An environment minister launched the date, these circular businesses reduce overshoot, and the date gets coverage in unexpected sources.
Left to right: Ecuador Vice Minister for Foreign Relations Luis Vayas Valdivieso, Ecuador Environment Minister Gustavo Manrique, and Global Footprint Network President Mathis Wackernagel
A first for Earth Overshoot Day
Ecuador’s Minister of Environment, Water, and Ecological Transition Gustavo Manrique presided over the launch of Earth Overshoot Day in Quito, Ecuador. This is the first time a country hosted our launch. It was Ecuador, not surprisingly, given its traditions in ecological leadership. Ministers around the world supported this first-of-its-kind event with video statements.
Universidad San Francisco de Quito’s faculty of law environmental club also hosted a panel. It discussed which public and private investments will remain valuable in the predictable future of climate change and resource constraints. There, Minister Manrique also signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Global Footprint Network to form a “One-Planet Alliance.”
Circular businesses demonstrate the Power of Possibility
Circular-economy-focused companies recognize that this strategy is in their direct interest. Because circular companies operate while reducing overshoot, they are even more likely to be able to operate in the future. For every dollar generated by the global economy, 2.6 global square meters of overshoot are added. By closing logistics cycles, in addition to sorting and recycling large waste streams, Interzero reduces society’s dependence on Earth’s resources. Find out how much global overshoot shrinks for every dollar value Interzero generates.
Earth Overshoot Day highlights
The world was abuzz with the news of Earth Overshoot Day, to the tune of more than 5,007 articles in 95 countries. Countries with top coverage include the United States, Germany, France, and Italy. One thing intrigued us: even newspapers which aren’t known for pushing climate policy (Daily Mail and Daily Express) covered Earth Overshoot Day with thoughtfully researched articles. On social media, UN agencies, media companies, and NGOs like Greenpeace and WWF joined the conversation. Check out more highlights here.
Keep our budget out of overshoot
Donors like you made it possible for Earth Overshoot Day to bring the much-neglected conversation about overshoot and highlight why being proactive is not just good for humanity, but also essential for those who take action. Running this initiative and creating the content takes hard work and funding. Can we count on your support to push Global Footprint Network’s budget overshoot day to December 31st? Donate today!
For this month’s International Youth Day
By bringing sustainability and SDG education to universities, EUSTEPs equips today’s youth with the knowledge needed to promote sustainable development now and in the future. Visit the project’s website for free teaching materials and an open-access MOOC. Also check out EUSTEPs 360-degree approach to teaching sustainability. Or read the abstract for the project’s latest paper in press, to be published in the journal Frontiers in Education.
