Ecological Footprint

Natural Capital resource production (such as fish, timber or cereals), waste assimilation (such as CO2 absorption or sewage decomposition) and life support services (such as UV protection, biodiversity, water cleansing or climate stability).

Biocapacity the ability of an ecosystem to regenerate useful biological materials (resources) and to absorb wastes generated by humans.

Malthusian Crisis There are lots of ways that nature reduces overpopulation in an animal population. The ultimate way, according to Malthus, was when there would be more people than food to feed them

Malthus’s ideas were used to justify social darwinism Since Malthus’s time, world population has increased from 1.6 billion to 7 billion Science and technology has resulted in there being enough to feed 7-9 billion (if we wanted to)

The same science has technology has been very resource and energy intensive Meaning 1) We use more renewable resources than the earth can regenerate in a year and and 2) we put more waste in the air and water than the earth can reabsorb in a year

When the earth’s population uses as many resources as can be regenerated, and whose waste can be reabsorbed, in one year, than the earth is in Ecological Balance

Some countries use more resources per capita than others, far more than their own land can regenerate and reabsorb Such a country imports resources from other countries and export its waste back to them in terms of the air and water the world shares

To use half of next year’s biocapacity now this year, is the same as saying that we use 1 ½ earths per year One country alone can use on its own a whole earth’s year’s worth of biocapacity – or more!

When a country, or the whole world, uses more resources and creates more waste than the earth can reabsorb in one year, it ”borrows” from the earth’s future capacity The world is then in ”ecological debt” to the future. Musn’t there be a limit to how much can be borrowed from the future

The day each year when we start borrowing from the next year’s capacty is called Overshoot Day the day when humanity’s demand for ecological resources and services in a given year exceeds what the Earth can regenerate in that year. We uses stocks of resources and accumulate waste, primarily CO2 in the atmosphere.

Overshoot: 3 Factors how much we consume how many of us there are how much nature is able to produce. Technology has helped expand biological productivity over the years, but that expansion has not come close to keeping pace with the rate at which population and resource demand have expanded.

Slowly increasing results of overshoot water shortages, desertification, erosion, reduced cropland productivity deforestation, rapid extinction of species, collapse of fisheries and global climate change

1987 was ”year zero,” when resource usage was about the same as the earth’s ability to regenerate / reabsorb it Overshoot Day this year was August 22, 2012 Every year it moves up a week or two based on earth’s population, amount of CO2 in the air, etc.

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Carbon emissions is ½ of the footprint

Ecological Footprint The Ecological Footprint measures the amount of productive land and sea area it takes to produce all the resources a population consumes and absorb its waste, using prevailing technology. It can be measured for an individual, town, nation, and the whole earth

Personal Calculator How much land area does it take to support your lifestyle?

Personal Footprint Choose Switzerland, then New User Food, shelter, mobility, goods, and services WRITE DOWN YOUR PERCENTAGES FROM THE ABOVE PIE CHART, AND YOUR ”ENERGY LAND” PERCENTAGE

Climate change, deforestation, overgrazing, fisheries collapse, food insecurity and the rapid extinction of species are all part of a single, over-arching problem: Humanity is simply demanding more from the Earth than in can provide