From the Global Footprint Network website:

August 21st marks an unfortunate milestone: the day in which we exhaust our ecological budget for the year. Once we pass this day, humanity will have demanded all the ecological services – from filtering CO2 to producing the raw materials for food – that nature can provide this year. From that point until the end of the year, we meet our ecological demand by liquidating resource stocks and accumulating carbon dioxide in the atmosphere.

In other words, from now till December 31st, we are living on credit. Sound familiar? Talk about a “debt crisis!”

Regular readers of this site know that we don’t often report the gloom-n-doom stuff, but this one is always an important wake-up call. In 2009, we noted the date on September 25th, a full month later than this year!

Yes, it’s depressing. But, remember — we are an amazingly creative species. If we can land people on the moon, we can figure this one out! One way to make a significant difference is to green our businesses. What can you do, today, to help push Earth Overshoot Day back next year? Let’s aim for October, shall we?