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 >
My Carbon Footprint (Rebecca B. NC, USA)
Good afternoon! My name is Rebecca B, and I am a student at Mooresville High School in Mooresville, North Carolina. I am 17 and an 11th grader at Mooresville. My carbon footprint is as follows:
Transportation: 3828 kgs
Home: 3694 kgs
Food: 2581 kgs
Purchases: 505 kgs
TOTAL: 10608 kgs
I found my carbon footprint to be very interesting! My carbon footprint is below average for my region. The average for my region, North Carolina, is 15,918 kgs. I expected my footprint to be much higher than what it is. All of my sub-categories in my footprint are lower than average for my region.
My number that was the lowest compared to the average for my region was home. I believe this is because I frequently turn off lights, and the light bulbs that I do have are LED. LED light bulbs may be expensive but they are worth the savings in energy! I also keep my house at a good temperature during the winter. It is 68˚ F in the winter (November-February) in my house. Although it may be a little chilly, it saves energy. Putting on a sweatshirt or another blanket is a much better op tion than turning up the heat!
My number that was the closest to the average for my region was transportation. I would like to try and improve my transportation. To improve this, I need to drive less and use different types of transportation like biking and walking when possible. A two mile walk to the grocery store doesn't sound too bad if it is a beautiful day outside!
Overall, this project helped me realize my impact on the world. I am excited to work on reducing my carbon footprint!
Your footprint score was really good actually! I agree that you can always wear a sweatshirt or use another blanket. It does save quite a bit of energy.