Be Green Challenge

Week 2

Zoe Martin

Sustainable diet too?

Thus far, my experience with the Be Green Challenge has been successful. I have made it an entire week without buying clothes or make-up. Additionally, I cleaned out my closet to have more of a capsule wardrobe as I wrote about last week. I think that “Crossing the Assembly Line” really opened my eyes when I read that underpaid Asian immigrants are depending on their wages for survival. It made me feel really bad about supporting the fast fashion industry and created a slight aversion to shopping since Forever 21 is really my only option in Davis.

I think my biggest waste contribution this week was food. I was so busy--back to back classes and work that I kept ordering take-out. This challenge made me more conscious about packaging, and I realized how wasteful food containers are. This made me wonder, how can I be more sustainable when it comes to food consumption? I found an article from the New York Times called “A Guide to Sustainable Eating” in which it discusses dietary habits in terms of  “your health and the well-being of generations to come.” I thought that this was a really great approach to looking at the way we eat. Even just limiting red meat to once a week will decrease the carbon footprint your diet will have on the planet. I think this is something interesting to try for the rest of the Be Green Challenge.

I thnk this first week has given me the confidence to complete this challenge and has even inspired me to take measures about being sustainable in other aspects of my life such as diet! My upcoming social calendar does make me a little nervous about being a sustainable consumer. I have sorority events and a wedding which I need outfits for; however, I can try alternatives such as borrowing clothes or thrift shopping. I am hopeful that I will be able to stick to the challenge.

References:

Brody, Jane E. “A Guide to Sustainable Eating.” The New York Times, The New York Times, 8 Apr. 2019, www.nytimes.com/2019/04/08/well/eat/a-guide-to-sustainable-eating.html.

Thuy Linh Nguyen Tu, “Crossing the Assembly Line.”