Students from around the world calculated their class mean and standard deviations for their footprints and posted them on our world map.
Do you see differences across the globe? If so, why do you think those differences exist?
Did you use the calculator to try to reduce your footprint down to the average from a citizen of another country? What changes would you have to make to lower your footprint in this way? Are you going to try and take some of these actions in your daily life?
Student Footprints >
Science and the Environment
After taking the carbon footprint quiz and looking at the results, I noticed how the average carbon footprint for Californians is higher than the average worldwide. This puts things into perspective on how much bigger we are than other countries. For example, most countries in Europe won't have a higher carbon footprint due to the fact that they can walk place to place, where as we can only access most places by car or bus. When looking back at my results, I noticed that my "home" category was above average. Before taking the quiz, I didn't realize how so many day to day things I do contribute to my carbon footprint. For example, having my fan on or having my devices plugged into the outlet, even if it is charged, is contributing to the amount of carbon put out into our atmosphere. Even though most of us can't change our transportation system place to place, we can work on the minuscule factors that contribute to the carbon in our atmosphere, like how long our fan is on or how long our showers are. By being more aware of the things most of us overlook, we too can make an impact on the amount of carbon that is being released into our atmosphere.