What can YOU do? What are we already doing?

1. What can YOU do?

2. Sustainability
Sustainability of ecosystems takes into
account how we use resources or not, and
what we leave for the future
•must be stable, and operate such that
ecological systems are not upset or
overexploited
•natural resources must be maintained as
renewable
•environments must be able to recover
from natural disasters
•must support ecosystems by providing
survival of the species within the
ecosystem

3. Ecological Footprint
• is a measure of an individual’s impact on
the environment based on the amount of
physical space needed to provide a
person their resources, goods, and
services
• The average Canadian has an ecological
footprint of 8.8 hectares
• On Earth there is currently 1.8
biologically productive hectares per
person and this number is shrinking due
to both decreased resources as well as
increased population.
• At this rate we would need 5.1 Earths to
sustain us.

4. What is your ecological footprint?
• Your job today is to find out what your ecological footprint is. Go to
the following link:
• http://footprint.wwf.org.uk/
• Write it down and answer the following questions on the next slide.
• Hand in your answers to receive the “what we are doing right”
worksheet.

5. Brainstorm
• What could we do to lessen our footprint?
• Further, What sustainable choices do you
currently make, and what choices could you
make, to limit your impact on the
environment?