1. The ecological backpack:
versatile indicator for
sustainable consumption
12.09.08 ConAccount
Conference 2008, Prague
Lähteenoja, Lettenmeier, Salo
Satu Lähteenoja, Michael Lettenmeier, Marja Salo
ConAccount conference 2008, Prague

2. This presentation is about
• Confusion faced with different indicators
• MIPS and ecological backpack
• One case project on how it can be used
12.09.08 ConAccount
Conference 2008, Prague
Lähteenoja, Lettenmeier, Salo
• One case project on how it can be used
• How to compare the indicators
• Does backpack bring something new to
the discussion?
• Conclusions and further questions

3. Sustainable consumption
– target for ecological cities?
Sustainable consumption is understood as “the use of goods
and services that respond to basic needs and bring a better
quality of life, while minimizing the use of natural
resources, toxic materials and emissions of waste and
12.09.08 ConAccount
Conference 2008, Prague
Lähteenoja, Lettenmeier, Salo
resources, toxic materials and emissions of waste and
pollutants over the life cycle, so as not to jeopardize the
needs of future generations” (The Norwegian Ministry of
Environment 1994).
You can’t manage what you can’t measure...

4. Ecological footprint
CO2-equivalents
Carbon footprint
Water footprint
A jungle of indicators
12.09.08 ConAccount
Conference 2008, Prague
Lähteenoja, Lettenmeier, Salo
QuickTime™ ja
TIFF (pakkaamaton) pakkauksen purkuohjelma
tarvitaan elokuvan katselemiseen.
Carbon footprint
MIPS
Ecological backpack
Total Material RequirementToxics

5. Best known: ecological footprint
QuickTime™ ja
TIFF (pakkaamaton) pakkauksen purkuohjelma
Sustainable
level
Finland
The people in
12.09.08 ConAccount
Conference 2008, Prague
Lähteenoja, Lettenmeier, Salo
Source: Happy Planet Index
TIFF (pakkaamaton) pakkauksen purkuohjelma
tarvitaan elokuvan katselemiseen.
these countries
have the same
level of
happiness

6. Earth overshoot day
12.09.08 ConAccount
Conference 2008, Prague
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The day that we begin living
beyond our ecological means

7. CO2-emissions vrs.
Carbon footprint?
QuickTime™ ja
TIFF (pakkaamaton) pakkauksen purkuohjelma
tarvitaan elokuvan katselemiseen.
Carbon footprint is
nowadays used just
to tell how many
tonnes of CO2 is
consumed
=> it’s not telling about
12.09.08 ConAccount
Conference 2008, Prague
Lähteenoja, Lettenmeier, Salo
=> it’s not telling about
area
Source: footprintnetwork.org, Yahoo green

8. Water footprint?
The water footprint is an indicator of water use
that looks at both direct and indirect water use
of a consumer or producer. The water
footprint of an individual, community or
business is defined as the total volume of
QuickTime™ ja
TIFF (pakkaamaton) pakkauksen purkuohjelma
tarvitaan elokuvan katselemiseen.
12.09.08 ConAccount
Conference 2008, Prague
Lähteenoja, Lettenmeier, Salo
business is defined as the total volume of
freshwater that is used to produce the goods
and services consumed by the individual or
community or produced by the business.
Water use is measured in terms of water
volumes consumed (evaporated) and/or
polluted per unit of time.
Source: waterfootprint.org

9. Why is it called footprint?
Area of water needed? Can not be
measured as an area...
12.09.08 ConAccount
Conference 2008, Prague
Lähteenoja, Lettenmeier, Salo
Source:waterfootprint.org

10. material input
= life-cycle-wide resource
consumption
MIPS (Material Input Per Service)
12.09.08 ConAccount
Conference 2008, Prague
Lähteenoja, Lettenmeier, Salo
service unit
= total benefit obtained

11. Ecological backpack
= resource
consumption
(non-renewable and
renewable resources and
12.09.08 ConAccount
Conference 2008, Prague
Lähteenoja, Lettenmeier, Salo
renewable resources and
erosion)
of a commodity over its
whole life cycle
(g, kg, tonnes)

12. Not just one backpack
Abiotic resource backpack
Biotic resource backpack
TMR
12.09.08 ConAccount
Conference 2008, Prague
Lähteenoja, Lettenmeier, Salo
Soil backpack
Water backpack
Air backpack
CO2 backpack?

13. What do different backpacks tell?
”Average EU consumer”
TMR backpack of household, EU average
(Total 28 tonnes per person in a year)
9 %
12 %
40 %
26 %
9 %
4 %
Housing
Energy use at home
Mobility
Food and beverages
Household goods
Waste management
Air backpack of household, EU average
(Total 5 tonnes per person in a year)
52 %
30 %
15 %
2 %
0 % 1 %
Housing
Energy use at home
Mobility
Food and beverages
Household goods
Waste management
TMR backpack Air backpack
12.09.08 ConAccount
Conference 2008, Prague
Lähteenoja, Lettenmeier, Salo
40 %
"One did it" backpack of household, EU
average (Total 33 tonnes per person in a
year)
18 %
37 %
25 %
8 %
4 %
8 %
Housing
Energy use at home
Mobility
Food and beverages
Household goods
Waste management
Also possible:
- CO2 backpack
- Water backpack
- Non-renewable backpack
- Renewable backpack
- Waste backpack
”One did it” backpack

14. Case: FIN-MIPS Household research
project 2006-2008
1. MIPS studies covering different aspects
• pre-study on existing data
• 6 master’s theses
12.09.08 ConAccount
Conference 2008, Prague
Lähteenoja, Lettenmeier, Salo
• 6 master’s theses
2. Application of the MIPS data to households
• 27 different households monitoring their consumption
• piloting and assessing the use(fulness) of MIPS
3. Illustration and conclusions
• suggestions and conclusions: How to reach factor-targets?

15. The natural resource backpack of Finnish households
TMR by consumption sectors, average
9,900 9,800 9,400
4,4006,000
8,000
10,000
12,000
kg/person/year
12.09.08 ConAccount
Conference 2008, Prague
Lähteenoja, Lettenmeier, Salo
4,400
2,900
2,400
200 20
0
2,000
4,000
6,000
M
obility
Tourism
H
ousing
Foodstuffs
Leisure
tim
e
activities
G
oods
and
appliances
Packaging
W
aste
m
anagem
ent
kg/person/year

16. Summary of the households TMR
60,000
80,000
100,000
120,000
140,000
12.09.08 ConAccount
Conference 2008, Prague
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0
20,000
40,000
60,000
P
G
S
R
E
V
B
O
H
F
W
C
N
Q
Y
D
L
J
T
Housing Foodstuffs Packaging Waste management
Mobility Goods and appliances Tourism Leisure time activities

17. One did it -ecological social network
www.onedidit.com
12.09.08 ConAccount
Conference 2008, Prague
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Easy tips for
everyday actions
Test your ecological backpack
Community to compare the results
of improved eco-efficiency

18. One did it -ecological social network
www.onedidit.com
The best is yet to come...
By the end of year 2008
The onedidit.com site will
freshen up totally with
cool new features!
12.09.08 ConAccount
Conference 2008, Prague
Lähteenoja, Lettenmeier, Salo

19. Conclusions - what do different indicators tell?
• CO2
=> energy
• Ecological footprint
=> energy and agriculture
12.09.08 ConAccount
Conference 2008, Prague
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=> energy and agriculture
• Water consumption
=> agriculture
• Abiotic resource backpack
=> infrastructure and non-renewable materials

20. Conclusions
• MIPS is rough but easy, still less used
and perhaps underestimated
• With one method, it is possible to study
12.09.08 ConAccount
Conference 2008, Prague
Lähteenoja, Lettenmeier, Salo
• With one method, it is possible to study
different aspects of resource
consumption by different backpacks
=> Good experiences from Finland

21. Conclusions
• Footprint is clearly understandable,
when used to describe area needed
• However, it lacks with taking
infrastructure into account
12.09.08 ConAccount
Conference 2008, Prague
Lähteenoja, Lettenmeier, Salo
• However, it lacks with taking
infrastructure into account
• It confuses when the term footprint is
used to tell about CO2 emissions
(kilogramms) or water (cubic meters /
tonnes)

22. We need many indicators, but...
• Let’s not spoil the great success of
footprint by mixing it with everything
(e.g. ”mobility footprint”)
12.09.08 ConAccount
Conference 2008, Prague
Lähteenoja, Lettenmeier, Salo
(e.g. ”mobility footprint”)
• Instead, we could talk e.g. about CO2
backpack and water backpack to
indicate the amout of these resources
used in kilograms, when not indicating
it to the needed land.

23. Thank you for your attention!
Waiting for your comments!
www.mips-online.fi
12.09.08 ConAccount
Conference 2008, Prague
Lähteenoja, Lettenmeier, Salo
www.mips-online.fi
satu.lahteenoja_at_sll.fi
michael.lettenmeier_at_wupperinst.org
marja.salo_at_onedidit.com