Degradation of the global environment is occurring at an alarming rate. It is feared by many that the current path of economic development is unsustainable. In this paper, worldwide panel data is explored to develop a model that can be used to find characteristics that are associated with a nation's ecological impact, as measured by Ecological Footprint Accounting. Through panel regression, several factors are found that are associated with a reduction in Ecological Footprint among OECD countries after controlling for GDP and population size. These findings point to general policy objectives that can be used by industrialized and industrializing countries to reduce their ecological impact.