My Carbon Footprint

Sociology

My Carbon Footprint

In today's society, we are becoming more aware of our actions and how they effect our Earth. Recently, I took a Carbon Footprint quiz on nature.org which asked a series of questions to reveal what type of 'footprint' I am leaving on this planet. A carbon footprint is known to be made up of two parts, the primary footprint and the secondary footprint. In short, the primary footprint is a measure of our individual usage of electricity, cooking gas or means of transportation. On the other hand, the secondary footprint is a measure of the day to day products we use including, the food we eat and the clothes we buy.

According to the carbon footprint calculator I fall below the U.S. average breakdown in each catergory, which I was pleasantly happy with! My results break down in the following: Home energy- 30% Driving/flying- 40% Recycling/waste- 3% Food & diet: 15%. When I first read my results I was stunned & thought forsure I was leaving a huge dent on the planet I live on! Yet, as I continued to read I came to find out that the U.S. averages break down as: Home energy-36% Drving/flying- 43% Recycling/waste- 4.4% Food & diet- 17%. Although I may only fall under the radar by a percent or two in a couple of the catergories, it still made me feel as if I wasn't the only one!

Overall I learned how much I am contributing to this Earth by my everyday actions, I am now aware of the damage I may be continuing to cause and how I can change that. To offset my Carbon Footprint would cost a donation of: $255. I don't have that amount to donate at the moment, being a college student and all, but I was able to cough up $10, every little bit counts!