Human society is supported by what nature provides – food, fiber, timber, carbon absorption, and land for built infrastructure. If all people around the world consumed at the level EU residents do, from January 1 to May 10, humanity would have used as much as the planet’s ecosystems can renew over the entire year. This means that 2.8 Earths would be needed to provide for this level of consumption.
According to Global Footprint Network, it is possible to make our economies one-planet compatible. They state that a one-planet compatibility is not a noble goal: It is the basic, necessary condition for humanity to thrive going forward provided we get there by design. So they encourage people to get to work to #MoveTheDate!
A call for action
The report calls for this transformation. It came just ahead of the EU Leaders Summit on the Future of Europe on May 9 in Sibiu, Romania, and two weeks before the EU elections. It recommends urgent changes needed to move the EU’s Overshoot Day later into the year. This includes actions to fully protect and restore nature in Europe by 2030 and make the EU climate neutral by 2040.
The report is available here.
Text source: Global Footprint Network
