Eye Opener: Ecological Footprint

After completing the ecological footprint test, I was kind of shocked by my results. According to the results, if everyone on this planet lived like I do, we would need 4.1 Planet Earths to provide enough resources. It would also take 18.3 global acres of land and produce 16.6 tons of carbon dioxide to support my lifestyle. My ecological footprint was broken down by categories to show how my everyday choices impact my personal footprint. I scored the highest in services at 48% with goods coming in second at 23% and food at 17%. Some things I could do to reduce my impact would be to reduce the amount of animal products I consume, purchase products that use less packaging and are recyclable, car pool whenever possible, and be more energy efficient. I never realized how the little things I do everyday can add up to one big, global problem so quickly. This truly was an eye opener for me!

Take a look for yourself: My IUHPE Ecological Footprint

Read 'n' Seed:Don't Eat This Book: Fast Food and the Supersizing of America

The book that I chose to read is called Don't Eat This Book: Fast Food and the Supersizing of America. This book is about how the author, Morgan Spurlock analyzes America's growing obesity epidemic. It also looks at the relation obesity has to the fast food chains and how our government is promoting this industry causing the epidemic. I chose this book because I am very interested in our nation's health and how fast food affects the well-being of peoples' everyday lives. I was also very curious to read about his experiment, in which he only ate McDonald's food for 30 days straight and exercised like an "average" American. I can about imagine how terrible he felt after that, wait I take that back, I DON'T ever want to imagine how that feels like let alone what it tastes like. What a brutal month of crappy, processed food. Yuck.

Here are 3 links pertaining to the book:

1. Morgan Spurlock
2. Book Browse
3. Be Whole Be Well

This book has a total of 320 pages and 16 chapters. I plan on reading 4 chapters for every quarter of the book. I will also read the 3 Appendixes located in the back of the book in the last quarter.

Share & Voice: The "Inn" Thing to Do

"After spending a year in the Sustainable Twin Ports Early Adopters business and environmental sustainability program, Overland and the Inn staff made a commitment to build sustainability into their everyday business lives." The staff at the Inn on Lake Superior now offers many options to be more "green". They have recycling bins in every room and have cut their overall electric and water usage. They have also made changes to their breakfast bar. These would include switching from foam and plastic plates to actual dishes and silverware as well as using organically grown coffee to support farmers. Overall, the Inn has cut over $10,000 in costs since being enrolled in this program. The future looks green for this Canal Park hotel, and we can only hope that their success will inspire and motivate others to do the same.