| 13/03/2007 | | | | commit to collecting all cardboard for one month. Take |
| Non-renewable resources will be our down fall. | | | | one large cardboard box and place it in an out of the |
| My previous articles have focused on how the | | | | way area such as the basement or the garage and |
| individual can take personal steps to lessen their | | | | collect all the cardboard you or your family would |
| carbon footprint and the pollution in our environment. | | | | normally throw out in your weekly garbage pick-up. |
| The next step to help our world is to curb your | | | | Remember that includes everything from cereal |
| ecological footprint. To the majority of the readers | | | | boxes, packaging from all forms of food stuffs or |
| they will not be familiar with the ecological footprint. | | | | even the boxes from your frozen foods, don't forget |
| Your Ecological Footprint is a calculation that measures | | | | those. Not until a person has a clearer, concrete, |
| how much land and water you and your family | | | | tangible experience as to how much cardboard is |
| requires to produce the resources it consumes and to | | | | thrown away will they begin to feel that sense of |
| absorb its wastes under current technologies we | | | | accomplishment. This is the beginning, once you have |
| utilize. It will come to a shock to most of you that in my | | | | seen the benefits of your efforts, you will want to |
| general calculations the average household, living in a | | | | encorporate other methods of Reusing, Reducing and |
| 3-bedroom bungalow, accommodating 2-adults and | | | | Recycling. |
| 2-children would require equal to three (3) planets the | | | | Parents out there need to talk to their children about |
| size of Earth to house, feed and dispose of waste. | | | | Recycling, because their the ones who are the next |
| That would be the case if all the people on the planet | | | | generation of custodians. Not only that, but they are |
| were provided the same opportunity to live a middle | | | | probably as well versed in Reducing, Recycling and |
| class life style. | | | | Reusing as many adults. Many of the schools our |
| Therefore, those of us who are fortunate enough to | | | | children attend are practicing numerous forms of |
| live a comfortable lifestyle need to begin taking | | | | Recycling including, paper, glass and drinking containers. |
| appropriate steps to be responsible custodians of our | | | | We can take a lesson from our children if we give |
| planet. I am not suggesting that everyone make whole | | | | them the proper chance to express themselves and |
| sale changes to their routines and practices, but to | | | | have input into how they see things. |
| start making small increments of change. I would | | | | One last note would be for those of you out there that |
| suggest that families sit down around the supper table | | | | do not have access to disposal of recycling, you will |
| and discuss their thoughts and levels of commitment to | | | | need to take an active roll in your community, |
| improving their ecological footprint. Discussions should | | | | municipality or whom ever oversees your waste |
| first center on how each person adds to waste and | | | | disposal. Not all communities are up to speed with the |
| then were they can make changes. One good way to | | | | facilities necessary to our ever increasing waste. |
| understand how we all contribute to waste is to | | | | |