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 >
Creative Ways to Reduce our Footprints
This link lists a few simple ways to reduce your carbon footprint that no one really thinks about. The best ones in my opinion are number two and number five, they are super easy. Junk mail piles up and is unnecessary in the first place, therefore unsubscribing from it or removing yourself from mailing lists will save a lot of paper from being thrown out. Buying white trash bags instead of black is super simple and easy.
I totally agree with the idea to reduce junk mail. Especially with students who are being sent offers by colleges during their high school years. It only takes a few moments to reach out to a sender and request that they stop sending you mail and over time that would save so much paper and postage. Especially some colleges who will send envelopes with plastic slips and that becomes much harder to compost/recycle.
I found these ideas to be practical and completely worthwhile. These are super easy things that everybody could do to reduce their carbon footprint without affecting their lifestyle whatsoever. I never would have known how problematic black trashbags truly are but now that I know, I will GLADly purchase white trash bags instead, pardon the pun. In addition, I would be more than happy to have the junk mailers stop mailing me: I get rid of my junk mail and help the environment in one fell swoop. Win-win.