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Coleman Brann

Mrs. Jizi

UWRIT 1104

9 April 2017

Annotated Bibliography

Pacific Institute for Climate Solutions. "What YOU Can Do About Climate Change."

YouTube. PICSClimateInsight, 13 Sept. 2013. Web. 06 Apr. 2017.

This video created by the Pacific Institute for Climate Solution began with an overview

of the gases that contribute to global warming including: carbon dioxide, nitrous oxide,

and methane. It then discussed how consumer goods of all kinds also have a carbon

footprint as well as how food consumption and waste will also have their own carbon

footprint. It then discussed the added effect on the greenhouse effect that food waste can

contribute. The main purpose of the video was to inform viewer on their own carbon

footprints and how all aspects of their lives can contribute to the greenhouse effect. At the

same time the video did provide suggestions on how to lower your own carbon footprint

in these areas of your life. The video also encouraged viewers to practice green

alternatives to everyday activities in order to lower their carbon footprint.

The information the video produced by the Pacific Institute for Climate Solutions

produced was very informative. It covered aspects of my personal carbon footprint that I

had not previously considered. As an example it talked the carbon footprint of a text

message. How the entire picture of the fossil fuels it takes to produce the phone, get it
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onto a retailers shelf and ultimately into the hands of the consumer. It broadens my

perspective of my entire carbon footprint and forced me to look at other aspects of my

carbon footprint I had not previously considered.

This video was a good source of information regarding the carbon footprint of the

individual and how to reduce it. The organization who produced the video The Pacific

Institute for Climate Solutions is hosted by four Universities who conduct research to

maintain the website and keep the information accurate and informational. The

Universities include; University of Victoria, Simon Fraser University, The University of

British Columbia, and the University of Northern British Columbia. After conducting

further research on the organization I found that the advisory board is packed full

qualified people to speak on the topic of global warming, the greenhouse effect and

energy consumption. Some of the members of the advisory board include; Gordon

Lambert, the former vice-president of sustainable development at Suncor Energy, and

Mark Edwards who earned his Doctorate in organic chemistry and whos role for the

organization is to provide insight on corporate environmental policies.

Ekwurzel, B., N. Cole, P. Frumhoff, and S. Shaw.

"How Do We Know that Humans Are the Major Cause of Global Warming?" How Do We Know

that Humans Are the Major Cause of Global Warming. Union of Concerned Scientists, n.d. Web.

08 Apr. 2017. <http://www.ucsusa.org/global_warming/science_and_impacts/science/human-

contribution-to-gw-faq.html#.WOlRYYjyvIU>.
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The article from the Union of concerned scientists title How Do We Know that Humans

Are the Cause of Global Warming Was for the most part an in depth explanation of

global warming and how it effects our atmosphere. It explained why the overwhelming

majority of the science community believes that humans are having a major effect on

climate change. They began the article by explaining the difference between the various

isotopes of Carbon. They explained how the weight of the different isotopes of carbon

allow scientist to identify the source of which it came from, for example the weight of the

carbon isotope that come from burning fossil fuels is lighter than the carbon isotope that

comes from volcanic eruptions. The article then began to the evidence that links humans

to the contribution of CO2 in the atmosphere, and how we can now see that our

contribution is having an effect on the rising of global temperatures, and how our

contribution and the contribution of natural drivers is only amplifying the effect.

The information covered in this article was very informative, it gave me a better picture

of how people, since the industrial revolution, have been severely damaging the

atmosphere by pumping tons upon tons of greenhouse gases into the atmosphere. This

information covered in the article is relevant to me because it discusses the effects that

humans are having on the atmosphere, and ultimately the increasing global temperatures.

My goal for this inquiry project is to discover ways in which I can lower my carbon

footprint and so it is important for me to first understand the ways in which our carbon

footprint impacts the greenhouse effect.

The information in the article How Do We know that Humans Are the Cause of Global

Warming provided by the Union of Concerned Scientists is accurate and reliable. The

woman who wrote the article Brenda Ekwurzel earned her Ph. D. in isotope geography
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from the Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences at Columbia University. Ms

Ekwurzel is a widely-quoted expert on the subject of climate change. As a testament to

her expertise I believe it is important to mention that she has been quoted in the

Washington Post, and featured on Good Morning America to speak on the issue of

climate change. The article that she wrote for the Union of Concerned Scientists was

reviewed and edited by Nancy Cole, Peter Frumhoff, and Susan Shaw, who all have B.S.

or higher in applied sciences and all have more than ten years of experience working with

the Union of Concerned Scientists.

"Positive Footprints | What makes a sustainable house." Positive Footprints | What makes a

sustainable house. Positive Footprints, n.d. Web. 08 Apr. 2017.

<http://www.positivefootprints.com.au/what-makes-a-sustainable-house.html>.

The Positive Footprints website is all about sustainable home building. They provide a

working definition of what a sustainable home is, and provide many different way and

examples of how to apply their definition of what a sustainable home is in the actual

process of building a home. The definition Positive Footprints provides for a sustainable

home is; A home that makes efficient use of the materials and energy flows available to

the site. The people who run the site are actual home builders whos focal point of their

business is to provide a custom sustainable home building service. Making the task of

building a sustainable eco-friendly home easier and more available for the consumer.

I found the information on Positive Footprint to be pretty interesting, and relevant to my

inquiry topic. As someone who wants to minimize my carbon footprint the idea of
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building a home that is sustainable and eco-friendly is really intriguing to me. If I could

build my future home in such a way that would have a minimal impact on the

environment, and still provide me with my basic needs that would add I lot of value to

my life and would be a huge step in me minimizing my carbon footprint.

The information that the Positive Footprint website provides is an accurate and credible

description of their business model, and their goal as a company to make it easier for

consumers to own sustainable eco-friendly homes. They have received multiple awards

for their accomplishments including the Best Sustainable Design Award at the National

Building Designers Association in 2015. Positive Footprints has also been featured in an

article by sanctuary magazine which is a magazine dedicated to modern green living.

"Free Carbon Footprint Calculator | The Nature Conservancy." Free Carbon Footprint Calculator

| The Nature Conservancy. The Nature Conservacy, n.d. Web. 09 Apr. 2017.

<http://www.nature.org/greenliving/carboncalculator/index.htm?

src=sea.AWG.prnone.crv1&kt=mycarbonfootprintcalculator&gclid=CI76j9OFmNMCFdiPswod

C2IFlA>.

The free carbon footprint calculator produced by The Nature Conservancy was a program

they run on their website that considers various different elements of a persons life to

calculate how much they produce yearly. First the took account of demographics like

family size, and area in which the participant lived. Next was the amount that family

travels and how much carbon the family produces on transportation by driving, flying and

public transport. Next was home energy use; they asked how much you spend on various
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energy types like electricity, natural gas, and heating oil. Next they asked about food and

how much you eat within the various food groups. Finally was shopping, this category

was about how much money the family spends on goods and services each year.

In order to have an idea of how to reduce my carbon footprint I thought it would be very

useful to have a measure of how much carbon my family and I are actually producing

year over year. For this reason I found the carbon calculator from The Nature

Conservancy to be a very useful tool in getting a real number of tons of carbon that my

family produces each year. This will give me a number to go off of when I begin my

process of reducing my carbon footprint. By taking what Ive learned through this inquiry

process I should be able to bring the number way down.

The calculator that The Nature Conservancy provided is an accurate and reliable

measurement of carbon output of a given person or given family in a years time. They

take many areas of an individual or families life to get an accurate measurement of

carbon output. The Organization has a deeply rooted history of raising awareness of

global climate change and conservation of natural habitats and ecosystems. The Nature

Conservancy was rated as one of the most trusted organizations by a poll produced by

Harris Interactive.

Osmun, Rosie. "How to Reduce Your Family's Carbon Footprint." The Huffington Post.

TheHuffingtonPost.com, 11 Jan. 2016. Web. 09 Apr. 2017.

This article by The Huffington Post titled: How to Reduce Your Families Carbon

Footprint was a practical guide on how to easily reduce ones carbon footprint. The
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disclaimer that the author made at the beginning of the article let the readers know that

reducing your carbon footprint doesnt have to be as intimidating as many people think it

is. Sure, buy huge solar systems is a great way to reduce your carbon footprint, but for

many people it simply isnt practical. This article included a ten point list of easy to do, at

home ways that families and individuals can reduce their carbon footprint without

making any major purchases or huge life-style changes.

This source was highly valuable to my inquiry project because it is a list of smaller things

that I can easily begin doing now to reduce my carbon footprint. Before diving into this

source I had a bit of intimidation about reducing my carbon footprint because of the

major life style changes I thought it included. After reading this article its clear to see that

the little things that we as individuals can do every day and easily develop into habits can

have a huge impact on reducing the amount of CO2 entering our atmosphere every year.

This article produced by The Huffington Post provides accurate and reliable information.

The Huffington Post is considered to be a reliable source, and was ranked number one of

the top fifteen most popular news outlets. The Author of the Article Rosie Osmun has

written over 33 articles for The Huffington Post and Amerisleep where she is the content

manager and has earned plenty of notoriety for her work.