Taking care of our planet

Plastic does not go away

F or as long as humans have been around on this planet, many of them have tried to live without destroying the natural world. Indigenous peoples follow age-old traditions and make careful use of the Earth’s resources. They take only what they need when hunting, growing food and harvesting forest. Some people still live like that. However, at the same time consumption and mass production have increased dramatically, especially in the western world. How much impact a country or person has is often simply called our ecological footprint.

Your impact

An ecological footprint is the ‘impact’ on nature and the planet from each of us based on the amount of resources we use. The size of your footprint is connected to the land area used to produce what you use, from food to gadgets, as well as the area required to take care of your waste. Your personal footprint can be calculated based on what you use and how much land you use.

Reducing your footprint

If you live in a way that impacts the environment as little as possible, this reduces your ecological footprint. For example, you can recycle more, save water and buy less stuff. Growing your own food or eating locally grown food is generally better for the environment than buying things that are grown on the other side of the world and transported to a shop near you.

The rich have a larger footprint

Different countries face different challenges. In many rich countries, carbon dioxide emissions represent more than half of the national footprint, largely because they buy so much food and stuff. However, there can also be a big difference between different people in the same country. A child in the rainforest in Brazil uses almost no resources at all.

Humanity uses up more water, food, raw materials, energy and other resources than nature can regenerate in a year. Large-scale mining operations and deforestation contribute to the problems. The day when resources ‘run out’ each year is known as Overshoot Day. It fell on 28 July last year. If everyone lived like the average inhabitant of the world, we would need 1.7 Earths! And if everyone lived like they do in …

Did you know that a beached whale found in Europe had 30 plastic bags in its stomach! It can take thousands of years for plastic litter to decompose and it is hazardous to humans and animals. Even tiny plastic particles (microplastics) can cause huge damage. Microplastics are consumed by zooplankton and mussels, for example, which in turn are eaten by larger creatures. The plastic remains inside them and may ultimately end up in the fish you eat for dinner.

While a rich Brazilian landowner may have a private plane, several cars, air-conditioning and a pool, which creates a gigantic footprint.

What needs to happen now?

The rich need to reduce their production and consumption. Many people in poorer countries, on the other hand, need to increase their footprint in order to have dignified lives with electricity, heating, food and clean water. We all need to come up with smarter ways to live than the lifestyle enjoyed by rich countries for so long.