Unfortunately I have to admit that my family footprint is crazy high and I’m not proud of it.  We own 6 cars, a large RV, and a boat, which all use a lot of gas.  We have a house that was built in 1940, and so our thin old windows are not very good at insulating our house well. We also have a lot of lamps and lights in our house that are just constantly on (because our house is naturally pretty dim inside), even though for most of them we use energy efficient bulbs. If I had my own home, I would do a lot of things differently.  I would invest in windows that do not leak, so we do not have to heat or air condition my house as often.  I would not own so many vehicles, especially ones that all use gas. I would really like to invest in solar panels because my house would be in California where the sun is almost always out, and this would be one of the most important investments to make because it would help produce pure energy. Having my family always unplug cords after using them is important, (even though I try to remind them to do this as much as I can already).  My famil y also eats a lot of steaks and red meat, which I think would be better not to do nearly as often, considering that cows are actually one of the main contributors to California’s severe drought because they need so much water.  In my house I would definitely like to have either artificial grass, or a rock garden in order to conserve water.  Setting up a water reclamation system so that I could reuse water would also be extremely important so that I could help save more water. I already live extremely close to school, so I’d like for my home to stay that way, and also be either close to work or at least public transportation.

Really great assessment Sarah! I am impressed with your awareness and accountability regarding your family's ecological footprint. The improvements you write about would vastly reduce your impact on the planet and it's ecosystems. "A Home Cooling Strategy for Lower Energy Bills" on energy.gov (http://energy.gov/energysaver/articles/ … ergy-bills) suggests some easy ways to lower the amount of energy spent on air conditioning and heating your house. These tips and pieces of advice could hopefully give you a more immediate improvement despite your thin windows. One particular piece of advice that struck me was the suggestion to address air leaks and seal them with "weatherstripping." This may be a fruitful investment and something for you to look into.