Ecological Footprint Calculation Research Articles

Study on the Two-Way Promotion Path of Green Financing for SMEs and Green Transformation of Urban Housing Projects in Guangdong Province in the Era of Digital Economy

Green transformation is a necessary path on the road of green development of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), and it is also a top priority for implementing the concept of sustainable development. The article innovatively proposes a green transformation evaluation method for urban housing projects based on the ecological footprint theory, which clarifies the resource use of urban housing projects during the construction process through the ecological footprint calculation, clarifies their ecological deficits, and solves the reduction of their ecological footprints through the green transformation. A double-difference model is introduced to analyze the impact of SMEs’ green financing and issuance of green bonds on the green transformation of urban housing projects. The short-term market response of green bonds issued by SMEs with green financing and the environmental benefits of urban housing projects are also verified. Between 2012 and 2021, the ecological footprint of urban housing projects in Guangdong Province increased by 36,273,366 nha, an increase of 137.04%, and the reduction of ecological footprint in the planning and construction phase of urban housing projects in Guangdong Province after the implementation of the green transformation strategy totaled 10,377.85 nha. Whenever the level of SMEs’ green financing and issuance of green bonds is increased by 1%, the reduction of ecological footprint of the green transformation of urban housing projects will be increased by 1%. Transformation of the ecological footprint reduction will be enhanced by 4.059. Relying on the green financing behavior of SMEs can promote the enhancement of the short-term market effect of the enterprise, and can also effectively enhance the utilization rate of green building materials in urban housing projects, and help the green transformation of urban housing projects.

Assessing the ecological security of the Three Gorges reservoir complex ecosystem based on the improved three-dimensional emergy ecological footprint model

The ecological security (ES) of the reservoir complex ecosystem (RCE) is one of the critical components of watershed water security and sustainable development. Hence, accurately assessing the ES of the RCE is of utmost importance. This study proposed a novel ecological security assessment model based on the improved three-dimensional emergy ecological footprint (ESM-IEEF3D), which integrated various emergy flows during the RCE's construction and operation into a three-dimensional emergy ecological footprint (EEF3D) calculation account. The Three Gorges Project (TGP) is selected as a case study to evaluate the ES from 1993 to 2022 comprehensively. The results showed that the Three Gorges RCE mainly showed an ecological remainder state, and the inflow runoff enormously promoted the TGP's sustainability. The EEF3D indicated a fluctuation decrease trend with a mean value of 7.18 × 102 ha, illustrating that TGP's ecological security and sustainability levels are gradually improving. Regarding the ES evaluation indicators, the TGP's resource dependency and ecological pressure on the natural ecosystem and the external socio-economic system are steadily relieved. Furthermore, the Three Gorges RCE's resource utilization condition is safe, the structural characteristics are healthy, and the eco-economic coordination degree is continuously enlightening. Finally, applicable policy implications for improving the ecological security of Three Gorges RCE were provided. This study helps to understand the complex relationship between humans and ecosystems. It provides a novel framework to be used as an evaluation index and policy insights for hydropower ecological security and sustainable development.

Improvement and application of the ecological footprint calculation Method—A case study of a Chinese university

The Ecological Footprint (EF) model is an effective tool for determining the resource consumption demand of human activities and whether natural assets are overutilized. The EF calculation method has certain theoretical and methodological importance for low-carbon campus construction. With the development of science and technology, some parameters in traditional EF calculation methods need to be modified. Based on the definition of fossil energy land and the latest average grain yield, this paper revised the calculation parameters of the EF method in six aspects: absorbed gas, electricity, agricultural products, aquatic products, livestock products, and paper. This paper applied the calculation method before and after improvement to Henan Polytechnic University. The EF of the campus according to calculations was 28,358.41 gha, and the per capita EF was 0.657 gha/person using the improved calculation method. Compared with the unimproved method, the improved method resulted in a substantial decrease in EFs, which can be explained by three reasons. First, the fossil energy land was divided into forestland and pasture land. Second, the average yield was recalculated using the latest statistical database of the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization. Finally, the utilization of waste pulp in the paper industry was considered. The calculated results were also analyzed and compared with those of other universities, Worldwide Fund for Nature and Enhancing Universities’Sustainability Teaching and Practices through Ecological Footprint. The improved calculation results can better reflect the actual situation of the campus, improve the rationality of EF calculation, and provide a reference for EF at the campus level. Accordingly, the current situation of campus resource consumption can be explained, further providing a basis for proposing an EF reduction scheme for green campus construction.

A novel privacy-aware global infrastructure for ecological footprint calculator based on the Internet of things and blockchain

A novel privacy-aware global infrastructure for ecological footprint calculator based on the Internet of things and blockchain

Empowering Non-Academic Staff for the Implementation of Sustainability in Higher Education Institutions

Sustainability within higher education institutions (HEIs) is a well-established topic in the literature. Many fields of education for sustainable development have been explored, mainly focused on HEI students, as well as on academic staff. The technical, administrative, and management staff, referred to as non-academic staff has not received as much attention as the remaining HEI community, which leaves a gap in the successful implementation of sustainability practices and policies, as they play a vital and central role in the HEIs’ everyday functioning. Hence, the EUSTEPs project launched two sustainability training courses dedicated exclusively to this segment of the university community, aiming to increase their knowledge on facts and tools for the best sustainability transition. The first short-term online training, organized by the University of Aveiro and Universidade Aberta, Portugal, was run in May 2021. The training targeted 27 non-academic staff from different sectors. The second online training course was implemented one year later and involved 17 elements from the previous training. The results showed very high levels of overall satisfaction and full achievement of the participants’ expectations in sustainability issues. The non-academic staff learned and discussed the human–environment relationship, tracked and discussed their personal ecological footprint in the workspace, actively participated on how to run the university ecological footprint calculator, developed within the EUSTEPs project, and felt mobilized to implement actions to reduce their university’s environmental impacts (as well as in their general daily activities). Similar training programs can be used to empower non-academic staff for the implementation of sustainability in other higher education institutions, hence contributing to a successful integrated sustainability approach for the whole school.

A modified ecological footprint calculation method for drylands and its application to Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, China

Calculating the ecological footprint at the regional scale is a complicated topic for researchers in quantifying ecosystem services, but as well a crucial step for local decisionmakers to formulate pertinent and feasible polices in guiding the region's sustainable development, particularly in such a severe dryland region as Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region (Xinjiang Region), China, with vastly extensive drylands covered by deserts up to more than million square kilometers. Aiming at improving the effectiveness of ecological footprint calculation (EFC) for dryland areas, this study has modified the methodology of EFC for drylands by incorporating both ecological and productive contributions from desert areas into the EFC process, including the net primary production, emissions from energy consumption, and contaminant discharge, as well as water resources use. The modified method of EFC for drylands involved some recalibrated equivalence factors for desert areas in the calculating process to determine the yield factors for each local administrative unit at prefecture level based on its net primary production (NPP). The results from this study revealed the following: (1) From 2009 to 2020, the average ecological deficit in Xinjiang Region was 16.172 global hectares per capita (gha/cap), with average human use of the desert at 0.22 gha/cap, representing approximately 1.41% of the total ecological footprint. The average biocapacity of desert was 0.12 gha/cap, accounting for approximately 6.73% of the total biocapacity. (2) During the same period, the ecological footprint exhibited an initial increasing trend followed by a subsequent decrease. The ecological biocapacity demonstrated a significant decreasing trend (p < 0.05). All prefectural administrative units within Xinjiang Region exhibited an ecological deficit from 2009 to 2020, whereas a desert ecological surplus occurred only in the Kyzylsu, Kashgar, and Hotan prefectures. (3) As the ecological deficit in Xinjiang was on an increasing trend, it is recommended that in these regions, replacing thermal power with wind and/or photovoltaic power might be a way out to alleviate much of the deficit, since it could reduce the ecological footprint by 8.44%, and would decrease the ecological deficit by benefiting from deserts' carbon reduction. Based on this study, we would like to advocate for optimizing the energy structure in regions with significant desert coverage and enhancing desert production through implementing ecological farming practices.

Long-time series assessment of the sustainable development of Xiamen City in China based on ecological footprint calculations

Ecological footprint is an operational quantitative method to convert the biological resources consumed by human beings and the wastes discharged into bioproductive land area. Compared to the ecological carrying capacity, the ecological footprint model can evaluate the sustainability of regional development. However, owing to shortcomings in the evaluation of regional sustainable development, the ecological footprint model is unable to reflect the ecological inequity between regions caused by trade, and so it has been revised to a consumptive and productive ecological footprint model. The purpose of this study was to analyze the changing trends of productive and consumptive ecological footprint and deficit by calculating the ecological footprint of Xiamen City, China, from 2010 to 2019. This study also evaluates the sustainability and fairness of this zone's development and determines the patterns of its sustainable development. The results show that the productive ecological surplus of Xiamen increased by nearly 15 times from − 0.0084 in 2010 to 0.1165 in 2019, while the consumption ecological deficit increased by 30 times, from 0.0228 in 2010 to 0.3338 in 2019. Therefore, Xiamen is regionally sustainable but nationally unsustainable as it takes up the resources of other regions of the country. The city should take more responsibility for current national ecological problems. Therefore, within the rational range of its ecological carrying capacity, Xiamen should harness local natural resources, ensure a sufficient supply of local farmland, increase the yield per unit of agricultural products, and ensure consumption of more locally-produced products.

The Ecological Footprint of Greek Citizens: Main Drivers of Consumption and Influencing Factors

The Ecological Footprint (EF) is undoubtedly an important tool for calculating humans’ impact on the environment. For this tool to be even more accessible and understood by most of the people, many online ecological footprint calculators have been created, the most reliable of which was developed by Global Footprint Network (GFN). Aim of this study is to present the Greek population’s main drivers of consumption patterns after customizing the GFN’s international online calculator to the Greek statistics and national accounts. Moreover, the goal of this study is to assess the factors influencing the Ecological Footprint of Greek citizens. The development of a Greek-specific calculator was based on long-lasting research that included gathering and analyzing information about the Greek population. Five hundred seventy-four Greeks used the calculator after its adaptation, and data were collected regarding their total ecological footprint and its differentiation by land type and by consumption category. According to the results, Greece has a low mean of ecological footprint in comparison to other European countries, but there is still a lot of ground to cover for achieving a truly acceptable sustainable way of living. Additionally, only the variable of gender seems to affect the ecological footprint of Greeks, with females having significantly lower personal EF (M = 3.37) than males (M = 4.36, p = 0.011). The adapted online calculator and the produced results regarding the EF of Greek citizens are considered as a valuable tool for policy makers, stakeholders, and educational institutions.

The Ecological Footprint of Construction Materials—A Standardized Approach from Hungary

Due to the large volume and mass of materials used, the construction industry is one of the sectors with the highest environmental impact. However, to provide good quality, affordable, and low-energy housing, the business case must be maintained. Accordingly, we aimed to develop and test a calculator to measure the ecological footprint of the embodied carbon in materials used in construction projects in a standardized way, without the need for environmental or even civil engineering expertise, and thus in a way that is accessible to SMEs. The novelty of our research is that although there are calculators for measuring the environmental impact (e.g., carbon footprint) of the construction industry, and there is a methodology for calculating the ecological footprint of construction, there is no free, easy-to-use, online calculator for calculating the ecological footprint of embodied carbon in materials available to all enterprises. In other words, this approach extends our previously developed corporate ecological footprint calculator with the environmental impacts of material usage. The study summarises the baseline research for an ecological footprint calculator, tested on two new condominium buildings and the energy renovation of five condominium buildings, built with a prefabricated technology typical in Hungary and other post-socialist countries. Based on our results and in accordance with former literature sources, most of the ecological footprint of new construction projects is determined by materials with high mass and volume, in particular, concrete, steel, and masonry; so it is not necessary to take into account all construction materials in a calculator in a detailed way. We also conclude that renovation and ongoing maintenance, as well as preservation, are recommended for structurally sound buildings, as embodied carbon in materials in the case of an energy upgrade of an existing condominium building has an environmental impact of 0.3–0.8 global hectares per dwelling, depending on the technical content, while in the construction of a new building, this value is between 10.49–14.22 global hectares. Our results can help investors and clients in their decisions, and policymakers in determining urban development directions.

Reducing students’ ecological footprints through self-developed interventions

An increasing emphasis on taking personal responsibility for making changes to address climate change and support sustainable development is hindered by the limited tools and guidance available that enable the relationship between living patterns and environmental impacts to be readily and accurately discerned. An exception is the ecological footprint calculator that measures the global environmental impact of everyday activities. This study describes how the ecological footprint calculator is used as part of a master’s course in environmental psychology to enable students to understand, change, and measure the environmental impacts of their daily activities. A case study design based on students’ exercises was used to collect quantitative and qualitative data. We found relational, environment, financial, and self-efficacy themes embedded in their reflections on the intervention process. Our study supports an educational approach that requires students to self-develop, implement, and measure interventions to reduce their ecological footprint.

Ecological security assessment based on ecosystem service value and ecological footprint in the Pearl River Delta urban agglomeration, China

The ecological environment in the Pearl River Delta (PRD) urban agglomeration has been affected by the acceleration of industrialization and urbanization, such as the urbanization lags behind industrialization and the level of town construction is backward, resulting in ecological and environmental problems. Thus, this paper detected the ecological security (ES) in the PRD urban agglomeration through the ecological footprint (EF) method, providing a reference for regional ES evaluation. Equivalence factor and yield factor were first calculated based on the ecosystem services value (ESV) for EF calculation. Then, we established the ES evaluation index system through EF, including per capita ecological deficit (ED), ecological footprint diversity index (EFDI) and ecological pressure index (EPI). The results showed that the difference between equivalence factor and yield factor for various land type was observed in the study region. Water regions had the largest equivalence factor, with the value of 2.48, indicating that human activities were most affected by water. Grassland has the highest biological production capacity as the yield factor of which is the highest, with the value of 4.36 in 2020. Temporally, the per capita EF in the PRD urban agglomeration has been increased from 2000 to 2020, while the per capita ecological carrying capacity (ECC) has been decreased over time, indicating that the ecological pressure is rising because of human activities. Spatially, the per capita EF and the per capita ECC show a spatial pattern of “low in the middle and high around”. In addition, the per capita ED shows an increasing trend, reaching 0.11 hm2/capita by 2020. The EFDI has decreased by 0.26, indicating that the richness and fairness of the ecosystem are declining. The ES is in “not safe” and “extremely unsafe” level in 2020, which has threatened the ecological environment in the region. Therefore, the ecological environment in this region is deteriorating, restricting sustainable development. There is no doubt that the region needs to strengthen environmental protection and balance the relationship between economy and ecology. If ecology is not taken seriously, the ED will grow and the insecurity of the ecological environment will continue to increase. The current state of the ecological environment in the PRD urban agglomeration is only a microcosm of the ecology in many small and medium scale regions. The results of this paper are useful for providing ideas for EF and ES analysis of other regions.

Assessment of the ecological footprint associated with consumption resources and urbanization development in Sistan and Baluchestan province, Iran

BackgroundExtensive industrialization and urban development have led to resource scarcity, environmental pollution, and territory destruction. Accordingly, the current study has assessed the effects of urbanization development on consumption resources utilization in Sistan and Baluchestan province using the Ecological Footprint (EF) model. ResultsAs the results demonstrate, urbanization development has increased people's demand for resources. On the other hand, expanded utilization of resources has increased EF consumption of food and waste. The results of EF transport indicate that increasing population growth and increasing demand for fuel resources have led to decreased resources and increased carbon emissions. Likewise, in this area, most of the carbon released is related to Coal production efficiency, leading to an increase in EF electricity consumption. Finally, EF calculations revealed that the highest per capita EF is allocated to water consumption, increasing in the further years due to population growth. ConclusionsAccordingly, the results indicate that population and economic growth are the main drivers of resource depletion and unsustainability in this area, so according to the direct relationship between population density and increased EF, the population in these areas must be controlled. In addition, policies should be implemented to optimize the industrial structure, economic transformation, and ecological restoration of resources, to achieve sustainable use of natural capital and economic growth.

Assessing the sustainability of urbanization at the sub-national level: The Ecological Footprint and Biocapacity accounts of the Budapest Metropolitan Region, Hungary

• EF and BC calculations can help assess urbanization at the sub-national level • EF and BC calculations show unsustainability in the Budapest Metropolitan Region; • An inverted U-shaped relationship between urbanization and EF cannot be justified; • Policies should aim to reduce the growth of EF, and halt the decrease of BC; • Growing environmental efficiency and new consumption habits are required; The growing concentration of people and wealth often results in imbalances of resource consumption and carrying capacity, therefore, the sustainability assessment of urbanization can offer an important basis for global sustainable transition. This paper aims to provide an analysis of the environmental sustainability of urbanization in Hungary focusing on the long-term changes of ecological footprint and biocapacity at the sub-national level, with a special attention to the Budapest Metropolitan Region (BMR). During the research a hybrid method considering an input-output model and household consumption data was used for the calculation of regional ecological footprint, whereas biocapacity was measured on the basis of land use data. Findings suggest, that even though the ecological deficit of the country has been gradually decreasing since the early 2000s, due to a shrinking population and increasing biocapacity, the ecological overshoot is still significant in the case of Budapest and its agglomeration (30 fold and 2.4 fold respectively). The unsustainability of the BMR is caused partly by demographic factors (7.6% population growth as opposed to the the 7.7% decrease in the countryside) and partly by rising per capita ecological footprint values (especially in the agglomeration from 2.73 to 2.92 gha/capita), which are not balanced by biocapacity on the supply side. This research concluded that policy makers in ageing societies with a highly centralized urban system like Hungary should launch programmes targeted specifically to primary metropolitan areas to improve environmental efficiency and encourage people to change their consumption behaviour.

Ecological footprint as a tool for change of individual attitudes toward the environment and better education for sustainability

One of the most direct and easy to be use indicators of individual sustainability to date is the Ecological Footprint. The Ecological footprint measures how much bio productive area (whether land or water) a population would need to produce to sustain the renewable resources it consumes, and to absorb the waste it generates. The purpose of this research is, in addition to a self-assessment of the students' knowledge about the basic concepts of individual sustainability such Ecological footprint, biocapacity, Carbon footprint, Water footprint and Earth Overshoot Day, to undertake the first calculation of the individual ecological footprint in Kosovo. The research hypothesis was that the Ecological footprint of our group would be below the global average of 2.8 global hectares (gha). The sample of this research consists of 240 students of the Faculty of Education, University of Prishtina.&#x0D; With this calculation, students have shown their individual impact in the environment according to their lifestyle: housing, food, travel, purchase of goods and how much waste they generate. The data have shown that the average Ecological footprint of the sample is 3.4 gha, with a minimum value of 2.5 gha and a maximum of 5.3 gha. This figure is 0.6 gha above the global average Ecological footprint and larger than three neighboring countries of Kosovo. The largest percentage of the group's footprint is transportation, followed by housing, food, waste, and purchases of goods.

Environmental Education as a tool for discussing economic indicators of the ecological footprint in a public school in Campina Grande - PB

In this work, the School was approached as a priority institution in accelerating the process of knowledge about the environment, according to a local society unprepared to deal with the tools: ecological footprint and ecological calculator. In this sense, the underlying issue was to question whether the School as an institution should be circularly tooled with the contribution of environmental economics, transforming them into environmental education. That said, the methodology of case studies was used, observing a local school in the city of Campina Grande, PB. The results revealed a lack of knowledge and curiosity regarding environmental concepts, as well as urged that the School should be the instrument of this new history, where the environment and society through a transversal and multidisciplinary education would pierce spaces more quickly through basic knowledge.

Emergy ecological footprint method considering uncertainty and its application in evaluating marine ranching resources and environmental carrying capacity

The emergy ecological footprint method is an effective tool to evaluate resources and environmental carrying capacity (RECC) given its advantages of objectivity and ease of comparison with. However, the uncertainty in the emergy ecological footprint calculation reduces the credibility of the evaluation results of this method. Combining the emergy system analysis of marine ranching and the accounting rules of the emergy ecological footprint model, this study analyzed the sources of uncertainty in marine ranching RECC evaluation by the emergy ecological footprint model. Based on Dempster–Shafer evidence theory, the uncertainty in the original model was reduced by introducing expert experience, and an emergy ecological footprint method considering uncertainty was constructed. The modified method was applied to RECC evaluation of marine ranching in Yantai, China, and the results showed that the marine ranching was in a safe state. Furthermore, the sensitivity analysis identified the uncertainty of each evaluation index, revealing that the improvement of the relevant data quality of artificial reef indexes, whose uncertainty accounted for more than 95%, was crucial to obtaining more reliable evaluation results of marine ranching RECC. Considering the imprecision and incompleteness of data statistics and complexity of systems, the proposed modified method is important in improving the reliability of RECC evaluation of various micro- and meso-level eco-economic systems except for marine ranching.

基于改进三维生态足迹模型的洞庭湖区生态可持续时空演化研究

PDF HTML阅读 XML下载 导出引用 引用提醒 基于改进三维生态足迹模型的洞庭湖区生态可持续时空演化研究 DOI: 10.5846/stxb202106161595 作者: 作者单位: 作者简介: 通讯作者: 中图分类号: 基金项目: 国家社会科学基金项目（15BJY051）；湖南省水利科技项目（2015-254-19）；长沙理工大学水利工程学院研究生科研创新项目（2020-05） Temporal and spatial evolution of ecological sustainability in Dongting Lake area based on the improved three-dimensional ecological footprint model Author: Affiliation: Fund Project: 摘要 | 图/表 | 访问统计 | 参考文献 | 相似文献 | 引证文献 | 资源附件 | 文章评论 摘要:洞庭湖是长江流域重要的调蓄湖泊，也是中国重要的农产品主产区。科学评估洞庭湖区生态可持续状态，揭示其时空演化特征，对探究其生态可持续影响因素与作用机理，降低生态赤字具有重要意义。基于碳足迹与生态足迹理论构建了改进的三维生态足迹模型，填补了化石能源无法核算生态承载力的问题，同时调整了不同土地利用类型的参数因子。在对洞庭湖区25个区县进行可持续发展的动态评价分析中，计算了2000-2019年生态赤字、足迹广度与深度的时空分布特征。研究结果表明：（1）近20年来洞庭湖区的人均生态足迹增长速度远高于人均生态承载力，致使人均生态赤字在时间维度上不断增大，空间维度上呈湖滨向周边地区扩散的趋势；（2）洞庭湖区除林地之外的土地利用类型均存在自然资本存量的消耗，且表现为高生态赤字；（3）三次产业结构的分配、土地利用的变化、居民对生活质量的提高以及生态保护政策的有效实施等均会对洞庭湖区的可持续发展产生较大影响；（4）改进后的化石能源账户相较于传统账户的计算方法更能反映真实的碳排量与碳吸收量。研究以期为洞庭湖区土地利用、生态保护以及促进社会经济可持续发展提供科学参考。 Abstract:Dongting Lake is not only an important regulation and storage lake in the Yangtze River Basin, but also a major agricultural product producing area in China. We evaluated the ecological sustainable development status of Dongting Lake area scientifically and revealed the characteristics of temporal and spatial evolution of the region, which could be used to explore the influencing factors and mechanism of the ecological sustainability of the Dongting Lake area. At the same time, this study reduced the ecological deficit of Dongting Lake area. The improvement of three-dimensional ecological footprint was mainly based on carbon footprint calculation method and ecological footprint theory, which solved the question that ecological carrying capacity cannot be calculated in the fossil energy account. In addition, the equilibrium factor and yield factor of Dongting Lake area were adjusted according to the concept of "provincial hectare". Finally, the dynamic evaluation and the analysis of sustainable development of 25 counties in Dongting Lake Ecological Economic Zone, the per capita ecological deficit, the breadth and depth of per capita ecological footprint from 2000 to 2019 were calculated. The main results could be concluded as follows:(1) During the 20-year study period, the per capita ecological footprint in Dongting Lake area increased faster than the per capita ecological carrying capacity, which caused the per capita ecological deficit increased in the temporal dimension. Meanwhile, the spatial dimension showed the trend of diffusion from the center to the periphery of Dongting Lake. (2) Among all land use types in Dongting Lake area, the forest land wasthe only account of ecological surplus. All accounts of the cultivated land, grassland, water area, construction land and energy displayed high ecological deficit. (3) The distribution of three industrial structures, the change of land use, the improvement of residents' quality of life and ecological environment policies were important influencing factors in the study area. (4) Compared with the traditionally ecological footprint calculation method, the carbon emission and carbon absorption calculated by the improved three-dimensional ecological footprint model are closer to the real value. The research was expected to provide scientific reference for land use, ecological protection, promoting social and economic sustainable development in Dongting Lake area. 参考文献 相似文献 引证文献

Understanding the adoption, use, and effects of ecological footprint calculators among Dutch citizens

Ecological footprint calculators allow users to estimate their individual environmental impact, with the goal of raising awareness and changing behaviour. Prior to this study, little was known about users’ reasons for adopting a footprint calculator, their evaluation of these tools, and the effects of calculator use. With this paper, we aim to provide a deep understanding of these factors. Based on a thematic analysis of interviews with 11 Dutch ecological footprint calculator users, centred around their experiences with existing calculators, we draw several conclusions. Calculator users can be divided into two groups with different motivations and needs: Explorers and Environmentalists. For both user groups, calculators increase awareness. In some cases, this results in behaviour change. Other effects are more difficult to measure, but no less important — for example, calculators facilitate discussions around sustainability between users and non-users. Despite the promising effects of calculators, achieving widespread adoption and stimulating continuous engagement is difficult. Based on our findings, we formulate a set of design recommendations to help calculators overcome these and other challenges.

Taiwan\u2019s ecological footprint and overshoot day

This study examines Taiwan’s ecological footprint (EF) and its Overshoot Day from 2000 to 2018. The latest EF calculation method is used to determine the conversion rates and equivalent factors of bioproductive lands in each year to establish a database of Taiwan’s EF in that period. The results reveal that Taiwan’s EF was 7.69 gha/person in 2000, dropping steadily to 6.46 gha/person in 2018. Taiwan’s carbon footprint accounted for about 61% of Taiwan’s total EF, slightly higher than the world average (60%). The carbon footprint as a proportion of the total EF has been increasing annually. This study adopts social communication tools, such as the overshoot day and the earth clock, to promote sustainable development goals and climate change policy initiatives. Global Footprint Network (GFN) updates the overshoot day of each country in its database yearly, based on each country’s EF and biocapacity. Since Taiwan is not included in GFN, this study adopts the same method and finds out that Taiwan's Overshoot Day in 2018 was March 14th, meaning that on March 14th, 2018, Taiwan exhausted all of the biological resources that its bioproductive lands can regenerate in the year. If the global population lived like Taiwanese, four Earths would be required to provide the resources used. This result not only reflects the consumption of natural resources in Taiwan, but also indicates that Taiwan should focus on sustainable development and reduce that consumption.

Ecological footprint-energy r&amp;d expenditures relationship: The case of OECD countries

Sanayileşme, hızlı kentleşme, yüksek düzeyde elektrik tüketimi ve küreselleşme gibi olgular insanlığın çevre üzerindeki talep baskısını giderek artırmış ve küresel ısınma, iklim değişikliği ve hava kirliliği gibi birçok çevresel soruna neden olmuştur. Öyle ki Dünya Ekonomik Forumu tarafından 2018 yılında yayınlanan Küresel Risk Raporunda, Dünya’yı bekleyen en önemli riskin iklim değişimi olduğu ifade edilmiştir. İklim değişikliği ile mücadelede küresel düzeyde birçok girişim yürütülmekte ve ekolojik ayak izi, eko-inovasyon, enerji Ar-Ge faaliyetleri, karbon yakalama-depolama, karbon vergileri gibi uygulamalar geliştirilmektedir. Bu uygulamalardan ekolojik ayak izi hesaplamaları, insanlığın ihtiyaçlarını karşılarken çevre üzerinde yarattığı baskıyı ölçmektedir. Ekolojik ayak izi ile gelecek nesillere sürdürülebilir bir çevre bırakabilme düşüncesi açığa çıkartılmakta ve bunu sağlamak için gerek çözüm yolları aranmaktadır. Gelecek nesillere yaşanabilir bir çevre bırakma noktasında, zehirli gaz salınımını azaltacak çevre dostu inovatif teknolojilere ve bu teknolojileri ortaya çıkartacak Ar-Ge faaliyetlerine ihtiyaç vardır. Enerji alanında yürütülecek Ar-Ge faaliyetleri sayesinde ekolojik ayak izinin azaltılması mümkün olabilecektir. OECD ülkelerinde, 2002-2016 döneminde, enerji Ar-Ge ve demonstrasyon harcamalarının ekolojik ayak izi üzerindeki etkilerinin panel veri yöntemleri kullanılarak incelendiği bu çalışmanın temel bulguları, enerji Ar-Ge ve demonstrasyon harcamaları arttıkça ekolojik ayak izinin azaldığını göstermiştir. Ayrıca, enerji kullanımı ve kişi başına düşen GSYH arttıkça ekolojik ayak izinin de arttığı görülmüştür.