I completed the Ecological Footprint quiz and was really shocked at what I learned. It showed me that if everyone lived like I do, we'd need 4.2 Earths do provide enough resources for everyone! That's a big shocker! It takes 18.6 global acres of the Earth's productive area to support my lifestyle; that's 18.8 tons of carbon dioxide that would need to be produced. Services have the most impact on my ecological footprint at 48%, then it's Food at 21%, Goods at 15%,shelter at 11%, and Mobility at 4%. Those percents show how much of each I demand out of the earth. It's amazing to think about how much of the Earth's resources we (as in the whole world) are using and not really even thinking about it.
I looked at how I could change my ecological footprint and learned some really interesting facts. If every American purchased products that used less packaging or were made out of 100% post consumer recycled content material, we'd use 645 million fewer global acres. That's an area that would cover about 484 million football fields! By eating less animal products, carpooling and buying more recycled products I could change how many global acres I use on this earth. Those are three things I'm going to try to do more to bring down my ecological footprint.
I looked at how I could change my ecological footprint and learned some really interesting facts. If every American purchased products that used less packaging or were made out of 100% post consumer recycled content material, we'd use 645 million fewer global acres. That's an area that would cover about 484 million football fields! By eating less animal products, carpooling and buying more recycled products I could change how many global acres I use on this earth. Those are three things I'm going to try to do more to bring down my ecological footprint.
Hey Alyssa. I thought this quiz was really interesting and eye-opening as well. While answering the questions, I couldn't help but notice how much I waste and much more mindful of my actions I could be. Great find!
ReplyDeleteAlyssa,
ReplyDeleteI also though this quiz was really interesting. It's really crazy to think about how much of an impact we all make on the environment without even realizing it! Great ideas for bringing down your ecological footprint.
Alyssa,
ReplyDeleteI was unaware of the carbon dioxide aspect of these quizes, that is really interesting and yet another thing that really puts into perspective how what we do completely impacts our the people around us.
484 million football fields is insane! That is so much land that we are potentially wasting and it's so sad. I think you have great ideas to try to reduce your carbon footprint, nice work!
ReplyDeleteI too decided carpooling would be a very easy way to reduce my footprint. I live at Boulder Ridge and usually see at least 3-4 people getting in their cars at the same time I do and I thought, we could all fit in one vehicle potentially. How easy would that be? I think we have all seen that making just one change in our lives can make a huge difference.
ReplyDeleteAlyssa,
ReplyDeletewe scored almost the same on how many Earths we would need if everyone shared our lifestyle. It's so shocking to me too! I like your ideas about how you can change, I'm employing similar ones!