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World’s Overshoot Day 2022 — 28th of July

We consume almost twice as many resources as Earth can produce in the same time period, leading to a depletion of resources and negative externalities such as Carbon Footprint and the loss of biodiversity. A negative externality is a negative effect experienced by a third party due to an economic activity.

Definition

Earth Overshoot Day marks the day on which humanity has used all the biological resources that Earth regenerates during the entire year.
Earth Overshoot Day is computed by the Global Footprint Network. Our planet’s biocapacity (the amount of ecological resources Earth is able to generate that year) is divided by humanity’s Ecological Footprint (humanity’s demand for that year), and then multiplied by 365 (the number of days in a year).

Formula

(Planet’s Biocapacity / Humanity’s Ecological Footprint) x 365 = Earth Overshoot Day

Comparison to previous years

Measurement evaluation

The annual dates are calculated accordingly to the data set of each year. Consequently, it is inaccurate to simply look at media accounts from previous years to determine past Earth Overshoot Days, as improved historical data and collection methods can shift the day significantly.

Implications

In the past 40 years, the date has shifted by 5 months: from December to July. On a positive note, however, the rate Earth Overshoot Day has moved up on the calendar has slowed to less than one day a year on average in recent years.

What next?

The precise Overshoot Day is less significant than the magnitude of ecological overshoot reflected by the Ecological Footprint. Food industry uses half of our biocapacity. Here is a list of actions promoted by the #MoveTheDate movement that we can take to prevent resource inefficiency in food production. Reducing meat consumption by 50% will delay Overshoot by 17 days while cutting food waste in half will delay Earth Overshoot Day by a further 13 more days. This also reflects 2 sustainable goals by the United Nations (UN): zero hunger and responsible consumption and production.

Sources

https://www.overshootday.org (Accessed 15/07/2022)

Categories
Weekly Summaries

14th of December – 20th of December

Climate pledge from China

China is the largest contributor to CO2 emissions worldwide. Now, however, China’s leader Xi Jinping has taken a step against climate change by announcing — on the fifth anniversary of the Paris climate agreement — that China would reduce its carbon intensity over 65% by 2030.

New laws in Hungary threaten civil liberties

This past Tuesday the Hungarian government passed new laws which severely restrict the rights of gay people. For example, one of the constitutional amendments that was made defines a family as including a man as the father and a woman as the mother, effectively preventing gay couples from adopting children. Other measures which were introduced make it more difficult for opposition parties to challenge the Prime Minister of Hungary, Viktor Orban, in future elections and also make an overview of public spending more difficult.

Boko Haram kidnaps young boys

This week gunmen raided a secondary boarding school in the northern Nigerian province of Katsina and took more than 300 young boys captive. The leader of the Boko Haram has now claimed responsibility. However, late Thursday night the state governor announced that all boys would be released and reunited with their parents.

Other news:

  • Britain and the European Union have agreed to extend their trade negotiations. The initial deadline was this past Sunday (the 13th of December).
  • On the 13th of December the White House announced that hackers from a foreign country had broken into multiple key government systems. 
  • The Electoral College confirmed Biden as the next US president on Monday
  • Somalia cuts diplomatic ties with Kenya
  • President Macron of France tested positive for the coronavirus