What is Earth Overshoot Day? Can we Stop it?
We need to talk about Earth Overshoot Day. It gets closer and closer every year but what is it? Can we push the date back? Let’s talk about all of this and more in this post.
What is Earth Overshoot Day?
According to 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. We maintain this deficit by liquidating stocks of ecological resources and accumulating waste, primarily carbon dioxide in the atmosphere.”
Basically, if we were to pile up all of the Earth’s resources that it can generate in one calendar year, we would use the entire pile on Earth Overshoot Day (EOD from here on out). So, EOD is on December 31st, right? The last day of the year, the last of our resources?
I wish…
When is Earth Overshoot Day?
This year, it’s July 25th. Last year, it was August 3rd. We’ve moved it up 8 whole days. That’s how much we are consuming and overconsuming per year.
This means that the amount of resources the Earth can produce in one calendar year, we collectively use up by July 25th. Only 7 months into the year.
If we were to extract all of Earth’s resources for the year on January 1st, we would run out of resources by July 25th, 2024 and have no resources left for the last 5 months.
Now, this doesn’t happen. Why? Theoretically, we’re dipping into next year’s reserves from August-December. This is why the clock gets pushed farther and farther up every year. We are using more per year than the Earth can produce.
We can also look at each country’s EOD to see who the real culprits are in terms of overconsumption. Here’s a nice image from overshoot.org:
It’s astonishing how many countries are overconsuming. How you can read this is by imagining everyone lived like an American for a whole year. If this were the case, we would not run out of resources on July 25th, but rather on March 14th. Not even 3 whole months into the year and we would be out of Earth’s resources.
How is Earth Overshoot Day calculated?
I’ll let the folks at Earth Overshoot Day answer this better than I can:
“To determine the date of Earth Overshoot Day for each year, Global Footprint Network calculates 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 the 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:
(Earth’s Biocapacity / Humanity’s Ecological Footprint) x 365 = Earth Overshoot Day”
The History of Earth Overshoot Day
Andrew Simms, who worked at the UK think tank New Economics Foundation sparked this idea in 2006. He partnered with the Global Footprint Network to launch the first campaign. The year after, the World Wildlife Fund, the world’s largest conservation organization has participated and promoted the event. It has grown exponentially since then and more and more awareness about our overconsumption has been brought to light.
I first heard about EOD early on in my zero waste journey. I think it really helped put into perspective for me how much we collectively overconsume as a planet but also particularly those of us in Western, capitalist societies, and even how much I personally overconsume.
Yes, it’s scary to see these dates inch closer and closer every year, but this campaign is so important.
The Future of Earth Overshoot Day…can we fix this?
As I said, this campaign is so important. I’m sure most people know by now that we are consuming way more than we need to and way more than the Earth can handle. Even non-environmentalists know this, though they may not care as much. It’s just a fact that particularly Americans buy, buy buy, and just throw stuff away. We typically don’t mend, don’t donate, don’t shop secondhand.
Yes, it’s scary to conceptualize how much we are harming the planet and harming ourselves in the process. I don’t want to spread doom, but I do want to spread facts. And the fact is that we are running out of resources because of how much we use.
I hope this movement continues to get traction and gets people caring. Here are some things you can do to limit overconsumption:
Stop impulse buying. Think before you purchase: where are you going to put the item? How are you going to use it?
Use what you have! Have a water bottle? You don’t need the latest Stanley. Have an empty pasta jar? You don’t need to go buy a set of matching jars.
Donate: decluttering? Stop throwing stuff away. Instead of recycling, repurpose, donate, or sell your old items. Our landfills are also running out of space.
Buy long-lasting items. Shopping for higher quality might mean more money, but usually it lasts longer.
Purposefully make your items last longer! Air dry your clothes, mend, repair, and so forth
Learn how to upcycle! Take old items and make them into something new instead of throwing them away
Shop secondhand. Need a new shirt, a new blender, a new notebook? Check secondhand first. But, also, be wary of the dark side of chain thrift stores…
Reduce your emissions. A lot of what we extract from the Earth is for energy: coal, oil, natural gas, and more. Reducing your emissions will reduce how much we collectively use. Conserve energy, conserve water, and ditch the car when possible. Can’t ditch the car? Here are some ways to boycott Big Oil without giving up your car.
Inspire others! Show them your lifestyle and present them with the facts. They might not change overnight, but plant that seed. We need everyone to reduce their impact at least a little bit.
Yes, EOD is scary. It’s scary that is gets sooner and sooner every year. But, we can change that. Together we can push this date back. Can we push it all the way to December 31st? I’m not sure, but it sounds like a good challenge.
Sure, it would be great if militaries and governments and corporations could get on board, they’re so much more wasteful than you and me. But until then, keep advocating for them to change and make changes yourself. Vote with your dollar and give your money to better companies. Vote! Build community and start trading with neighbors. Reduce your own consumption.
Individual action matters but it matters more when we all do it. Take one small step today to ensure our future generations have all the resources they need.
Thank you so much for reading along, I hope you enjoyed this post. These stats are scary, but we have to have hope. Let’s inspire and learn from one another. Let’s take action together to save our planet and ourselves.
As always, remember that your small actions make a big difference in the long run :)
Emma
