Learn More About 2023’s Earth Overshoot Day

Overview

As the year is coming to a close, it is important to learn about “Earth Overshoot Day”. This day occurs every year and it marks the date when humanity’s demand for ecological resources and services in a given year exceeds what Earth can regenerate in that year. In 2023, this date fell on August 2nd, which means that the world exceeded its annual renewable resources four months before the year ended.

Summary 

 The Earth Overshoot Day is determined by the Global Footprint Network, it calculates the number of days of that year that the Earth’s capacity suffices to provide for humanity’s ecological footprint. Since 1971, societies' overshoot days have progressively become shorter as we continue to grow in consumption and increase greenhouse gas emissions. 

History of Past Overshoot Days

Select countries have different overshoot days based on their consumption, resource use, and greenhouse gas emissions. For example, Australia’s overshoot day is March 23rd, which is significantly shorter than the global average. The United States’ global overshoot day is March 13th, 2023- tied with Canada and one of the shortest overshoot days compared to any other country. This means if all countries exhibited the same consumption and resource use as the United States, Canada, and Australia then global warming would be significantly worse. The Dominican Republic has an overshoot day of November 23rd, while Jamaica has an overshoot day of December 20th- the longest overshoot day compared to any other country. These countries exhibit lower consumption rates and greenhouse gas emissions compared to the more developed countries of the United States, Australia, and Canada. As society continues to progress as technology advances, overshoot day will likely continue to become shorter unless we begin to prioritize sustainability and green technology. The Earth Overshoot Day also highlights the idea that developing countries are disproportionately being affected by climate change even though they are not the main culprits in consumption, resource use, and greenhouse gas emissions. This will be something to consider as we advance in climate policy and planning for increasingly extreme weather and natural disasters.

To explore Earth Overshoot days further- check out this website: https://www.overshootday.org/newsroom/country-overshoot-days/dates/