A scientist enters observations into an electronic data recorder, measuring the width and depth of a stream that feeds into Ellsworth Creek. Photo by Harley Soltes.
Students from Chamblee Middle School in Atlanta, Georgia conduct a habitat survey – looking for pollinators, insects, and other wildlife – in their school garden which is used as an outdoor science lab. Photo by Nick Burchell.
Calculating carbon
How we distilled the science to estimate your impact
At The Nature Conservancy, science is our guidepost. It’s at the root of every acre we protect and runs through every river we restore.
The carbon reduction estimates we share on this website are grounded in science as well. These figures represent aggregated data, but did you know there also are great tools to help you draw down the details of your personal carbon footprint? When you know the amount of carbon emitted from travel, your home, even the goods you buy and how you buy them, you are instantly empowered to find ways to cut carbon in every aspect of your daily life!
Check out our free carbon footprint calculator, powered by the CoolClimate Network at the University of California at Berkeley. You can also find out ways not only to cut carbon, but cut costs from routine household expenses. Lowering your bottom line while caring for your climate sounds like a win-win!
If you’d like to dig further into the data, here is a list of resources we put to work for our EVERY1 equations:
Environmental Protection Agency’s Greenhouse Gas Equivalency Calculator
Environmental Protection Agency: Greenhouse Gas Emissions from a Typical Passenger Vehicle
Environmental Protection Agency: WaterSense
Environmental Working Group: Meat Eater’s Guide
The Sustainability Consortium: Benefits of Using Cold Water for Everyday Laundry in the U.S.