# Your footprint



## mamaofthree (Jun 5, 2002)

I know this had been on here before, but I just redid my footprint on www.myfootprint.org
What gets me if you put yourself in the USA and answer the questions you get an aweful rating, but put yourself someplace else and answer the same way you get a better rating. Which I am not really sure why that is. If I live the way I live here in America I use 1.3 planets, but if I live like I do in say Canada I use less than 1 planet. HMMM

H


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## leximom (Jul 4, 2005)

wow, I have some work to do







I didn't realize I was _that_ destructive.


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## MelanieMC (Jul 7, 2005)

OMG - I'm killing the planet!
Seriously, mine was 12 and the avg. is 24. I know mine is high b/c of the fact that I must drive everywhere - no public transport. here and I travel too far for school to bike. This is scary!


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## PrettyBird (Jun 19, 2005)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *mamaofthree*
I know this had been on here before, but I just redid my footprint on www.myfootprint.org
What gets me if you put yourself in the USA and answer the questions you get an aweful rating, but put yourself someplace else and answer the same way you get a better rating. Which I am not really sure why that is. If I live the way I live here in America I use 1.3 planets, but if I live like I do in say Canada I use less than 1 planet. HMMM

H

I did that too, I plugged mine in for several different countries of a similar economic level of the US and got really different results. Not really sure how it makes much of a difference if you live the same way in the US or Canada.


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## Ruthla (Jun 2, 2004)

OK, why am I getting the eBay login page when I click on that link? I get the page with the map, then it switches to eBay before I can click on anything.


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## veganf (Dec 12, 2005)

I'm only a 2.1 planets/9 acres. I think the only realistic places for improvement for me are for an energy efficient home and a hybrid vehicle (which we have plans for this summer if we can afford it).

- Krista


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## mamaofthree (Jun 5, 2002)

Do you think there is a bais against Americans? I know that sounds weird, but no matter what counrty I put in with the exact same stuff as I do when I put in American as my home, I use less planets.
Could it be the over all consumption of Americans? Hmmm

H


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## Rhannie (Mar 16, 2006)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *mamaofthree*
Do you think there is a bais against Americans? . . . Could it be the over all consumption of Americans? HmmmH

I used to live in the US and now live in Japan. I put in my data for when I lived in the US where we didn't use much energy and produced 90% of what we ate. Where I live in Japan, it is almost impossible to get local produce and most things are packaged and/or processed. Plus we drive EVERYWHERE, where as when I was in the US we hardly ever had to leave the house. All in all I should have had a much better score for what I entered in for my life in the US, but I ended up with 4 and a half planets, where as I only had 2 and a half for living in Japan????

The energy consumption of electrical good may be slightly better here, but no one knows what an OFF switch is for







On top of that this really is a disposable country, everything you buy goes in the trash--and everything is wrapped a minimum of 3 times (plastic in paper in plastic!!) The cashiers are shocked when I tell them I don't need a bag for one item.

Anyway, the point is either they have something messed up in their calculations or they know less about the factories and general practices of other countries than they should to make an accurate comparison.

After writing this I'm curious what you would get if you gave the best value for each question and do a base comparison of the countries??


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## Kaitnbugsmom (Dec 4, 2003)

It showed me at a total foot print of 8... which is weird considering we walk almost everywhere here in town, use less than 10 gallons of gas per week, eat meat 1x per week 2x at the most, and have all energy efficient appliances in our freestanding 'home' {there was no option for freestanding apartment, which is what this is}

and there's no doubt in my mind that there's a bias against the states..


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## kalisis (Jan 10, 2005)

wow...I think what put me over was that we fly nearer to 100 hours/ year than 25. And there isn't even the option of public transportation around here...yikes.

Wow. Thanks for that, even if it is biased, it is a wake up call.


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## Kaitnbugsmom (Dec 4, 2003)

yeah I totally forgot the public transportation thing. there isn't any around here either...







I wish sometimes, like when it's 22 degrees outside and V has the only running car and I need to get to the store w/ all the kidlets..


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## Rhiannon Feimorgan (Aug 26, 2005)

I got 3.9 hectares (2.2 planets) better than tha Canadian average of 8.8 but I could still improve a lot.

I'm wondering if the discrepency with the ratings of Amaricans is because the calculate each american as holding a portion of the governments footprint. The cost of the war for instance.


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## morning glory (Dec 8, 2005)

My guess is the discrepancy is because "public areas" like gov't buildings, shopping malls, restaurants, factories...that use resources...are factored into the picture and there happen to be more of these types of facilities in the US than in other countries? I know I'm often surprised at seeing a McDonald's or WalMart in some pretty small towns in the US...of course we are heading that way ourselves here in Canada







.

Casey


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## JessicaS (Nov 18, 2001)

I got a 2.6, and we just recently purchased an earth contact home.









We do need to get a more effecient vehicle though.


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## GreenMeg (Sep 15, 2005)

2.1 planets
9 acres

I need to do better about buying unprocessed, locally made/grown foods.


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## TommysMommy (Feb 28, 2006)

I've got 15







((
Am I that destructive???

*Ruthla*
What browser are you using?


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## rmzbm (Jul 8, 2005)

2.4 planets


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## Snowdrift (Oct 15, 2005)

2.7/12 I drive 140 miles round trip to school at least 2x/week.

Sad thing is, I drive to the corner store. Because there's a large wall that prevents me from walking the 1/4 mile to get there. To get around the wall I have to go 2.5 miles, which takes quite a bit more time.







:


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## accountclosed6 (Jun 29, 2005)

3.6 planets and 16 acres.









We're trying to do better...but there's still a lot we could do!


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## bwylde (Feb 19, 2004)

Quote:

FOOD 1.8
MOBILITY 0.1
SHELTER 0.5
GOODS/SERVICES 0.5
TOTAL FOOTPRINT 2.9

IN COMPARISON, THE AVERAGE ECOLOGICAL FOOTPRINT IN YOUR COUNTRY IS 8.8 GLOBAL HECTARES PER PERSON.

IF EVERYONE LIVED LIKE YOU, WE WOULD NEED 1.6 PLANETS.
We're getting better. Our biggest problems is the food aspect of things. We eat meat and we don't live close to many food sources.


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## eden/averymum (Jun 13, 2005)

mine was 2.6 food is our big big big issue I think.


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## mama_daba (Dec 7, 2004)

FOOD 2
MOBILITY 0
SHELTER 1.5
GOODS/SERVICES 1
TOTAL FOOTPRINT 4

IN COMPARISON, THE AVERAGE ECOLOGICAL FOOTPRINT IN YOUR COUNTRY IS 24 ACRES PER PERSON.

WORLDWIDE, THERE EXIST 4.5 BIOLOGICALLY PRODUCTIVE ACRES PER PERSON.

IF EVERYONE LIVED LIKE YOU, WE WOULD NEED 1.0 PLANETS.

it is sorta funny, my partner and i live in a tiny studio in an apartment building that gets some electricity from solar panals and has an organic garden and compost pile, i walk everyplace i go or if i have to get someplace not in walking distance i ride a bike if i can't do that i use public transit, we are vegan. acording to this i am doing a really good job. but i have so much eco guilt and feel so bad for how much i am not doing. it always seems like i can do so much more than i am doing and sometimes i feel so guilty i break down in tears.
the footprint thing helps me sorta keep everything in check and see that i am doing pretty good. sadly we will be moving later this year and might not be so good at that point. if nothing else our sq footage will change with the move. i guess as long as one does the best they can then that is good enough. otherwise i could always feel that i should be doing more and feeling overwhelmed by guilt doesn't help with anything.


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## veggielover (Apr 17, 2004)

((HUGS)) Moonfroggy. You're doing wonderfully! I completely understand how you feel, though.
My results said: TOTAL FOOTPRINT 9 ....IF EVERYONE LIVED LIKE YOU, WE WOULD NEED 1.9 PLANETS
I always think we're doing pretty good, especially being vegan and all, but I see we definately need to do some work. Good reality check, though.








Thanks to the OP for linking the site!!


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## StrawberryFields (Apr 6, 2005)

First time posting in this forum







and I have to say that I feel absolutely terrible!!







Here was our footprint:

CATEGORY ACRES

FOOD 4.2
MOBILITY 0
SHELTER 3.2
GOODS/SERVICES 2.2
TOTAL FOOTPRINT 10

IN COMPARISON, THE AVERAGE ECOLOGICAL FOOTPRINT IN YOUR COUNTRY IS 24 ACRES PER PERSON.

WORLDWIDE, THERE EXIST 4.5 BIOLOGICALLY PRODUCTIVE ACRES PER PERSON.

IF EVERYONE LIVED LIKE YOU, WE WOULD NEED 2.2 PLANETS.

I can't believe it! 2.2 planets







I feel so wasteful. It must be because we eat meat daily (4.2 for food) but shelter I don't understand. I guess our house is too big, 900 square feet for 3 people.

What an eye opener.


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## True Blue (May 9, 2003)

My shelter rating was really high too. But we live in military housing, not much we can do about it. It has all flourescent lighting but it's 2000sqft, too big I guess. I would actually like a place a little smaller, but it would cost us a fortune to get it!


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## Pinoikoi (Oct 30, 2003)

11 acres... but cloth diapering wasn't one of the questions!

And we are building a more earth friendly home.. it just isn't done yet, and "motorbiking" in ALASKA?? get real.


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## KaraBoo (Nov 22, 2001)

My result:

CATEGORY GLOBAL HECTARES

FOOD 0.9

MOBILITY 0.5

SHELTER 1.8

GOODS/SERVICES 4.4

TOTAL FOOTPRINT 7.6

IN COMPARISON, THE AVERAGE ECOLOGICAL FOOTPRINT IN YOUR COUNTRY IS 4.8 GLOBAL HECTARES PER PERSON.

WORLDWIDE, THERE EXIST 1.8 BIOLOGICALLY PRODUCTIVE GLOBAL HECTARES PER PERSON.

---------------------------
I'm wondering why my Goods/Services is so out of proportion with the other categories...I looked on the website to try to reduce the G/S but it says if I reduce the other categories, then the G/S will reduce....???

IF EVERYONE LIVED LIKE YOU, WE WOULD NEED 4.2 PLANETS


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## sarah0404 (May 28, 2006)

Thanks for the link. But how do you work out what size your home is? I haven't got a clue! Mine is a typical british shoebox, with 3 bed rooms, living room, kitchen and bathroom, and NO storage space at all.


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## ~minnow~ (May 25, 2006)

Hello, first time here. This is a really interesting link (and makes me feel more motivated to walk to the store instead of driving like I do when it's hot...) However, as the method is largely comparative (taking an average of what things are like in your area), it doesn't take into account the individual choices we make among our goods and services especially (like cloth diapering, as someone said above). If you really want to get subtle, scroll down on this page to "Quiz Accuracy" and you'll find a link to an Excel spreadsheet that is like a way more precise version of the quiz:

http://www.rprogress.org/newprojects/ecolFoot/faq/

As for the difference in country, here's what the FAQ on the page has to say: "Why does it matter which country I live in?

Each country has its own average Ecological Footprint specific to its economy, consumption patterns, and technological efficiencies. We use national Footprint data, and information about regional variations in climate, heating, home construction styles, transportation, etc., to develop a Footprint quiz tailored to each country."

So the country variable takes into account things like how far our energy has to travel to reach us, etc.


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## Sharlla (Jul 14, 2005)

I got 8 acres and 1.8 planets.


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## fremontmama (Jun 11, 2004)

thanks for the link, i was just thinking about this the other day when i was reading "not buying it" by judith levine

CATEGORY ACRES

FOOD 3.2

MOBILITY 0.2

SHELTER 3

GOODS/SERVICES 2.2

TOTAL FOOTPRINT 9

IN COMPARISON, THE AVERAGE ECOLOGICAL FOOTPRINT IN YOUR COUNTRY IS 24 ACRES PER PERSON.

WORLDWIDE, THERE EXIST 4.5 BIOLOGICALLY PRODUCTIVE ACRES PER PERSON.

IF EVERYONE LIVED LIKE YOU, WE WOULD NEED 1.9 PLANETS.

Obviously, we could do better, but knowing that our footprint is so much smaller than the average in our country makes me feel like we are moving in the right direction.


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## Lizzo (Jul 26, 2005)

CATEGORY ACRES
FOOD 2.2
MOBILITY 0
SHELTER 2.7
GOODS/SERVICES 1.7
TOTAL FOOTPRINT 7

IN COMPARISON, THE AVERAGE ECOLOGICAL FOOTPRINT IN YOUR COUNTRY IS 24 ACRES PER PERSON.

WORLDWIDE, THERE EXIST 4.5 BIOLOGICALLY PRODUCTIVE ACRES PER PERSON.

IF EVERYONE LIVED LIKE YOU, WE WOULD NEED 1.5 PLANETS
Not too shaby...could be better. It's b/c our public transportation is limited here. Plus...there's this guy in our town who would take the same bus I would if I rode it, from the same bus stop who tried to rape my friend's mom and has broken into people's houses...I rode it when I was preggo and had to get to class and he really scared me. Now with DS...we drive.









:


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## boobybunny (Jun 28, 2005)

1.4 planets

Not too bad. but still nothing to brag about


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## Nathan1097 (Nov 20, 2001)

Category Acres
Food 5.2
Mobility 1.7
Shelter 3.7
Goods/services 4.9
Total Footprint 16

In Comparison, The Average Ecological Footprint In Your Country Is 24 Acres Per Person.

Worldwide, There Exist 4.5 Biologically Productive Acres Per Person.

If Everyone Lived Like You, We Would Need 3.5 Planets.


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