eco-strata

What should I be thinking about?

Think about our ecological footprints. The Ecological Footprint of Canadians — the measure of an individual’s or a population’s demand for ecologically productive land and water — is currently the fourth-largest in the world, at 7.6 global hectares (gha) per person, while the Earth’s biocapacity for each person stands at 1.8 gha.

If the entire world consumed at this rate, we would need three additional Earthlike planets to supply our resources and absorb our wastes sustainably. Clearly, that is not possible. So largescale transformation is necessary in our society over the coming decade. Although Metro Vancouver is often held up as one of the most livable regions in the world, we have a way to go before we become sustainable. And because we consume far more than most people on the Earth, we have a prime responsibility to do our fair share and take the lead in reducing our Ecological Footprints. 

This guide is designed to make footprint reduction a reality by providing helpful tools for decision makers of condominiums and apartments. For an introduction to the eco-footprint concept, see Wackernagel and Rees (1996) Our Ecological Footprint.