Community Challenge

Having a community to share your experiences with is definitely an important encouraging and motivating factor.  It was very interesting to read about differences and similarities between each group member.  While we are not all doing exactly the same challenge, many of our experiences have been very similar.  I think one

big boundary that everyone faced was just adjusting to the new habit, but reading about everyone’s success makes those boundaries seem less significant and easier to overcome.  Another positive aspect of a community challenge is that it provides motivation to actually be successful.  Many times people are apprehensive to try something on their own, but having a community provides encouragement and motivation to continues.

I think that everyone in the community has found that reusable containers are a really good alternative to paper or plastic disposable containers; and that these alternatives are better for the environment, but are also cheaper for the individual in the long run.  I did read about some alternatives that I had not thought about before, so it was great to be able to share in a community and learn about different ideas for taking on the sustainability challenge.

Forming a community helped give me some new ideas for taking on this challenge.  However, I think the most important aspect of forming a community is that it simply shows that you are not alone.  It shows that other people are experiencing the same barriers that you are, but that they have been able to overcome those barriers.  Overall, the challenge seems less daunting when other people are participating as well.  While having a community did not drastically change how I feel or act during this challenge, it did provide encouragement to continue.  Communities cannot force people to change their habits, but they can help people to change their habits.  Therefore, I think that it is ultimately up to the individual to make the necessary changes.