Findhorn Ecovillage, Scotland: Lowest Ecological Footprint Ever Recorded

A study done in 2007 by the Global Ecovillage Network of Europe and the Sustainable Development Research Centre (SDRC) found that Findhorn Ecovillage in Scotland produces the lowest ecological footprint ever recorded in the developed world. Ecological footprinting is a tool used to "quantify how much energy and raw materials are used, and how much solid, liquid and gaseous waste is generated. Ecological footprinting then converts this into a measure of land area, gha (global hectares), required to produce all the resources used and absorb all the waste that is produced." Major factors contributing to reducing the footprint were from local food production and a mostly vegetarian diet at Findhorn. Although Findhorn generate about 16% of its electricity from natural gas, other renewable energy sources helped to lower Findhorn's energy footprint. The study found that Findhorn's community food footprint was 37% of UK's national food footprint average, and the home and energy footprint was 21.5% of the national average. The ecovillage's ecological footprint amounted to 2.71 gha per person, while the UK's ecological footprint is 5.4 gha per person. That means the Findhorn community have reduced their consumption of energy and raw materials so much that it is now about half of the national average. To read the full study of ecological footprinting at the Findhorn Ecovillage click here.