Tyson's Blog

My Gleneagle Digital Portfolio

Reducing My Ecological Footprint

My Footprint

The above sheets show the footprint I leave on the planet. On average, I have an ecological footprint of 11.16 hectares. My footprint is pretty similar to David because he had a footprint of 11.9 hectares. Both of our scores were higher than many of our other classmates. I think this is due to the amount of food that I eat that is non-organic and also due to my long showers. I also use my computer for a large portion of the day and my activities throughout the day use a lot of space.

Classmate’s Footprints:

Simran 9.35

Colby 9.05

Ruby 8.10

Mel 6.95

Hailey 10.6

Devon 6.75

Actions I do that increase my footprint:

  1. Taking long showers
  2. Brushing my teeth with the water on
  3. Having a secondary vacation home
  4. Spending time in the car
  5. Using the computer for a large portion of the day

    source: https://www.wikihow.com/images/c/ce/Choose-Your-First-Computer-Intro.jpg

  6. Eating non-organic food
  7. Eating food not grown in BC
  8. Washing my clothes with hot water
  9. Buying brand new clothes instead of second-hand
  10. Making a lot of garbage per day

    source: http://i.huffpost.com/gen/3779558/images/o-GARBAGE-LANDFILL-facebook.jpg

  11. Riding in larger vehicles often

Actions from those that I can reduce my footprint with:

  1. Taking shorter showers (under 5 minutes)
  2. Brushing my teeth with the water off
  3. Spending less time on my computer during the day
  4. Reducing the amount of garbage I create
  5. Buying secondhand clothing
  6. Eating more organic food

How and why I will change these actions (In order) and how difficult they were to change.:

  1. I chose this one because it is really quite simple for me to do. I just have to quickly shower and not relax too much while in the shower, because then it will use more water. I’m going to take shorter showers by being efficient with them and not leaving the water running for too long. I will also start by setting a timer for my showers, so that I stay under 5 minutes.  This  one was  pretty  easy,  but I lost track of time quickly

    source: i.ytimg.com/vi/lvJrx5Aecxk/maxresdefault.jpg

  2. This one is also really easy for me, since all it requires is me turning off the tap while I brush my teeth. This was definitely the easiest switch for me. I’m glad it makes a difference.
  3. Spending less time on the computer was quite difficult for me, since I do work, play games and usually watch shows on my computer. I reduced the amount of time I spent playing games, while also watching less episodes of shows per day. It has let me work on more personal projects and made more time.
  4. Reducing the amount of garbage I made was also quite difficult, since I end up snacking a lot. I chose this because I wanted to reduce how much garbage I make per day. Those snacks make a lot of garbage, so I’ve been working on snacking less. It was difficult the first few days, but now I don’t snack at all. The only garbage I create now is from packaging of items I buy. I don’t spend very often, so it is very minimal.
  5. I actually didn’t have trouble buying second hand clothing, since I buy secondhand from value village for cosplaying characters from shows quite often. I chose this because I felt like it was a good change and it would be interesting. I don’t buy clothes very often, so it’s a fairly easy switch.
  6. Eating more organic food was difficult, since my parents buy non-organic meat sometimes. I chose this to help local businesses and eat healthier. I go shopping with them so I can request organic items, but we don’t always get organic food. I’m trying to eat more organic and BC grown food now as well. My parents have started to buy more local food too.

The Future:

In the future I want to eat more organic food, shower for a  shorter time and also use my computer less. These are all changes that have helped me in reducing my ecological footprint and have also helped me improve myself.

Steps to do so:

  1. Set timers for showers
  2. Set timers for time on the computer
  3. Buy organic foods and locally sourced food

 

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