On Wednesday, Ecological Debt Day: Humanity Needs 1.7 Planets

On Wednesday, August 1, the world enters ecological debt, announces the Global Footprint Network (GFN), marking the day when humanity’s demand for nature exceeds what Earth’s ecosystems can regenerate in 2018.

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This day, which is being marked this year earlier than ever since measurements began (it was at the end of September in 1997), symbolically represents the impact of human activities on nature and its resources.

According to GFN, for the current needs of humanity, we would need 1.7 planets to have enough natural resources to support human activities.

– The fact that this day moves forward each year tells us that we are still not behaving responsibly towards the planet! We are living off an increasing loan that we are taking from the account of a better future for our children, emphasizes Deni Porej, director of WWF Adria.

– According to WWF’s Planet Status Report, all countries in our region are living beyond their natural capacities. This is also evidenced by GFN data on ecological footprints, which are measured in global hectares (ghe). This is a unit of measurement for our demands on the Earth (ecological footprint) and the Earth’s ability to meet them (biocapacity). According to this data, Slovenia leads our region with the largest ecological footprint and first enters ecological debt on May 12. Following are Croatia (June 19), Montenegro (June 29), Bosnia and Herzegovina (July 6), Macedonia (July 19), and Serbia (July 30), says Porej, adding that Albania enters debt last, on October 14.

Ecological debt can only last for a limited time before the natural basis for human survival begins to degrade and eventually be completely destroyed.

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As our needs increasingly exceed the planet’s ability to regenerate, further exacerbated by the effects of climate change, Ecological Debt Day serves as a strong reminder of the urgent actions that individuals and countries must take to protect forests, oceans, freshwater resources, plant and animal life, thus helping to achieve sustainable development.

Ideas on how to change your footprint can be found on the GFN and WWF Adria websites. The period from now until 2020 must be used to define key commitments and actions that can reverse the trend of nature loss by 2030 and help ensure the health and well-being of people and our planet.