Find an article from the peer-reviewed literature that discusses the ecological
ID: 7105 • Letter: F
Question
Find an article from the peer-reviewed literature that discusses the ecological footprint of a nation (other than the US) or a region of the world. The article could focus on one part of the footprint such as energy consumption, consumption of good, or food production/ consumption. Briefly summarize what the author(s) were researching in their paper. How does their work help us understand the differences in people’s ecological footprint around the world? What can this nation/area do to reduce their footprint?Explanation / Answer
Hi! I have several Articles that discccccusses the ecological footprint of a nation , other than the U.S. I have listed different countries, you may choose in you likings. National Footprint Applications: Ten-in-Ten Progress to Date United Arab Emirates The average UAE resident has an Ecological Footprint of 9.5 global hectares, the highest in the world. In 2007, in response to its top-ranking, (first published in Global Footprint Network and WWF’s 2006 Living Planet Report), the UAE launched the Al Basama Al Beeiya (Ecological Footprint) Initiative to understand and reduce the country’s Ecological Footprint. The initiative began by bringing together Global Footprint network researchers and UAE officials to understand, review and refine the data and methodology used to calculate the nation’s Footprint. Now the initiative has expanded to include major investment and policy changes. For example, the city of Abu Dhabi has invested $15 billion toward the development of solar and other renewable energy sources. Due to investments in past years, several wind and waste-to-energy projects will become operational in the UAE in 2010. The government also developed mandatory green building codes, which took effect in early 2009. In 2008, the UAE began construction of Masdar City, the world’s first car-free, zero-carbon, zero-waste urban community that will house 1,500 clean-tech companies and 40,000 residents. The UAE continues to use Global Footprint Network data to guide future policy choices. GFN recently met with representatives of the Emirates Wildlife Society (EWS-WWF) and the Masdar Institute of Science and Technology, a university started in partnership with the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and the Abu Dhabi government to shift Abu Dhabi’s energy sector toward clean energy. The group met to create a scenario calculator that will test the Footprint reduction potential of various policies and determine which offer the biggest ecological returns. They will present its first report on the electricity sector this month. UAE’s efforts have given it new international standing in reducing our global Footprint; the newly established IRENA, or International Renewable Energy Agency, is making its headquarters in the UAE. A major tourist destination, the UAE is also taking the strategy of developing a green tourism industry that will make its hotels among the greenest in the world. The Abu Dhabi tourism authority announced on January 3rd that it will cut energy use by 10% and water and waste by 20% in 2010. The city of Dubai has also announced a 20% carbon emissions cut for this year. The cities have found that customers favor the opportunity to reduce their own Ecological Footprints by traveling to the UAE. With the high-level support of the UAE government and the strong partnership with Global Footprint Network, Al Basama Al Beeiya will continue to work to push innovation and policy to reduce the UAE’s resource consumption. According to Majid Al Mansouri, Secretary-General of the Environment Agency in Abu Dhabi, Al Basama Al Beeiya strives to make environmental sustainability and the Ecological Footprint concept a primary consideration in all of the country’s future economic and policy decisions. Ecuador: In the past five decades, Ecuador has seen a vast ecological surplus evaporate. In 1961, the country had biocapacity more than four times greater than its Ecological Footprint; today, however, its Ecological Footprint almost equals its biocapacity and will quickly exceed it if current trends continue. To reverse this trend, Ecuador has committed in its National Plan that by 2013, the country’s Footprint will not exceed its biocapacity and that it will remain so going forward. The country also adopted a Presidential mandate to develop physical indicators that can better track environmental performance and support decision making. Officials have said they hope the country’s leadership in using the Ecological Footprint as a resource accounting tool will inspire policy-makers elsewhere to follow suit. View a presentation on the initiative by Dania Quirola Suárez, Advisor, National Secretary of Planning and Development, Ecuador. The presentation was given at the Footprint Forum 2010 conference in Colle di Val d’Elza, Italy. Europe: Now representing the world’s largest economy, the European Union has undertaken a two-year, 1.5 million Euro program called One Planet Economy Network (OPEN) EU, aimed at building an economy that works within nature’s means. The core of the project is the creation of a Footprint tool that enables European decision-makers to explore future scenarios and create evidence-based policy that respects ecological limits. The tool, called EUREAPA, is being created through a collaborative effort by Global Footprint Network, Stockholm Environmental Institute(SEI), WWF-UK, Twente University, SERI and Ecologic. EUREAPA will provide data for a “footprint family of indicators,” including carbon Footprint, water footprint and Ecological Footprint in a way that allows them to be integrated and compared. The tool will enable policy makers to forecast and back-cast, assess policy options and produce scenarios for any EU country or the EU as a whole. In addition to its applications through OPEN EU, participating in the project will allow Global Footprint Network to lay the foundation to implement our Science and Technology Roadmap. For example, it will enable us to provide a more powerful multi-lateral tradeflow analysis that provides the means to compare products and sectors. Such analysis can help governments direct investment toward more resource-efficient goods and services and promote greener ways of meeting market demand. Wales: Wales has adopted the Ecological Footprint as an indicator of sustainability. Download the report One Planet Wales: Transforming Wales for a prosperous future within our fair share of the Earth’s resources, which highlights how Wales can transform its economy to reduce its Ecological Footprint. Switzerland: The government of Switzerland has completed a scientific review of the Swiss National Footprint Accounts. The report was published by the Swiss Federal Office for Statistics, and the review was carried out by INFRAS, a leading Swiss policy research institute at the request of four Swiss government agencies. Swiss officials are now incorporating Ecological Footprint data into the nation’s Sustainability Development Plan. Japan: The Japanese Ministry of the Environment has conducted several research collaborations with Global Footprint Network and other statistical groups, and has completed a review of Japan’s National Footprint Accounts research collaborations. The Ecological Footprint is now a part of Japan’s Basic Environmental Plan. Luxembourg: The government of Luxembourg has recently completed an Ecological Footprint report for the public and a technical assessment of the Footprint methodology as a basis for regular reporting on the country’s Ecological Footprint. The Footprint reports were published by Luxembourg’s Council for Sustainable Development, which is charged with advising the government on policy relating to sustainable development and meeting its commitments with regard to the environment and sustainable development. The council views a precise assessment of biocapacity and Ecological Footprint as in important step in informing policy on sustainable development and meeting international commitments on the environment and sustainable development. It’s recently completed assessment of the Footprint is intended as a basis for future yearly calculation of Luxembourg’s Footprint by Global Footprint Network in conjunction with national offices and organizations Briefly summarize what the author(s) were researching in their paper. How does their work help us understand the differences in people’s ecological footprint around the world? What can this nation/area do to reduce their footprint? I think the authors pointing out a clear picture of where we need to concentrate more efforts and where more research is required. We may not like all of the findings of the report, but we can certainly use the knowledge we’ve gained to strengthen the conservation agenda.” Hope that Helps
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