IB GEOGRAPHYCORE TOPIC 4

Patterns inResource Consumption

This topic is split into:

• Resource management and the ecological footprint

• Malthus theories• Oil production and consumption• Alternative energy • Hydroelectric power case-study• Conservation/ recycling• National/ global initiatives

1. The ecological footprintAims

• Evaluate the ecological footprint as a measure of the relationship between population size and resource consumption.

• Identify international variations in its size.

Ecological Footprint Intro Questions

READ PAGES 153-154 • What is a nation's ecological footprint? • How is a 'carbon footprint' different from an 'ecological

footprint'? • What is a nation's biocapacity? • Why might the biocapacity of a nation decrease? • Why might the ecological footprint of a nation increase? • Is there a link between population size and the ecological

footprint? • Evaluate the ecological footprint as a measure of the relationship

between population size and resource consumption.

• Ecological Footprint [according to the IB]: The theoretical measurement of the amount of land and water a population requires to produce the resources it consumes and to absorb its waste under prevailing technology.

• Ecological Footprint [according to Global Footprint Network]: a measure of the demand human activity puts on the biosphere. More precisely, it measures the amount of biologically productive land and water area required to produce all the resources an individual, population, or activity consumes, and to absorb the waste they generate, given prevailing technology and resource management practices. This area can then be compared with biological capacity (biocapacity), the amount of productive area that is available to generate these resources and to absorb the waste.

• Carrying Capacity: The number of people that can be supported by a given ecosystem, given their consumption of natural resources and use of technology.