Earth Overshoot Day

This year plastic waste is high on everyone's agenda but it's only a small part of our over use of the Earth's resources. Today is Earth Overshoot Day 2018.

This is the day when humanity will have used nature’s resource budget for the entire year, according to Global Footprint Network, an international research organization. The day when humanity’s annual demand on nature exceeds what Earth’s ecosystems can renew in that year.

In other words, humanity is currently using nature 1.7 times faster than our planet’s ecosystems can regenerate. This is akin to using 1.7 Earths.   Unfortunately, the overshoot day for the UK is even earlier, we have used up 'our' budget by 7 May!  See how the UK compares with other countries:

 

Global Footprint Network calculates Earth Overshoot Day every year using Ecological Footprint accounting, which adds up all of people’s competing demands on nature, including demand for food, timber, and fibers (cotton); absorption of carbon emissions from burning fossil fuels; and buildings, roads and other infrastructure. August 1 is the earliest Earth Overshoot Day since the world went into ecological overshoot in the 1970s.

Partners around the world to join #MoveTheDate Live Stream

Global Footprint Network is inviting individuals to participate in Earth Overshoot Day by determining their own Personal Overshoot Day and Ecological Footprint at www.footprintcalculator.org and taking a “Step to #MoveTheDate” at www.overshootday.org/steps-to-movethedate.