The Human Parasite
Lessons From Earth Overshoot Day
“Earth Overshoot Day marks the date when humanity’s demand for ecological resources and services in a given year exceeds what Earth can regenerate in that year.”
The Global Footprint Network, which originated and maintains the Earth Overshoot Day, explains that “To determine the date of Earth Overshoot Day for each year, we calculate the number of days of that year that Earth’s biocapacity suffices to provide for humanity’s Ecological Footprint. The remainder of the year corresponds to global overshoot. Earth Overshoot Day is computed by dividing the planet’s biocapacity (the amount of ecological resources Earth is able to generate that year), by humanity’s Ecological Footprint (humanity’s demand for that year), and multiplying by 365, the number of days in a year.” This is summarized by the formula:
Earth Overshoot Day = (Planet’s Biocapacity / Humanity’s Ecological Footprint) x 365
Over Budget
It is instructive to look at the history of the Earth Overshoot Day. In 1970 we were just within budget, with Earth Overshoot Day falling on December 30. But over the past 50 years we gradually increased our consumption to the point where we now need 1.7 earths annually to provide what we “need”. Unfortunately we only have one.
A notable exception: in 2020 Earth Overshoot Day (August 22) was almost a month later than in 2019 (July 26). This is of course attributed to the effect of COVID-19 which slowed down humanity’s racing car. Makes you wonder if the coronavirus was punishment or a gift in disguise. Regardless, we worked hard to fix this fallback and 2021’s Earth Overshoot Day is estimated to have been on July 29.
Another interesting info-graphic is the country’s overshoot day. Essentially “A country’s overshoot day is the date on which Earth Overshoot Day would fall if all of humanity consumed like the people in this country.” Not all countries are represented in the graphic, but you can find a more detailed list on the same web page. Earlier is of course worse. Clearly wealthy and so called “developed” countries are the biggest contributors to Earth’s demise. Qatar and Luxembourg are the notorious leaders, while Ecuador and Indonesia are the honorable laggards. It is worthwhile to note the largest and most influential countries, such as the USA (March 14), Russia (April 17) and China (June 7, but moving up).
Some Perspective
Let’s assume my wife and I are doing some budgetary planning for our family, which is us and our two sons. We will look at our expenses, some of which we deem necessary, such as those related to food, health, education or fixing our old car. Others, such as traveling, eating out and and entertainment are enjoyable but we could live without them. Then we look at our income. How much can we afford? And under no circumstances will we spend more than we make, in the long term. We did take a mortgage to buy our house, but after carefully scrutinizing that we will be able to pay it back in time.
When it comes to money, countries, cities and corporations generally operate under a similar “balanced budget” directive. The US may be an exception. Its government has the habit of “printing” huge amounts of dollars that it doesn’t really have in order to “boost” the economy (in other words make Americans spend more on things they don’t need, and push the USA’s and the global overshoot days even earlier). But money is a virtual resource. Will America ever have to pay back its huge national debt, or al least a substantial part of it? Who knows.
With our beloved planet earth and physical resources such as water, food and energy, we can’t afford to spend more then we make. We can’t borrow and hope someone else will pay later. The longer we continue “overshooting” the more painful it will be. Soon. For all of us, and even more so for our children.
So?
The solution isn’t complicated. It is just hard. Like quitting smoking or adopting a healthier diet. We need to face the truth and make a choice. It’s not just about passing some rules and regulations or recycling more. There is no use complaining about depleting earth resources, global warming, pandemics and natural disasters, while at the same time continuing to endorse capitalism, competition and the consumer society as our north star. Do we want to be have lots of stuff or lead a healthy and fulfilling life? Compete with each other or work together? Fight with Nature or become part of it?
Many observers have emphasized the need to rethink capitalism in the wake of Covid-19. Ian Goldin — the former CEO of the Development Bank of Southern Africa and now a professor at the University of Oxford — begins his recently published book, “Rescue: from global crisis to a better world”, with the following words: “Instead of being the great leveller, as pandemics have been throughout history, the coronavirus pandemic has revealed and compounded pre-existing inequalities in wealth, race, gender, age, education and geographical location.”. Clearly our economic, social, and political systems must be overhauled, however we must realize that a more fundamental change is required first. A change in our collective consciousness.
We need to redefine who we are, why we are here, where we are headed. We must look ourselves in the mirror and get in shape. This requires education. New values, new goals, new standards of living. Indeed a new human society. In the face of this challenge we can either feel lost and afraid, or excited and in anticipation, like children about to go on an adventure.
As astronaut Neil Armstrong famously said, this can be one small step for a man, one giant leap for mankind. Let’s make that leap together.
“Earth provides enough to satisfy every man’s needs, but not every man’s greed.”― Mahatma Gandhi
