Google's 'Your Plan, Your Planet' Tool to Help Users Reduce Environmental Impact

Google has teamed up with the California Academy of Sciences to launch an interactive new tool that will help reduce environmental footprint by informing the amount of water your shower uses, or the impact of throwing away food or turning down the water heater by a few degrees.

The tool called Your Plan, Your Planet, is an interactive way to understand your environmental impact and learn simple, science-based ways to improve it.

"We all want a healthy planet. The small choices we make each day can help us get there. Learn simple tips from Google and the California Academy of Sciences to leave the earth in better shape," Google said in a blog post late on Friday.

"Our greatest impact on the planet comes from just three things: our food, water, and energy usage. And if we each made a few small changes, we could all make a big difference," wrote Jill Puente, Planet Earth Advocate, in the blog post.

Food production accounts for more than two-thirds of the world's water use, and over a quarter of carbon dioxide emissions.

Your Plan, Your Planet, shows the water and carbon impact of what people eat and gives them smart ways to store it so that less food ends up in the trash.

The tool also suggests simple changes-like installing a low-flow showerhead and fixing common household leaks-that can help you be more water smart.

Much of the energy we use comes from burning natural resources, which in turn releases CO2 into the air. But easy tweaks, like washing laundry on cold and adjusting the thermostat just a few degrees, can reduce the impact in a big way, Puente noted.