I do a lot of journaling and mediation. It helps me stay focused on what I can control and what I cant. I help others to cope by not only offering those suggestions, but by being an active listener and someone that they can trust to lean on.

I believe that most people are just not in touch with what they buy or throw away.  There isn't enough being done to bring it to the attention of people to see the landfills overflowing with wasted products, food, appliances, computers, furniture, clothes. I think it becomes difficult to imagine the footprint you are leaving unless you are made to account for it each and every day. When I did my audit and saw just how much was being thrown away and not used, it has made me buy wiser.  Our society has become one of instant gratification and a disposable generation. Most of what's made is often just thrown away and a new product bought even if the old product is fixable. we always want what's new and of the latest technology, ignoring the still usefulness of a product we already have that could be fixed. I am teaching my daughter that lesson now as her washer broke and legit she kept fixing it until there just was no way to fix it any more (kuddos to her) but then she turned around buying a  brand new set (washer and dryer) even though her dryer was fine. The old dryer still worked, but now sits at a dump somewhere. Her justification, it was a good deal and the dryer would eventually need replacing anyway. 

Eliminating processed foods from my diet which would improve my health as well as  good for the environment by reducing greenhouse gasses.  Buying organic fresh produce whenever possible!

Balance is important for the environment to be protected, for the economy to thrive and our quality of life itself improved.

I decided on a window sill garden as my yard is not large enough for a garden and it is easier to maintain at my windowsill.

The only discouragement i could really find was not enough drop boxes for ballots or early voting centers in historically disenfranchised communities where there was questions around them being accessible by public transportation and being placed in areas of dense concentration.  A study would need to be done to determine where the best locations for those boxes and voting centers would be. They should be proportionate  to the population (Baltimore City literally only had one drop box set up)

Environmental pollutants cause health issues such as heart disease, cancer and respiratory issues and strains our medical system and hospitals. An unhealthy environment affects the community and each person in it. I live in a community near industrial sites and have found that when i am home I suffer from more respiratory issues then when i have spent time away from home in the mountains where I am away from all of the pollutants. Talking with neighbors, i hear of many of the same issues, so I know i am not alone or just "imagining" it. 

Looking forward to doing apples, tomatoes and squash!

People of color are most affected by environmental degradation and environmental irresponsibility and are often the targets of large corporations who are only interested at profits vs the health and well being of those targeted groups.  I found that 3 out of 5 African Americans, Latinos and Native Americans live near toxic waste sites and that 79 percent of African Americans are more likely to live where industrial pollution is the suspected cause of  harmful health effects.

  I am really looking forward to getting less mail in my mailbox (especially all those Christmas catalogs ) that usually go from my mail box direct to the recycle bin without even being looked at. As i receive the catalogs, I contact the businesses directly and asked that they not send future catalogs to my home.  I also opted out of prescreened credit card and insurance quotes and offers.  My next step is to address the non catalog items that i receive by opting that mail and looking for the phone numbers to call to opt out of receiving future mailings.