Simulation Time: What is your Impact?
There is No Simple Answer
The New Yorker’s recent, insightful article, “Big Foot” based on the complexities of calculating a carbon footprint, left some feeling like all the moves they had made toward a more “sustainable” lifestyle were null and void. However, I would argue that such an article asks us to stop and reassess what it is we are trying to do when we think about minimizing personal environmental impacts. Where are our priorities? Perhaps they are different for everyone.
Footprints Vary Across the Map
So today we bring you the Earth Day Footprint Quiz. Upon visiting the homepage, you will be prompted to fill in your country of residence. After which, you will discover the purpose of the quiz. “This Ecological Footprint Quiz estimates how much productive land and water you need to support what you use and what you discard. After answering 15 easy questions you’ll be able to compare your Ecological Footprint to what other people use and to what is available on this planet.” Those 15 easy questions range from how many people you live with to how often you have meat in an average week.
Post quiz-taking you will find out what the numbers are based on. While this is not gospel or an entirely fool proof method of evaluating impact, seeing my footprint and being told that if everyone lived like me, we would need 2.5 earths is anxiety causing! As the initial disclaimer states: CAUTION: THIS QUIZ MAY SURPRISE YOU, SHOCK YOU, OR MAKE YOU THINK. PLEASE REMAIN CALM…BUT NOT TOO CALM!!
