Sustainability. Planetary boundaries: guiding human development on a changing planet

The planetary boundaries framework defines a safe operating space for humanity based on the intrinsic biophysical processes that regulate the stability of the Earth system. Here, we revise and update the planetary boundary framework, with a focus on the underpinning biophysical science, based on tar...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Science (American Association for the Advancement of Science) 2015-02, Vol.347 (6223), p.1259855-1259855
Main Authors: Steffen, Will, Richardson, Katherine, Rockström, Johan, Cornell, Sarah E, Fetzer, Ingo, Bennett, Elena M, Biggs, Reinette, Carpenter, Stephen R, de Vries, Wim, de Wit, Cynthia A, Folke, Carl, Gerten, Dieter, Heinke, Jens, Mace, Georgina M, Persson, Linn M, Ramanathan, Veerabhadran, Reyers, Belinda, Sörlin, Sverker
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Atmosphere
Biological Evolution
Climate Change
Earth (Planet)
Fresh Water
Humans
Ozone Depletion
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Summary:The planetary boundaries framework defines a safe operating space for humanity based on the intrinsic biophysical processes that regulate the stability of the Earth system. Here, we revise and update the planetary boundary framework, with a focus on the underpinning biophysical science, based on targeted input from expert research communities and on more general scientific advances over the past 5 years. Several of the boundaries now have a two-tier approach, reflecting the importance of cross-scale interactions and the regional-level heterogeneity of the processes that underpin the boundaries. Two core boundaries—climate change and biosphere integrity—have been identified, each of which has the potential on its own to drive the Earth system into a new state should they be substantially and persistently transgressed.
ISSN:1095-9203
DOI:10.1126/science.1259855