Footprint Network Blog
China’s Ecological Footprint has quadrupled in the last four decades, with the country now demanding more from the planet than any nation except the United States, according to a report released last month by Global Footprint Network, WWF China, and CCICED (China Council for International Cooperation on Environment and Development), a Chinese government advisory group.
In the last in the last 50 years, China has soared from being one of the more moderate consumers of the planet’s resources to one of the largest, according to the Report on Ecological Footprint in China, presented June 10 in Beijing. The report’s findings underscore the crucial role China will play in addressing the major resource challenges humanity faces in the 21st century.
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While Africans per capita consume very little of the world’s biological resources, growing population is bringing the region close to reaching it’s ecological limits, according to a groundbreaking report Global Footprint Network, in conjunction with WWF, presented June 9 at the African Ministerial Conference on the Environment in Johannesburg.
Offering the first in-depth look at the Ecological Footprint of Africa and its constituent countries, Africa: Ecological Footprint and Human Wellbeing examines the role natural resources can play in advancing the region’s goals to end poverty and disease – or conversely, if mismanaged, in thwarting these goals. The report is the result of a multi-year effort by Global Footprint Network and the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation to explore how ecological limits apply and relate to human development in the region.
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As the second fastest-growing Canadian city with a population that has grown 13 percent in five years, Calgary finds itself at a critical moment. City leaders are faced with making infrastructure and planning decisions that will shape the way residents live for years to come, and are looking to balance the needs of citizens with a growing concern about the city’s use of natural resources. The government has launched an Ecological Footprint Project with Global Footprint Network that will help officials understand the ecological impacts of these decisions – and move in a direction that provides the most ecologically sustainable future for its citizens.
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“Humanity is brushing up against ecological limits”, “natural resources are dwindling”, “unsustainable consumption increases” – whatever the chosen term or headline, the fact is that the concept of overshoot has gotten a lot of media attention recently. The past few months have seen stories in The New Yorker, the New York Times and the Wall Street Journal among others, all reflecting a growing awareness that carbon is only part of the overshoot story.
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What does the word “footprint” mean? Today, it’s likely to refer less to the tread mark your sneaker leaves in the dirt, and more to the imprint you’ll leave on the planet. So says word maven William Safire in a recent “On Language” column in the New York Times Magazine. In the February 17 column, Safire traces the word’s journey from its literal meaning to the metaphoric significance it has gained in recent years as a measure of environmental impact.
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In Deep Economy, renowned environmental journalist and climate activist Bill McKibben has done more than simply write a catchy page-turner; he has created a blueprint for bringing humanity out of overshoot. McKibben weaves evidence of our ecological crisis (including Footprint data) with explorations of the history and psychology of our growth-based economy and “hyper-individualist” culture. Clearly but gently, he shows how global economic expansion has become our culture’s mantra, yet is simply not an option if humans are to survive this era of global overshoot.
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Click here to download Global Footprint Network’s 2007 Annual Report. The past year has been one of growth for both our organization and for the Footprint’s influence in the world. Our Annual Report expresses hope and progress towards ending overshoot, with great strides in our Ten-in-Ten campaign, our work with Human Development in Africa, India, and China, and Footprinting for local governments. It also celebrates a diversity of Footprint successes from our partner organizations, and maps out our plans for an even more impactful 2008.
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Since our inception in 2004, Global Footprint Network has invited organizations with shared goals to partner with us in strengthening the Footprint and enhancing its value as a catalyst for sustainability. We began with just 12 founding partners and have expanded to well over 80 organizations with the common vision of ending overshoot.
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Hear Mathis Wackernagel discuss how the Ecological Footprint helps inform sustainable development and which countries are winning the game on this Living on Earth interview.
Global Footprint Network and EPA Victoria have just launched a new personal Ecological Footprint calculator for Australia. Built in partnership with Free Range Studios (the creators of the viral film The Meatrix and The Story of Stuff) the new calculator provides a graphic representation of your impact on the planet.
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