Reduce your Carbon Footprint [3.1 REDUCE]

DOCUMENTARY OBJECTIVE

WRITTEN NARRATIVE PROPOSAL

The topic of our group is carbon footprint in transportation, industry and home describing, firstly, the meaning of the concept itself and then we deepened its various fields: the causes, the consequences, how to reduce it and what is present in our local territory.

Carbon footprint is actually the amount of carbon dioxide emissions associated with all the activities of a person. Carbon dioxide is about the direct emissions that come from heating, transportation and industry. It is also about other greenhouse gases that are associated with consumption. When we talk about consumption we refer to all goods that are produced in one country but are imported to other countries. The international transport and shipping are not usually accounted for and therefore not taken into consideration in a country’s carbon footprint.

A person’s individual carbon footprint, that is the emissions over which an individual has direct control, are usually transportation and household energy in developed countries and these are considered to be a person’s “primary” carbon footprint. The rest of the individual’s carbon footprint is called “secondary” and this is associated with the consumption of goods and use of services. An example of this are carbon emissions emitted by food production in diets that contain higher proportions of meat that need a greater amount of energy and nutrients to produce than vegetables. If meat eaters would replace, even partly, the consumption of red meat with chicken, fish or vegetables, they would be able to reduce their carbon footprint of their meals by 75%. What also contributes to secondary carbon footprint are manufacturing (industry) and transportation. If we take the example of a water bottle, we have the carbon footprint of the manufacture of the bottle plus the amount of the carbon footprint when this is transported to the consumer.

There are different ways of calculating the carbon footprints for people, companies, organizations and businesses. There are some methodologies that are known and widely used for this purpose. Some of these include the Greenhouse Gas Protocol, the World Business Council for Sustainable Development and ISO 14064, all of them developed by International and World Resources and Organizations. These calculators help people compare their own carbon footprints with the averages on a national and world level.

All of us can do a number of things to reduce our carbon footprints and therefore help to contribute to global climate remission. Corporations for example can buy carbon offsets to make up for their carbon footprint. This is a way to become effectively carbon neutral.

Our carbon footprints can be reduced if we improve our energy consumption by being more efficient, if we change our lifestyle and even our consumption habits. If we switch our energy and transportation habits, for example using public transportation instead of driving, we can change our primary carbon footprints. Companies as well as households can reduce their own carbon footprint by installing energy-efficient lighting, adding insulation to buildings, using renewable energy sources for electricity. Secondary carbon footprint can be reduced with the change of our lifestyle, for example with the reduction of meat consumption and even switching to products that require fewer carbon emissions. We talked about various ways to reduce energy consumption within the household while we also asked a few people how they reduce energy within their households. Our goal was to show and remind people how small lifestyle changes can make a big difference.