-our-global-economy-to-save-our-planet-9fa008349b5c Changing our economic system to a well-being-based economy will help save the planet (credit:  Brian A Jackson  on  Shutterstock )

What can you and I do to measure the health of our environment using animal sounds? We can participate in the Great Backyard Bird Count day! For example: US: February 17-20: https://www.birdcount.org/ NL: 27-29 January: https://www.vogelbescherming.nl/tuinvogeltelling More ideas: https://medium.com/the-environment/how-animal-sounds-can-help-us-understand-the-effects-of-climate-change-5566128a6c76 Animal sounds can tell us a lot about the health of the environment (credit:  shao weiwei  on  Shutterstock )

During my Christmas break, I cleaned my house and every "to do" I encountered, I did. For example, I found gloves with holes in it and repaired them. Repairing is a great way to put old clothes to good use again instead of buying new ones. Other ways: https://medium.com/the-environment/how-old-clothes-can-be-recycled-and-put-to-good-use-again-baf752b4323d (credit:  Igisheva Maria  on  Shutterstock )

What comes to mind when thinking of pollution? Probably not thermal pollution, heat that accumulated in the ground for example because of urbanization, industrialization, and climate change. Recycling this heat can contribute to a healthier planet: https://medium.com/age-of-awareness/4-reasons-why-it-can-be-worth-recycling-thermal-pollution-38ae7e77bfe0 Example of heat pollution in Edinburgh, Scotland, with red indicating higher temperatures (credit: “ Edinburgh photo heatmap ” by  Steven Kay  is licensed under  CC BY-SA 2.0 )

What can we do to reduce CO2 emissions? I for example traveled by train to my family over Christmas instead of driving or flying. While on the train, I was able to relax and read. More practical ideas of what you and I can do to reduce CO2 emissions in  https://medium.com/the-environment/its-getting-hot-19-strategies-that-can-help-our-planet-to-cool-down-2eaa96c29130

Did you know animal sounds can help us understand the effects of climate change? This is because sounds can for example help us understand biodiversity in an area. When the biodiversity changes, it usually means that the environment changed too. ▶️ Learn more: https://medium.com/the-environment/how-animal-sounds-can-help-us-understand-the-effects-of-climate-change-5566128a6c76 Animal sounds can tell us a lot about the health of the environment (credit:  shao weiwei  on  Shutterstock )

Happy new year! I hope you had a great last few weeks. I enjoyed spending a lot of time with family and friends during my break. And as my heart is always with nature, I also for example visited a nature museum. Here you can see that I won the fully digitalized pub quiz. The setup and quiz were fun!

After another extremely busy year, taking many initiatives towards a healthier planet, I'm taking a break. I'll be back on January 9th. Have a wonderful last part of this year, a good start of 2023, and stay healthy! (credit:  Alones  on Shutterstock )

Of course it is better not to fly at all, but when I do, I make sure I book a direct flight, as additional short flights cause extra CO2 emissions. 

Did you know that sensors, radar, and lasers can be used to measure different characteristics of an environment and assess its health? And doing this in an automated way helps us determine how the current environmental crises develop. Learn more: https://medium.com/age-of-awareness/how-remote-sensing-can-help-us-determine-environmental-health-9cbb194e546f Remote sensing can provide us information about the health of our environment (credit:  ASVMAGZ  on  Shutterstock )

When I have leaves on the grass, I rake them away (#79). However, when they are in the border, I leave them, as they provide insects and other small animals a great place to hide.  

Did you know that our guts impact our mental health by directly communicating with our brain? This is because microorganisms in our guts produce substances that keep us mentally healthy. One of these substances is dopamine, our feel-good hormone. Learn more: https://medium.com/age-of-awareness/3-ways-to-take-care-of-your-gut-to-prevent-eco-depression-ee0882f25ff6 Taking care of our intestines can help us prevent and treat depression (credit:  SpeedKingz   on   Shutterstock )

I have to admit, deciding to use a laundry rack takes a bit more time than using a dryer. But while putting the clothes up, I usually listen to some music so it is not so bad. And it just feels better to only use the dryer in case my clothes – or often bed sheets – need to get dry fast. Not only do I use less electricity, my clothes wear out less quickly too!  

The winner of the   We take action! award - clean water 2022 is the EVOLVE Initiative! They're doing many amazing things for example designing and constructing floating wetlands to treat polluted water and cleaning ponds! (pictures below) Congratulations! ❤️ https://www.facebook.com/EvolveEngineering/ https://www.instagram.com/evolve_engineering/ EVOLVE in action: pond before it is cleaned EVOLVE in action: pond after it is cleaned EVOLVE in action: carrying floating island EVOLVE in action: wetland with islands

When I go on holiday or take a break and travel somewhere, I always make sure I bring as little as possible. This saves energy, especially on long journeys.