We write of Earth Overshoot Day each year. This year we want to share a stunning image of the world’s use of resources.
Each year we continue our overuse of natural resources. This means that the human community uses all of the natural resources that Earth can naturally replenish in one year by Earth Overshoot Day. Afterwards, we are creating an earth deficit. Every resource we use for the rest of the year is borrowed [stolen?] from future generations. Our greedy use is endangering our progeny.
Earth Overshoot Day is calculated by dividing the world’s bio-capacity (the amount of natural resources generated by Earth that year), by the world ecological footprint (humanity’s consumption of Earth’s natural resources for that year), and multiplying by 365, the number of days in one Gregorian common calendar year.
Our long standing and worsening pattern of overuse promises great suffering for the poor and vulnerable of the world. We need to embrace ecological healing as a long term and lifesaving strategy. Earth is our common home. For more information about Earth Overshoot Day https://www.overshootday.org
In 2022, Thursday, July 28, 2022 was Earth Overshoot Day! This means that the human community used within 7 months all of the natural resources that Earth can naturally replenish in one year. We created an earth deficit for the following 5 months.
In 2021, Earth Overshoot Day was July 30th. Earth Overshoot Day 2020 was August 22nd. These are worrisome statistics as the day occurs sooner each year.