The Ecological Footprint Quiz is a valuable tool for sustainability education at the high school and university levels.  The Ecological Footprint Quiz is ready-made for classroom exercises that teach students about the implications of our consumption activities on the planet’s limited resources. There are several options for educators interested in integrating this quiz into their curricula:

1.    License a customized version of the quiz that meets specifications for use in public educational institutions.  CSE can provide a customized version of the quiz designed with a look and feel suitable for classroom education and one that meets web content accessibility guidelines for visual, auditory, physical, speech, cognitive, language, learning, and neurological disabilities. Licensing and web programming fees are negotiable.

2.    Develop a footprint challenge for your students. The quiz can be adapted to promote a year-long competition amongst students for the lowest footprint score and greatest amount of footprint reduction over the course of a year. A backend database stores results and compares initial baseline scores with final results at the end of the year after a student has implemented one or more footprint reducing measures. Institutions offer creative prizes to encourage student participation. For an example, please view the San Jose State University Footprint Challenge at: www.myfootprint.org/sjsu/. Licensing and web programming fees are negotiable.

3.    Develop on-line course modules that teach footprint concepts and applications. The Ecological Footprint is a content-rich metric that provides a useful focus for teaching students basic concepts about the sustainability of agriculture, energy use, waste systems, urban development, trade, forest management, fisheries and other aspects of natural resource policy. Course modules can explain footprint components – such as the energy footprint – in depth with interactive calculators ready-made for student projects. For an example, see Assessing Energy’s Footprint, an on-line course we developed in cooperation with California State University: http://www.rprogress.org/energyfootprint


For more information about these options, please contact:

Kinga Dow, Director,
Sustainability On-Line
Center for Sustainable Economy
(505)  670-5975
kingadow@sustainable-economy.org