As we celebrate Thanksgiving and enjoy time with our family and friends we often focus on abundance. This time of year we enjoy plentiful food as we indulge in the holiday feasts. This is usually not the time of year we focus on preserving natural resources and living sustainably (using renewable resources).
Cardin’s biology classes have just finished learning about ecology and conservation. We reflected on the resources we use at school and in our homes by taking the carbon footprint quiz (www.myfootprint.org). Many of the students found this to be eye-opening. We compared the amount of resources we as Americans use to the resource consumption of other nations.
Together, the students brainstormed some ideas about how we can conserve resources. Some suggestions include:
• Reducing water consumption by doing full loads of laundry or taking shorter showers
• Using energy saving appliances
• Strive for a waste-free lunch (pack only reusable containers)
• Unplugging devices you’re not using (chargers that are plugged in still use energy)
• Eating locally grown food
• Eating seasonally available food
• Carpooling or taking public transportation or even walk (it’s also a healthy option)
• Consider buying a hybrid vehicle or more fuel efficient car
• Encourage your politicians to pass environmentally-friendly legislation
We hope you will find some of these friendly reminders helpful as you celebrate the holiday season.
~Ms. Alexandra Sloane
Science Instructor
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