Tomorrow we will hit Earth Overshoot Day for this year - July 28, 2022.
This post finds me looking back over the ten years I have been talking about Earth Overshoot Day both during ASAE's NextGen Program and also keynotes and workshops I have given at various conferences and events.
The fact is, there is a direct correlation between the number of people we have on the planet and the resources we all collectively consume. The last time we were close to being in balance was December 31, 1971, when our global population was around 3 billion.
Today, our global population stands at 8 billion.
What this means is, by tomorrow we will have used up all the resources that the Earth can renew in 2022 using natural processes. Meaning the system we depend on for our very existence can not replace every tree, every fish, every material. You can learn more about how they calculate this on the Earth Overshoot Day website.
This should give us all pause for reflection and then spur us on to take concrete action to help stabilize our planet. There are lots of things your association or non-profit can do to raise awareness and take radical steps to minimize our resource use.
You will find resources and ideas on the website in five main areas: healthy planet, cities, energy, food and population. As you look at that page, look for inspiration. Consider your organization's mission and how we need a dual approach. Not only do we need to reduce our carbon footprint as fast as possible, but we also need to ask ourselves and our members one important question: How can we accomplish our goals using the least amount of resources - travel, materials, manufacturing, etc., possible?
I take some encouragement from the sharper drops we have seen between the go-go 80s decade of excess, and the early 2000s. Of course, the challenge is reversing it, so we get back in balance and only use one earth's worth of renewable resources in one year.
I'm up for it. Are you?
This post finds me looking back over the ten years I have been talking about Earth Overshoot Day both during ASAE's NextGen Program and also keynotes and workshops I have given at various conferences and events.
The fact is, there is a direct correlation between the number of people we have on the planet and the resources we all collectively consume. The last time we were close to being in balance was December 31, 1971, when our global population was around 3 billion.
Today, our global population stands at 8 billion.
What this means is, by tomorrow we will have used up all the resources that the Earth can renew in 2022 using natural processes. Meaning the system we depend on for our very existence can not replace every tree, every fish, every material. You can learn more about how they calculate this on the Earth Overshoot Day website.
This should give us all pause for reflection and then spur us on to take concrete action to help stabilize our planet. There are lots of things your association or non-profit can do to raise awareness and take radical steps to minimize our resource use.
You will find resources and ideas on the website in five main areas: healthy planet, cities, energy, food and population. As you look at that page, look for inspiration. Consider your organization's mission and how we need a dual approach. Not only do we need to reduce our carbon footprint as fast as possible, but we also need to ask ourselves and our members one important question: How can we accomplish our goals using the least amount of resources - travel, materials, manufacturing, etc., possible?
I take some encouragement from the sharper drops we have seen between the go-go 80s decade of excess, and the early 2000s. Of course, the challenge is reversing it, so we get back in balance and only use one earth's worth of renewable resources in one year.
I'm up for it. Are you?
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