The Importance of Understanding Ecological Footprints

Ecological footprint is an important measurement that allows us to see a rough estimate of how many earths it would take to support our lifestyles. Often our choices can have a much greater environmental impact than expected. When I found out that it would take 4.5 Earths to support my lifestyle I was astounded. As another way to state my ecological footprint, it would take about 19.7 of earth's productive acres to support my lifestyle.

The biggest portion of this land comes from energy production in my case while the smallest coming from built-up land.

In regards to my earth count the biggest contributor to this is the services I receive in the US and the smallest category is transportation. I think this is really surprising to me because I feel like I do a pretty decent job at being ecologically friendly.

I don't drive, I live in a tiny dorm and I don't throw that much away. But I do use a lot of electricity to power my computer and I eat a lot of meat.

Get quality help now
Sweet V
Sweet V
checked Verified writer

Proficient in: Environment

star star star star 4.9 (984)

“ Ok, let me say I’m extremely satisfy with the result while it was a last minute thing. I really enjoy the effort put in. ”

avatar avatar avatar
+84 relevant experts are online
Hire writer

I think some ways I could reduce my EF is maybe buy some solar battery packs to power my computer and eat less meat. Some barriers might be to fit enough protein into my diet as well as the cost associated with the solar battery pack. Another huge contributor to my EF is the services I receive as an American.

I don't know exactly which services are used in the calculation but I think that these are what accounts for the disparity in EF between the US and the rest of the world.

Get to Know The Price Estimate For Your Paper
Topic
Number of pages
Email Invalid email

By clicking “Check Writers’ Offers”, you agree to our terms of service and privacy policy. We’ll occasionally send you promo and account related email

"You must agree to out terms of services and privacy policy"
Write my paper

You won’t be charged yet!

I would assume it would be things like our water system, sewage system, police/fire departments and various other public services that compound to create a much larger EF in the US. As a society I think some efficient ways to reduce the EF of our society would be to incorporate more renewable energy sources as well as to create more carbon sinks like trees. Through reducing our EF as individuals and as a society I think we can create more sustainable lifestyles that will not only benefit us and our current environment but will help us to preserve our world for generations to come.

Updated: Mar 26, 2023
Cite this page

The Importance of Understanding Ecological Footprints. (2023, Mar 26). Retrieved from https://studymoose.com/the-importance-of-understanding-ecological-footprints-essay

The Importance of Understanding Ecological Footprints essay
Live chat  with support 24/7

👋 Hi! I’m your smart assistant Amy!

Don’t know where to start? Type your requirements and I’ll connect you to an academic expert within 3 minutes.

get help with your assignment