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 >
the cost is higher than money
new technology advances are cool, but have a higher cost than money, but the earth that we need to survive. our new advances in cars and other transportation vehicles are causing CO2 levels to rise higher than ever before, and before we know it all the forests, reefs, clean oceans, and clear skies will be gone thanks to our new stuff. if we don't do anything about this current issue, our kids may not be able to enjoy the natural resources that we have access to now. the new tech may help us keep in touch with people that are far away, but there can be better, cleaner ways to stay close with friends and family. creating a more sustainable way to use our earth will not be that difficult if everyone helps just a little.
I agree, however, the advances in transportation could be going the opposite direction. There are many new models are cars and other vehicles coming out that have higher fuel mileage and are more eco-friendly such as electric cars. And this is not the only thing having a major impact on the environment. We do not need to completely change our ways of transportation. If there were slightly more efficient and greener ways to do each thing in our everyday lives, the 7.5 billion people that become a little greener could make a major impact.