My Ecological Footprint Quiz Results

http://www.myfootprint.org/en/your_results/?id=643069

After taking my ecological footprint quiz, i was surprised to find out that if everyone on the planet lived my lifestyle, we would need 4.58 Earths! It was a bit more than I had expected, as I live in an older bellingham house with 7 other roommates that care about the environment and try to help in as many ways as we can. We recycle, turn the lights off, carpool, etc., but I still am consuming over four times what I should be in order to live a sustainable lifestyle. I have much to learn..

The findings showed that my total footprint would take up 177.88 global acres of land, sea, and air to sustain my lifestyle. Breaking it down, I found out that I take up 47.6 acres with my carbon footprint, 65.7 acres with my food footprint, 37.2 acres with my housing footprint, and 27.3 acres with my goods and services footprint.

Now that my footprint is somewhat dissected, I can see the areas that I will be able to improve on right away. This quarter, I will work achieve three different goals/lifestyle changes in order to reduce my footprint and also live a healthier and less dependent lifestyle.

• First, I will get started on cutting down my food footprint. It was the largest of the four categories, consuming 65.7 global acres. First will limit myself to eating out only once a week. Instead I will cook meals at home, hopefully buying foods that are local and organic. It would be pretty hard to live on only organics with my already low college budget, but I will try my hardest to shop smart. This means more whole foods, less packaging, and less meat.
• Second, I will work on my goods and services footprint, which currently takes up 27.3 acres. I will keep on recycling like I have been, but now I will start composting! My neighbor already has a compost bin and is more than happy for our house to fill it up.
• Third, I will reduce my housing footprint. At 37.2 acres, this footprint is already above the national average of 31.6 acres. Composting will help this footprint as well, but I will also cut down on my water consumption by only showering once a week! Just kidding.. I will still shower daily but cut down my showers to five minutes. I will also only turn on my faucets half way when rinsing off dishes to use much less water. I will save water as many ways as I can.

I already know that achieving all of these goals will be harder for me as I am living with seven other roommates. I will do my best and hopefully show them that this change will be good for all of us. I know that some of the things that we work on will directly cut down on our utility bills and make us happier and healthier people in the long run. Time to stomp my footprint!