All of you have calculated your emissions and you have surely discovered the unexpectedly high impact of some of your behaviors (eating meat, flying to a sunny destination, etc.) on your total footprints.
Are there any behaviors that you are really willing to change or to improve for the sake of the environment? What challenges do you encounter or think you will encounter while trying to change these things? What help, support, and insights from others would make your life easier with these new behaviors?
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Lightbulbs
While calculating my carbon footprint, I noticed that the type and use of lightbulbs greatly affected the results. I often realize that I forget to turn off the lights as I leave a room, wasting electricity and power. This is something I am willing to change and work on; however, as it has become a habit, it will take time. Another factor that contributed to the results of my carbon footprint are the types of lightbulbs used in my house. We still use several incandescent lights and the rest of our lights are CFLs, or compact fluorescent lights. This said, we have no LEDs in our household. Although CFLs use a lot less electricity than incandescent bulbs and are cheaper than LEDs, LEDs have a much longer lifespan, making the overall cost less. In addition to this, they are more energy efficient. However, they are directional lights, preventing their lighting from being spread evenly and from illuminating as well as CFLs would. Therefore, having a combination of CFLs and LEDs would be an efficient way to reduce the use of electricity in my house, which will improve my carbo n footprint.
SOURCES:
http://www.ledlights.org/FAQ/Why-Are-LE … etter.html
http://www.philforhumanity.com/Types_of … Bulbs.html