Global Footprint Calculator

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Global Footprint Calculator

Estimate your ecological impact in global hectares and "Earths".

Meat Intensive (Daily) Average Meat Eater Vegetarian Vegan
Large Detached House Medium House / Duplex Small Apartment Shared Flat / Room
A lot of waste / No recycling Average waste / Some recycling Minimal waste / Active recycling
Mainly Coal/Gas Mixed Grid Renewable / Solar
Your Ecological Footprint
— gha
— Earths needed

This estimate represents the amount of biologically productive land required to support your lifestyle.

What is a Global Footprint?

A Global Footprint (or Ecological Footprint) is a standardized measure of human demand on Earth's ecosystems. It compares the amount of nature we use to the amount of nature that is available. It is measured in Global Hectares (gha), which represent a hectare of land with world-average biological productivity.

How This Calculator Works

Our calculator analyzes four primary pillars of consumption: food, housing, transportation, and waste management. We use weighted factors based on environmental impact data:

  • Diet: Meat production (especially beef) requires significantly more land and water than plant-based diets.
  • Housing: Larger homes consume more building materials and require more energy for climate control.
  • Transport: Burning fossil fuels for cars and airplanes contributes heavily to your carbon footprint, which is a major component of your total ecological footprint.
  • Waste: Your consumption of consumer goods and your recycling habits dictate how much land is used for manufacturing and landfills.

Understanding the "Number of Earths"

If everyone on the planet lived like you, how many planets would we need? The current global biocapacity is approximately 1.6 global hectares per person. If your result is higher than 1.6 gha, you are using resources faster than the Earth can regenerate them. For example, a result of 3.2 gha means we would need 2.0 Earths to sustain the human population if everyone shared your lifestyle.

Example Calculation

Consider an individual who travels 200km a week by car, eats a balanced diet, and lives in a medium-sized apartment with average recycling habits:

  • Dietary factor: 1.8 gha
  • Housing factor: 0.9 gha
  • Transport impact: ~1.2 gha (based on fuel consumption)
  • Energy/Waste adj: 1.0 (multiplier)
  • Total: ~3.9 gha (Requires approx 2.4 Earths)

Ways to Reduce Your Footprint

Reducing your impact doesn't require extreme lifestyle changes. Small adjustments can lead to significant gha reductions: opting for "Meatless Mondays," using public transit twice a week, improving home insulation, or choosing energy-efficient appliances all contribute to a more sustainable footprint.

function calculateEcoFootprint() { var diet = parseFloat(document.getElementById("dietType").value); var house = parseFloat(document.getElementById("houseSize").value); var carKm = parseFloat(document.getElementById("carTravel").value); var flightHours = parseFloat(document.getElementById("flightHours").value); var waste = parseFloat(document.getElementById("wasteLevel").value); var energy = parseFloat(document.getElementById("electricityUse").value); // Validation if (isNaN(carKm)) carKm = 0; if (isNaN(flightHours)) flightHours = 0; // Logic: Calculate Carbon and Land components // Transport factor: roughly 0.005 gha per km/week annually and 0.15 gha per flight hour var transportImpact = (carKm * 0.005) + (flightHours * 0.15); // Base footprint formula var totalGha = (diet + house + transportImpact) * waste * energy; // Earths calculation: Global biocapacity is roughly 1.6 gha per person var earthsNeeded = totalGha / 1.6; // Formatting outputs var ghaDisplay = totalGha.toFixed(2) + " gha"; var earthsDisplay = "If everyone lived like you, we would need " + earthsNeeded.toFixed(2) + " Earths."; // Display results document.getElementById("ghaOutput").innerText = ghaDisplay; document.getElementById("earthsOutput").innerText = earthsDisplay; document.getElementById("ecoResult").style.display = "block"; // Scroll to result document.getElementById("ecoResult").scrollIntoView({ behavior: 'smooth', block: 'nearest' }); }

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