What is a Carbon Footprint?

I have been thinking about ways I can reduce my carbon footprint. You may be wondering what exactly is a carbon footprint? Here is an explanation from http://w.plant-a-tree-today.org/newcarbonfree.asp

"Your carbon footprint is the direct effect your actions and lifestyle have on the environment in terms of carbon dioxide emissions. Probably the biggest contributors to your footprint are your travel needs, and your electricity demands at home. However, all your actions have a direct or indirect impact, including your diet, and the clothes you wear. We know cars, buses and aeroplanes burn gasoline, public transport may use gasoline and electricity and your home uses a significant portion of your personal electricity needs that generally comes from fossil fuel burning power plants. All these actions contribute to accelerating global warming and climate change."

http://www.carbonfootprint.com/calculator.aspx offers a calculator for you to determine what your carbon footprint is. In order to calculate the footprint for your house, you will need to know how much you spent (US$) or used (kWh) over the past year. My total house footprint, according to this web site, is 4.55 tonnes of CO2. My car footprint (Dodge Durango) is 5.13 tonnes of CO2. And my secondary footprint (you should do this one for yourself--it is most interesting) is 4.47 tonnes of CO2.

And the results are: My footprint is 14.15 tonnes per year
The average footprint for people in United States is 20.40 tonnes
The average for the industrial nations is about 11 tonnes
The average worldwide carbon footprint is about 4 tonnes
The worldwide target to combat climate change is 2 tonnes

Take the calculator to your own life and post your results!