Your Human Footprint

Have you ever wondered what your human footprint looks like? Exactly how do you, as a single individual, impact this planet's health?

This week I was invited to attend a screening of The Human Footprint at National Geographic's headquarters. Hosted by ABC's Elizabeth Vargas, the film, which premiers on NatGeo this Sunday night at 9pm ET/PT, attempts to answer exactly those questions.

When I tell you that you will go through 5,054 newspapers, 12,888 oranges, 3,796 diapers, 12,129 hamburgers, 31,250 gallons of gasoline and, should you shower daily, 700,000 gallons of water in your lifetime, the figures are dry and difficult to wrap your head around.

But what if someone took those numbers and transformed them into something tangible? What if the average human life was laid out in front of you? Would 43,371 soda cans, 38,320 pints of milk or 141,894 slices of bread collected into a visual montage make more of an impact?

Completely non-judgemental or preachy, this NatGeo special is a fun and fascinating way to look at the impact just one person has on the world--showing us what we consume, what we create, where it all goes and how it all fits together.

Check it out.