A few years back I was shown a website where I could input certain generic information about myself and then receive results based on that information. The results that I received were a makeup of what was considered to be my “carbon footprint”. At the time of taking this short quiz, my results were that if everyone on Earth lived the way that I did it would take 6.3 planet Earth’s resources to sustain the lifestyles of everyone in the world. However, we only have one Earth to go around for everyone, so this did come across as a problem.
Now of course most would argue that giving up a home with running water or the ability to buy packaged foods for convenience purposes would seem to be impractical, even if possible. I personally believe however, even if major changes can not happen, minor ones can be made which could have a major impact. I have just retaken the quiz, found here, and with a few simple changes have managed to drop my carbon footprint by about 2 Earths, down to 4.2.
In order to achieve this number, I made a few simple life changes, which I believe anyone can do! The changes I made included:
- Recycling all plastic and paper within my household instead of just some
- Scheduling tasks closer together so I would drive less each week
- Switching from store bought produce to freshly grown produce from local farmer’s markets
- Turning off lights when leaving a room and unneeded electronics and appliances when leaving the house
- Less water conservation – this came as a result of a water conversation project I completed, which I will upload the results of soon.
I hope that the quiz remains operational, for I think it is quite helpful in understanding the little changes that people can make in their daily lives in order to reduce their own effects on the environment.
Fix The World 