Simply going vegan for a few meals a week would substantially lessen my and most American's carbon footprint, without having to forgo animal products altogether. Given that more and more Americans are consuming animal products, and more individuals in the developing world are also consuming animal products, reducing this area of consumption is vitally important for the sustainability of the planet. It surprised me to learn that reducing meat consumption was such an important part of reducing one's ecological footprint, perhaps even more important than reducing one's consumption of fossil fuels through transportation. Buying a Prius has received substantially more praise in the media than reducing meat consumption.
But reducing meat consumption is not enough. Factory dairy production is also very taxing on the environment. Raising chickens for eggs and cows for milk production takes a great deal of the earth's resources. In the developing world, consumption of dairy has become a new part of the modern lifestyle. Finding new sources of calcium through non-dairy sources will be a critical part of sustainability in the future. Selecting eggs and milk from local rather than factory-farmed sources, as well as foregoing dairy products for some meals altogether is another important step in reducing one's ecological footprint. Although not quite as large a component of the ecological footprint, reducing consumption of imported fruits and vegetables and buying at farmer's markets can further reduce the food component of the ecological footprint.
Reducing the amount of trash we create is also important. The most obvious immediate way to reduce the amount of trash is to recycle. However, the ecological footprint program did not ask questions about trash. Instead, it asked simply how much trash the individual created. This may initially seem unfair, but upon reflection I believe there is a 'method' behind its madness,...
Would it be better if no one had an SUV to take into the woods to go camping, to learn about the importance of the environment? Surely, learning about the environment is a way to spur people on, especially the next generation, to want to help the planet. Meat is also penalized very heavily, but the source of the meat, whether it is grain-fed or pasture-raised, is not taken into
Lifestyle Changes to Reduce Our Ecological Footprint Biology And Life Ecological footprint is one method that can be used to measure how our individual lifestyle affects the planet including the people and animals living here. The lifestyle choices that each individual makes can affect the quality of our environment in a huge way. The more resources each individual consumes, the larger their ecological footprint thus leaving little for everyone else (Sustainable Communities
That would enable me to brew my own coffee instead of purchasing coffee in a paper and plastic cup everyday, and it would allow me the necessary time to prepare home-made meals and to filter my own tap water instead of purchasing prepared packaged foods and bottled water, both of which add to my food footprint and my consumption of goods and services beyond what is necessary. Since most
Author Paul Ehrlich devised the famous equation for evaluating human impact on the environment as a function of three variables: (1) population, (2) affluence, and (3) technology (UWBR, 2004). Much more recently, William Rees, of the Fisheries Center at the University of British Columbia introduced a method for quantifying the specific natural resource demand represented by each person, expressing the results as an ecological "footprint" (UWBR, 2004). Combined with the fact
Carbon Footprint Qantas Carbon Footprint Researcher One Corporate Governance Qantas corporate governance statement mentions that Qantas has an appropriate corporate governance structure to ensure the creation, protection, and enhancement of shareholder value (Qantas, 2012). Based on this statement alone it seems as if Qantas does not promote a triple bottom line or any other measure of sustainability in the summary of their corporate governance strategy. Other firms in the airline industry make a stronger
In modern school cultures, for instance, we often say, "Oh, they're Asian, they must be smart." So, the Asian-American person hears that they "must be smart, must overachieve, must get good grades." They then come to believe that this is far more than what society expects of them, but instead, what they are supposed to be as a person. So, they become that person, they apply themselves a bit
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