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Welcome to Ecological Budget UK

We only have one planet – but this is easily forgotten in a modern, global economy where society has access to markets, people, communications and resources in what seems an ever-smaller world. But with only one planet we have only a finite stock of natural resources, some of which we must share with other species if we wish to preserve a vibrant, healthy and living planet. However, we are consuming natural resources at a faster rate than the planet can replenish them and we have some important choices to make about our future.

In March 2005, the Government launched the new UK Sustainable Development Strategy, Securing the Future, and placed the concept of environmental limits at its heart. For the first time since the landmark Brundtland Report (1987), sustainable development is no longer about balancing the conflicting demands of the environment, economy and society. Instead, the new strategy makes clear that the economy, science and governance are the means by which we achieve our broader sustainable development goals – living within the planet’s environmental limits while also creating a just and fair society.

Taking action - One Planet Economics

Following the recent release of the UK Sustainable Development Strategy, “Securing our Future”, which promoted a radical new vision for UK based on 'One Planet Economics', this project could not come at a better time. Despite the increasing popularity of ecological footprint, policy-makers are missing valuable opportunities to make use of the evidence to inform decision-making. WWF believes that there is a need to build capacity within the policy community. Ecological Budget UK is a £520 000 Biffaward funded project designed to do just that.

Ecological Budget UK provides the necessary information to know whether we are actually becoming more sustainable on a global level or simply moving our own environmental impact to another part of the world, an important first step towards a ‘One Planet Economy'. For the first time, powerful & comparable information will be at the UK’s, region’s and devolved country’s disposal, together with a software tool REAP to inform decisions aimed at reducing our environmental impacts.

The project is run by WWF and has been developed to quantify the entire global environmental impacts of consumption in the UK. The project is funded by BIFFAWARD, in partnership with the Stockhom Environment institute (SEI) and Centre for Urban and Regional Ecology (CURE).

Ecological Footprints: Taking the next step

Lesson learning and case studies of local authorities in the UK

This case study based guide is the latest in an ongoing series published by WWF-UK to help local authorities and regional organisations implement ecological footprint reduction strategies
in their areas.

This report is aimed at those who are responsible for developing ecological footprint reduction strategies (which we call generically ecological footprint practitioners or coordinators). It draws on eight ecological footprint projects in the UK that are at different stages of completion. The guidebook is based on interviews with officers involved in each of
these projects.

Ecological Footprints: Taking the next step (335 KB)