* * * * * Humanity is surpassing nature’s budget for the year,
and is now operating in overdraft, according to Global Footprint
Network calculations for 2011. Earth Overshoot Day, which this
year falls on September 27, helps conceptualise the degree to
which we are over-budget in our use of nature. In approximately
nine months, we are demanding a level of ecological services –
from producing food and raw materials to filtering our carbon
dioxide emissions — equivalent to what the planet can provide
for all of 2011. From an ecological standpoint, we have
effectively spent our annual salary, with a quarter of the year
still to go. “From soaring food prices to the crippling effects
of climate change, our economies are now confronting the reality
of years of spending beyond our means. If we are to maintain
stable societies and good lives, we can no longer sustain a
widening budget gap between what nature is able to provide and
how much our infrastructure, economies and lifestyles
require.”(Global Footprint Networ