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"Our environment has certainly become one of the hottest topics discussed today. Yet despite all the talk and information, I feel I have too much data and too little meaningful information."
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Green Blog
YOUR CARBON FOOTPRINT Posted on February 20, 2008
Last month, I shared with you my goal of discovering more about how our lives impact our environment and how we can positively effect change in our lives on a small or large scale. Before we can start making those small changes that make big differences, we must first understand how we affect our environment.
The best way to understand this is to know your carbon footprint – the measure of the impact human activities have on the environment in terms of the amount of greenhouse gases produced, measured in units of carbon dioxide. That's how the experts describe it, but here is how I think about it. Imagine a cold winter day with a fresh blanket of snow (it is February after all). It's early morning, and the blanket of snow is smooth and untouched. I like to think of our environment as that blanket of snow and my carbon footprint as the tracks that are eventually made in the snow. What you want to figure out is whether you're leaving big, muddy footprints, or snowshoeing across the planet.
To measure your carbon footprint, you won't need a shoehorn, but you will need a carbon calculator. As I recently discovered, there are about as many different carbon footprint calculators out there as there are shoes in my closet. (I'm not telling exactly how many that is, but we'll just round it out as a lot.) Each of the different calculators considers different factors and will give you very different results. The key, then, is to find the calculator that's the perfect fit for you.
Although what is measured and included in calculating your carbon footprint does vary from calculator to calculator, I think it is possible to sort the calculators into two basic models: direct-impact calculators and indirect-impact calculators. Most carbon calculators measure your direct impact. They measure the carbon emitted by your house, car, travel, and similar carbon-producing and -consuming items. The impacts are called "direct" because they are things you use or do (like driving a car) that directly result in a carbon emission.
Indirect-impact calculators are a little more complicated. They try to measure the effects of things that are considerably more difficult to quantify, such as the type of food you eat or the clothes you buy. For example, synthetic fabrics may take more carbon to produce than organic fabrics. These calculators try to assign a value to that clothing choice.
I have done some calculator shopping and have a few suggestions. For our purposes, I have only looked at options from agencies like the Environmental Protection Agency, nonprofit groups and other environmental watchdogs. You can, however, find calculators created by your city, school district, local utility and energy companies. Even some Internet providers are getting into the equation. For calculators that fall into the direct-impact category, I found the following:
The Center for Neighborhood Technology (CNT) even has two calculators. My "Super Women Gone Green" excitement should have perked up at that chance for a double score. The first CNT calculator is done in partnership with Airheads. Airheads asks that we stop being "airheads" about our environment (their motto, not mine), and its calculator will also let you create a profile that can be updated monthly to measure your progress. The second CNT calculator is a partnership with Travel Matters and emphasizes the effect our travel decisions have on emissions.
These models truly are the latest styles measuring both direct and indirect impacts:
The calculator used by the Nature Conservancy includes home energy, driving, flying, food and diet, recycling and waste-related emissions. Similarly, the calculator used by Carbon Footprint also includes household and transportation emissions, plus the potential effects of the foods you eat and your recycling habits. But Carbon Footprint goes one step further by also measuring your shopping habits, clothes, furniture and even the packaging on products you buy.
Which calculator is right for you will depend on what you are most interested in measuring. For me, the best calculator is … well, all of them, of course. I'll try out several and let you know what I learn.
Next month I'll have my results, and I'll share with you the good and bad news. I'll also share the results of my research on some small ways to make a big difference in cleaning up those muddy footprints.
Jamey Seely is vice president and general counsel of Direct Energy U.S., one of the largest retailers of energy and related services in North America, with more than 5 million customer relationships. She was recently honored by the Houston Business Journal with the Corporate Counsel Award.
To comment on this blog, e-mail blog@pinkmagazine.com and enter "Green Blog" in the subject line.
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TOO MUCH GREEN Posted on January 10, 2008
I can't turn on the TV, pick up a newspaper or even order my morning coffee without being confronted with a barrage of information about global warming, global emissions, carbon, clean carbon, carbon footprints, and more shades and varieties of what's green than I think even the best designers could have envisioned. Our environment has certainly become one of the hottest topics discussed today. Yet despite all the talk and information, I feel I have too much data and too little meaningful information.
The discussion is important, and I want to make my own positive contributions to the environment (in particular, to global emissions). So I've decided to dive deeply into all the information, all the data, all the various shades of green and sort out the parts that I believe provide us with the best, no-nonsense ways to actually apply the information to our everyday routines.
My hope is that you'll join me for this experience. Over the next few months, through this series of blogs, we will embark on an adventure to weed through the information and, most importantly, learn how to apply it in our daily lives in meaningful ways.
Now, let's be clear. I am not a scientist, an expert in physics or even an expert in all the various shades of green. I am an overly occupied executive just like you, who is determined to share what matters most and to find everyday ways to change what we do. Fortunately, I am surrounded by colleagues and contacts who are experts. I'll rely on those experts to provide us with some simple and straightforward explanations that create the foundation for each blog.
I will start each blog with a basic explanation of the issue from the experts. The real value will come in identifying ways we can incorporate positive changes into our daily routine. I have great sources – everything from government research to tips from environmental groups – and I have also started collecting the everyday wisdom from the women around me (and please feel free to share yours).
My challenge for us will be not just to learn about the key issues, but also to create change. Before anyone gets too overwhelmed by the breadth of that challenge, let me add that I think small changes can often have the largest impact – especially when we make the changes together and when they can easily be incorporated into our already busy schedules. In addition to changes we can make in our routines, I think we will also find some pragmatic changes we can inspire within our companies. For those of you who are relentless overachievers, I will also include some "Superwomen Gone Green" tips just for you.
Jamey Seely is vice president and general counsel of Direct Energy U.S., one of the largest retailers of energy and related services in North America, with more than 5 million customer relationships. She was recently honored by the Houston Business Journal with the Corporate Counsel Award.
To comment on this blog, e-mail blog@pinkmagazine.com and enter "Green Blog" in the subject line. |
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