2 May 2006
The creator of the Ecological Footprints concept -- which is used to measure the overall environmental impact of human activities -- will speak at a forum at Monash University's Clayton campus this Thursday, 4 May.
Dr Mathis Wackernagel will discuss how humans are using more productive land and water than the Earth has available, and why natural resources are being depleted more rapidly than they can be renewed.
The forum is being co-hosted by Monash University and the Environment Protection Authority Victoria.
An Ecological Footprint is the area of biologically productive land and water needed to the produce the resources used by society and absorb the waste generated. It also compares how much land is used to how much land is available, thus providing an indication of how sustainable our present lifestyle is.
The average Victorian's Ecological Footprint is 8.1 hectares, compared with the average Australian Footprint of 7.7 hectares per person (the fourth highest in the world). The world average Ecological Footprint is 2.2 hectares per person. Only 1.8 hectares is available per person.
Dr Wackernagel has a PhD in community and regional planning at the University of British Columbia in Vancouver, Canada. With Professor William Rees, he created the 'Ecological Footprint' concept as his doctoral dissertation. Dr Wackernagel has authored more than 50 papers, reports, and books on sustainability. His books include Our Ecological Footprint: Reducing Human Impact on the Earth.
He is a founder and executive director of Global Footprint Network, a California-based non-profit organisation that supports a sustainable economy by using the Ecological Footprint to make ecological limits central to decision-making.
The Sustainability Forum is part of a monthly series co-hosted by the Monash Sustainability Institute, Monash Environmental Alumni and the School of Geography and Environmental Science.
What: Sustainability Forum: 'The Ecological Footprint: accounting for a small planet'.
Who: Dr Mathis Wackernagel, creator of the Ecological Footprint concept.
When: Thursday, 4 May, 5.30pm to 7.30pm
Where: Lecture Theatre S2, Eastern Science lecture Theatres (Building 25), Monash University, Wellington Road, Clayton.
For further information visit the Sustainability Forum website.
To arrange an interview or information, call Ms Sally Jungwirth at EPA Victoria on +61 3 9695 2538 or Ms Rhiannon Birch, Monash School of Geography and Environmental Science on +61 3 9902 0110, or Ms Karen Stichtenoth, Media Communications on +61 3 9905 1253.
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