Earth Overshoot Day falls on August 2

August 2nd was Earth’s Overshoot Day which marks when human demand for natural resources exceeds the natural resources Earth can replenish. Overshoot Day falls on a different date every year but tracking this day can give us insight on how fast we consume natural resources. Looking back through the past, Earth's Overshoot Day has fallen quicker through the calendar year. Overshoot Day is calculated by dividing the planet’s biocapacity (the amount of ecological resources Earth can 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.  

Countries also have their individual Overshoot Days; The date when that country's Ecological Footprint per person is greater than global biocapacity per person (1.6 gha). Some countries reach their Overshoot Day 2 months into the new year such as Qatar and Luxembourg other countries like India and the Philippines do not reach an Overshoot Day because their Ecological Footprint per person is less than global biocapacity per person (1.6 gha).

To learn more about Overshoot Day, check out the Overshoot Day website by clicking this link.