Have you ever wondered why there are so many self-storage facilities nowadays? While defensible as a short-term solution, maybe these facilities are a sign of a society that just has too much “stuff”. In fact, “first world” countries have become huge consumer nations in a global economy driven by a consumption-dependent growth imperative. But what is the impact of this on our world and our future?
The Global Footprint Network, an organization comprised of more than 70 member organizations that share the vision of living within the means of the planet, has attempted to calibrate how sustainable (or not) our collective consumer behaviour is. Using a large databank, experts measure the planet’s Biocapacity (the amount of ecological resources Earth is able to generate in a year), divide that by humanity’s Ecological Footprint (humanity’s demand for that year), then multiply this figure by the number of days in a year. The resultant number, calculated each year since 1971, is the number of days we are living “within our budget”; after that we are over-consuming resources. The date by which we have used up a year’s worth of our planet’s resources is called “Earth Overshoot Day.” After that, humanity’s demand for ecological resources and services in a given year exceeds what Earth can regenerate in that year. Until the mid-80’s we managed to last until November/December. But since 2005, we’ve only made it as far as August. This year, the global date is August 1st, meaning we’ll “spend”1.7 Earths in 2024. Along with a global date, the date is calculated for each country, based on its consumption record. Unsurprisingly, the wealthiest countries have the worst standing: Canada’s Overshoot Day is – wait for it –March 15th! Only four other countries, including the United States, have a worse standing. We Canadians are using up our annual “budget” of resources in less than three months.
But beyond taking well above a reasonable share of humanity’s common global resources, rich countries’ voracious appetite for bigger houses and cars (like SUV’s and pickup trucks), travel to exotic locations, fancy appliances and tech gadgets, and closets bursting with the latest “throwaway” fashions, means we are emitting more carbon than ever to transport ourselves and all this “stuff” around (as well as make it). Not to mention the depredation by extractive industries of valuable forests, wetlands and wild areas, with the resultant loss of biodiversity and carbon-absorption capacity.
In an update to “The Limits to Growth” – a 1972 report by a group of scientists warning that surges in population and economic activity would eventually outstrip the carrying capacity of the planet – Herman Daly, an ecological economist, suggested three simple rules for sustainable limits:
- For a renewable resource: like soil, water, forest, fish – the sustainable limit can be no greater than the rate of regeneration;
- For a non-renewable resource such as fossil fuels and minerals, the sustainable rate can be no greater than that which a renewable resource can be substituted for it;
- For a pollutant, the sustainable rate of emission can be no greater than the rate at which the pollutant can be recycled, absorbed or rendered harmless.
Without such boundaries, our mindless consumerism threatens our long-term survival. As willing dupes of corporate giants that dictate to us what we “need”, we are lemmings headed for a cliff. In short, we are a society that has lost sight of where it’s going, and in the process, we are putting at risk our very future. What are you prepared to do to save it?
Jane Jenner is a mindful consumer living in Burlington