Calculating EF of LEAD Pakistan – A Case Study
Foreword
Today humanity exists in a state of
‘overshoot’, resulting from the use of more resources than Earth can
possibly renew. If consumption trends in the wealthy nations and in
the emerging economies continue at current rates, this overshoot
will increase dramatically. A situation that implies further
degradation of the Earth’s capacity to generate resources,
continuing accumulation of greenhouse gases and other wastes and the
likely collapse of critical ecosystems. The predicament,
unfortunately, is only self evident – a future marked with struggle
over life giving ecological resources.
In an age of growing resource scarcity those who prepare for living in a resource-constrained world will fare far better than those who do not. The time has come to putt in place strategies for the better management and protection of our ecological reserves. One such measure in this respect is resource accounting i.e. knowing how much ecological capacity there is and how much of it is being used. In today’s resource scarce world, resource accounting is as vital to the self-interest of any entity as is financial accounting.
Turning this ideological debate into a reality based on empirical facts is the concept of Ecological Footprint (EF). Ecological Footprinting provides valuable insights into the human appropriation of resources relative to earth’s carrying capacity, thereby enabling us to compare human demands with nature’s supply and providing an indicator of human ecological sustainability.
Realizing the potential of EF in terms of creating an understanding of what the real risks are, and in building consensus over the actions needed to address them, LEAD Pakistan has embarked on the venture of customizing this assessment tool for medium to large sized local organizations.
LEAD Pakistan’s work spanning over the last decade is characterized by it continual efforts towards promoting sustainable and environmentally sensitive development. However, the organization is cognizant of the fact that it cannot alone bring about the shift to a sustainable economy. All the key stakeholders — especially organizations — need to engage, for ultimately it is they who will be at ever increasing risk if they cannot monitor their ecological performance. For one thing is clear: as natural capital becomes scarcer than financial capital, sustainability will depend on resource accounts such as the Ecological Footprint as much as it depends on Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and other financial accounts.
The present case study documents LEAD’s development of a customized Ecological Footprint Calculator for local organizations, using weights and factors that are specific to the national context. The organization undertook publication this study with multiple aims. At one level, it aligns with LEAD’s mandate to create a sustainable environment that strikes an effective balance between economic growth, social progress and ecological efficiency. At yet another level, we are hopeful that this study can help to build a strong community of interest around the tremendous challenge of ecological scarcity facing Pakistan.
Today with Ecological Footprint accounting, we know something we did not know before and that is, the extent to which we are overdrawing our ecological accounts, and how far we need to go to rebalance this budget. Actions taken in light of the information provided through EF will reward the pioneers with lower resource costs, greater resiliency in the face of supply chain perturbations and better positioning to take advantage of opportunities presented by a rapidly changing economy.
*For more details contact
Project Manager, Mr. Rizwan ul Haq at
mhaq@lead.org.pk