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Ecological footprint of student population and its use in policy analysis at Jackson State University.

Article Excerpt
ABSTRACT

Scientists continuously look for suitable indicators to measure the impact of humans on the ecosystem. Ideally, such indicators should also be suited as benchmarks for ascertaining the effects of administrative policies. One such indicator is the Ecological Footprint, which although it has a short history, has gained a widespread popularity. Since the first introduction of the Ecological Footprint, studies analyzing its impact on the ecosystem of nations, regions, or individuals have become widespread. The level of analysis has tended to shift toward institutions and, due to their role as opinion leaders, universities were the first to calculate the impact they have on nature. This study provides a complementary view by analyzing the Ecological Footprint of the student population at Jackson State University and the role that a possible campus policy may have in reducing it. It finds that the average Ecological Footprint of a student is lower than that of the average U.S. citizen by five acres. Our data suggests a policy that discourages freshmen and sophomore students from bringing their cars on campus would reduce the Ecological Footprint of the student population by about 4,000 acres or sixteen times the campus area. The study provides an example of how the Ecological Footprint can be used to plan for future campus development and create a campus that is aesthetically and ecologically balanced.

Keywords: ecological footprint, policies, sustainable development, Jackson State University

INTRODUCTION

Accepted measuring tools that can shed light on the effect of humans on ecosystems are greatly needed in order to convince the public opinion for countermeasures. Several scholars have focused on designing and refining instruments and called them local sustainability indicators. However, while constructing such indicators became an industry unto itself, their effectiveness needs to be assessed and a different line of research addresses this task. The reasons, difficulties and possible outcomes of designing local sustainability indicators are discussed in detail by Rydin et al. (2003). These studies indicated the necessity of using generally accepted indicators, whether perfect or not, in order to assure compatibility amongst the study results. Due to the intricate patterns of trade that characterize the production-consumption cycle, the physical location of an individual does not correspond to the location of the resources consumed, and therefore, to their "ecological location" (Rees, 1996). The importance of trade and the difficulties it poses for calculating one's impact on the ecosystem is highlighted in many methodological papers (Daniels, 2002, and Rydin et al., 2003). However, the methods for treating these difficulties depend on the purpose of the study and therefore, on the indicators used in assessment. Studies dealing with the impact of humans on the ecosystem may be classified in two broad categories. The first one is focusing on the global balance between consumption and sustainable production, and therefore concentrates more on the consumption side. If the researcher is interested in analyzing the impact of consumption on the global ecosystem, without paying attention to the locations where the impact is felt, the methodology applied will focus on the consumption patterns and the production process can be quantified with the help of global averages. It is sufficient to know the average world production of grains per hectare in order to calculate how many hectares an individual consumes annually at a certain location. However, if the researcher is more interested in the impact consumption has on a specific location, a second category of indicators is needed, which will focus on what is actually harvested at that particular location, without paying attention to where the products go.

The Ecological Footprint (EF) designed by William E. Rees (Rees 1992; 1996) is an example of the first type of indicators, which aimed at measuring the impact of humans on the planet (sustainability studies). The use of the EF and its adoption as a standard by local authorities and academia is unprecedented for any other such tool. Furthermore, its adoption continues at high rates, following the numerous studies pleading for its use as a standard in the field (Lewan and Simmons, 2001) and it appears to be...

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