Think about your carbon footprint:

Did you know that when you buy flights with certain airlines you have to pay a bit more to offset your carbon footprint? Or perhaps you've read about big pop groups who plant forests of trees every time they do a tour, again, to offset their carbon footprint? But what exactly is a carbon footprint, how is it measured and where did it come from?

Originally a footprint was exactly what you might imagine - the print made by a foot. In the sixties, space travel transformed the word, using it to mean the landing area for a spacecraft and it has continued to be common in technical circles, with people talking about the footprint of computers (that's the space they take up on a desk), printers and many other such gadgets. Small footprints are considered to be a positive thing, large ones are generally bad.

Everybody has a carbon footprint - it's the amount of carbon dioxide we produce with any action or activity. As carbon dioxide contributes to 'greenhouse gases', our carbon footprints have a direct impact on the environment. You can estimate your carbon footprint on any number of popular websites: if it's small, then you're probably leading a relatively green lifestyle. But what happens if it's big?

Well, the answer is that you can 'offset' it. This modern answer to the problem is for people to contribute to balancing the negative effects of their actions by using green fuels, recycling, reforestation and a number of other activities which are said to contribute to a lowering of the carbon dioxide.

So, before you print out the project plan or transcript of this entry, think about your carbon footprint. Do you really need to use that paper, the ink, the electricity...?
Below is the snapshot of www.carbonfootprint.com
A carbon footprint is a measure of the impact our activities have on the environment, and in particular climate change. It relates to the amount of greenhouse gases produced in our day-to-day lives through burning fossil fuels for electricity, heating and transportation etc.

The carbon footprint is a measurement of all greenhouse gases we individually produce and has units of tones (or kg) of carbon dioxide equivalent.
A carbon footprint is made up of the sum of two parts, the primary footprint and the secondary footprint.
1. The primary footprint is a measure of our direct emissions of CO2 from the burning of fossil fuels including domestic energy consumption and transportation (e.g. car and plane). We have direct control of these.
2. The secondary footprint is a measure of the indirect CO2 emissions from the whole lifecycle of products we use - those associated with their manufacture and eventual breakdown. To put it very simply – the more we buy the more emissions will be caused on our behalf.
To calculate your carbon footprint - click here
For tips to reduce your footprint - click here