Global Ecological Footprint
A measure of human demand on nature, expressed as the amount of biologically productive land and water required to support an individual, population, or activity.
Formula
Ecological Footprint (gha) = Population × Per Capita Consumption / Bioproductivity
Real World
The average US resident has an ecological footprint of around 8 gha per person — if everyone lived like Americans, we would need approximately 5 Earths to sustain global consumption.
Exam Focus
When 'calculating' or 'comparing' footprints, always state units (gha per capita) and reference Earth's total biocapacity (~1.6 gha per person) as the benchmark.
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