August 2 is marked by alerts about the depletion of natural resources and the urgency of responsible actions to revert this scenario.

Today, August 2, Earth Overshoot Day: a symbolic and critical day that highlights the worrying situation in which humanity consumes natural resources beyond the planet's ability to regenerate. The date, calculated annually by the Global Footprint Network, is a call to reflection and action on sustainability and environmental preservation. This day represents the time when the annual demand for natural resources, including water, fertile soil, food, fuel and forests, exceeds the Earth's ability to supply them during a year. This results in unsustainable pressure on ecosystems and accelerates environmental degradation.
Modern society has been marked by unbridled consumption and an incessant search for economic growth, often neglecting the negative impacts that this brings. The growing demand for natural resources, together with the loss of biodiversity and the increase in greenhouse gas emissions, contribute to the climate crisis. But anyone who thinks that all countries consume resources in the same way is wrong. This year, the US reached Earth Overshoot Day on March 13th, Portugal on May 7th and Brazil is yet to reach it on August 12th. What we cannot forget is that the effects affect the entire globe and those who suffer most from them are precisely the poorest populations.

Experts warn that, at this pace, humanity would need more than one planet to sustain its current lifestyle. This overload has devastating effects that are already being felt, such as greater and more intense droughts, heat waves and torrential rains. Given this scenario, it is urgent that governments, companies and the population in general act responsibly and consciously, therefore, it is a global cause that requires the joint efforts of all sectors of society.
It is necessary to reduce carbon dioxide emissions by 43% by 2030, according to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPPC) in its latest report, in October 2022. Taking 2019 as a starting point, this action could limit global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius, that is, we would need to “gain” 19 days in each of the next 7 years of Earth Overshoot Day, until 2030.
But not everything is lost.
Measures such as transitioning to clean energy sources at the same 75% as the world's needs can reduce "environmental credit card" usage by 26 days, according to the #MoveTheDate initiative. The same is true for food, with the reduction of food waste by half worldwide, it is possible to go 13 days forward on this debt. In addition to everything taught since childhood, preserving green areas, promoting sustainable agricultural practices, replacing cars with bicycles, reducing meat consumption, etc., are some of the ways to reduce our ecological footprint.
Earth Overshoot Day awareness should serve as a reminder that everyone has an important role to play in protecting the environment. Small individual actions can add up to significant efforts in building a more balanced future in harmony with the planet.