Australia 1b Pre-Conference - Interactive Simulations

Environment   Oct 26, 2017 by Simeon Koshy

Ecological Footprint Calculator:

1.What part of your ecological footprint most surprised you?

Upon completion of the Ecological Footprint Calculator, I was most surprised about how many Planet Earth’s (2) that were needed to sustain life if everyone had the same lifestyle as me. It was also shocking to see that 57% of my total ecological footprint (3.4 global hectares) was my carbon footprint.

2.How did your footprint compare to your city’s average (if available) and your country’s average?

My country, Australia, on average needed 5.2 Planet Earth’s to sustain its footprint. As I only needed 2 Planet Earth’s, I was under the country’s average by a whole 3.2 Planet Earth’s. This meant that in comparison to my country, I was not doing too badly in terms of the size of my ecological footprint

3.What parts of your footprint do you feel is possible to reduce? What parts don’t?

I certainly feel it’s possible to lower my carbon footprint if I used less transportation (cars) and took the time to walk to places such as school. This will lower my carbon emissions and is an eco-friendlier method. In contrast, I do not think I could buy more local and unpackaged foods as not only is it cheaper to buy it packaged from other places, it is a set part of my diet.

Climate Challenge:

1.What strategy did you take in Climate Challenge? Was it effective in reducing emissions?

I decided to focus on popularity and reducing the carbon in the environment. I didn’t want to make any decisions that would kick me out of the office but I did whatever I could to reduce the CO2 emissions. This however meant using up my economic resources.

2.What did you think of how the strategy cards represented resources? Do you think some of the strategies/policies would have different impacts than the ones shown in the game?

Yes, for example building wind generators and other items will not just help reduce the carbon footprint but will also create many jobs and improve general economy. Also, creating the machinery to tackle CO2 emissions would take a lot longer before they would take effect, especially as they have to build it first.

3.How did you approach international negotiations? Was it better to lead by example, or attempt to encourage other nations by investing in their green economies?

If I had a good economy at the time I would invest in other countries however, when I had bad economy I did not invest. Although, I did try to create strong relationships with the other countries.

Water Footprint Calculator:

1. Where you surprised by how much water you consumed?

   Yes, I was very surprised to see that I use 957m³ of water each year. That’s 957 000 L used up on 1 individual! How long can the Earth’s fresh water last if it’s constantly getting drained? This water footprint calculator has really made me aware of this frightening concept.

2. How did your footprint compare to your country’s and the world's average? (You will need to research this.)

   I was under the global water footprint (1243m³) by 286m³ which shows I was not doing too badly in terms of water usage compared to the world. I was even further under Australia’s water footprint (1393m³) by 1103m³, displaying that although I am still suing a lot of water I am doing alright.

3. What parts of your footprint do you feel is possible to reduce? What parts don’t?

   I feel it’s possible to reduce water usage in food by being more efficient and eating meat less. If everyone is water smart we can all reduce our water footprint.

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