RHS AP EnvironmentalEuler

AP Environmental Science: Summer Assignment

Calculating your ecological footprint

There are several sites you can use to get an idea about how much of an impact you and your lifestyle makes on the environment. Generally, the calculators on these sites ask you questions about your home, car and travel per year along with what you eat and buy. You will not be graded on your footprint. You will be graded on the reflection piece you will turn in on August 22,, 2014.

In this one, you create an avatar for yourself.

This one is detailed and you also create an avatar. The questions that follow are based on this site.

Name: ______

What’s the size of your footprint?

Log onto a computer, open up an Internet browser, and open this webpage: Proceed directly to the footprint quiz and follow the directions listed on the screen. Please follow the quiz using the detailed information. Each student will take this quiz and record their answers below using complete sentences!

  1. How many planet Earths would be needed to provide enough resources if everyone lived like you?
  2. How many global acres of the Earths productive area is needed to support your lifestyle?
  3. How many tons of carbon dioxide will you produce?
  4. Looking at your life style, rank from 1 (least) to 6 (most), what you use most of Earth’s productive area.

Energy Land_____ Crop Land_____ Grazing Land_____

Forest Land_____ Built Up Land_____ Fishing Grounds_____

5. Draw out the pie chart of your ecological footprint break down below. Record your percentages!

  1. Next explore the actions that you can take to change your footprint by selecting the explore scenarios tab. There are 6 actions/scenarios that can help reduce your footprint. Read each carefully and check the actions/scenarios that would be possible for you to do. Did this reduce your footprint? If so, how much?
  2. In conclusion, write two short paragraphs (5-10 sentences each) explaining ways that you can improve your ecological footprint. In the first paragraph include what you thought about your results and why you thought they turned out the way that they did. In your second paragraph, include the steps that you would take to reduce your footprint. For more information on reducing your footprint visit the website: