Country Overshoot Days 2021;
Credit: Earth Overshoot Day / Global Footprint Network
Monday 15 February 2021 marked Luxembourg's "Overshoot Day", i.e. the date on which Earth Overshoot Day would fall if all countries consumed as many natural resources as the Grand Duchy.
Earth Overshoot Day marks the date when humanity's demand for ecological resources in a given year exceeds what Earth can regenerate in that year. Last year, it fell on 22 August, with Luxembourg's Overshoot Day falling on 14 February - one day earlier than this year.
According to the Global Footprint Network, which calculates Earth Overshoot Day, Luxembourg has the second largest ecological footprint worldwide; only Qatar has a larger ecological footprint, with its Overshoot Day having fallen already on 9 February 2021.
More specifically, if the global population consumed as many natural resources as Luxembourg has so far this year, they would have already exhausted Earth's annual resources by 15 February.
Indonesia came last on the Global Footprint Network's list, with its Overshoot Day falling this year on 18 December.
