Home - Introduction
Welcome to the Eco-region NW site
FAQ
(For more detailed FAQs and glossary go to the 'Project Resources' section.)
What is an eco-footprint?
The eco-footprint calculates the land area needed to feed, provide resources, produce energy, and soak up the pollution from our lifestyles.
As this land is distributed around the world, the figure is put in 'global hectares' (gha). At the moment the average person in the NW region has an eco-footprint of 5.45 global hectares. This is 3 times bigger than our fair 'earth share' of 1.8 global hectares, i.e. if the world's productive land area was equally shared with the world's population.
What is a One Planet Economy?
This is a system of production and consumption which respects environmental limits, local and global, which is also financially and socially sustainable. Its main target is the fair 'earth share' footprint of 1.8 gha per person. This means a long term goal of 75% cut in resource use - i.e. Factor Four increase in resource efficiency.
What is the Factor Four scenario?
If the UK and other affluent nations halve resource use and double resource efficiency, we will be able to live on one planet alongside the rest of the world's population. This will need an efficiency increase of about 2.5% per year until 2050 - a good legacy for our grandchildren.
What is the REAP toolkit?
The 'REsource Analysis Programme' is a database and modeling system which calculates the total impacts of all kinds of production by industry and consumption by households, at local and regional level. Produced in a partnership led by SEI-York with CURE and WWF-UK. It is now available in Version 1.0, but development is continuing, on scenario modeling, sectoral applications, appraisal packages and business toolkits. For further details see www.sei.se/reap/
