What is the use of calculating an ecological footprint?
First of all, calculations show that the minimal condition for the sustainability of the earth, as a whole, is that humankind’s footprint should be lower than the global available biological capacity. However, the rising pace of economic development, at least in the poorest countries, is necessary for their socioeconomic sustainability. At the same time, any increase in the use of natural resources, at the global level, is not sustainable from an ecological point of view. At the level of a country (a region, or a city), calculations of the ecological footprint show the level of deviation from the average biological capacity of the earth and from the biological capacity of the country itself. In case of deficit, these calculations show the level of effort that is needed to reduce the country’s (region’s, or city’s) footprint on the earth. For instance, the consumption of fossil fuels covers more than half of the footprint of industrial countries. High use of renewable resources could de
