Ecological footprint

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An ecological footprint is an analytical tool used to estimate a populations resource usage and waste in relation to how large land or area it represents. The population may consist of a household, a city or a country and is used to investigate the environmental impact that it has and the resources it consumes in relation to the soil surface. The population can be seen as an organism that requires a certain amount of energy to be supplied. It is also possible to calculate how much environmental impact of a product has. For example, measurements have been made on how much a person impacts on the environment. The calculations have shown that the computer's impact was estimated at 0.18 hectares over a three-year lifespan. The majority were in this case the energy consumption.

Sources: "Design for Sustainable Development (Design för hållbar utveckling" Ann Thorpe, Grid Publisher Stockholm, 2007