Anthropocene dynamics

Photo: R. Kautsky/Azote

This focus area explores the implications of living in a time where humans are the main force for change on the planet

We have entered the Anthropocene, a new era where humans shape every aspect of the biosphere. This means humans now rival natural forces in shaping the functioning, processes, and dynamics of the Earth system.

The implications of living in the Anthropocene also means new evolutionary processes, new aspects of control, new levels of connectivities, and new types of risks. This will have broad implications for the understanding and navigation of global resilience and sustainability.

Trade, financialization, human migration, urbanization, technological development and communication are increasingly connecting people and life-support systems in ever more distant geographic locations.

The speed, magnitude and extent at which these interconnectivities play out is unprecedented and profoundly complex.

The implications of this human-driven transformation of Earth’s biosphere has bearings on global biodiversity, spread of species, ecosystem functioning, water cycles, and climate.

This theme explores how global biophysical and socioeconomic dynamics emerge, interact, and shape the relationships between humans and nature, and what the social and environmental consequences are.

To advance this young research field, we need to apply both existing methods and theories, as well as developing new ones.

This theme will be an incubator for novel research ideas and a meeting place for different disciplines and perspectives to understand and support the human capacity to navigate life in the Anthropocene.

Theme contacts

Contact

Peter Søgaard Jørgensen

peter.sogaard.jorgensen@su.se

Lan Wang Erlandsson

lan.wang@su.se

Tiina Häyhä

tiina.hayha@su.se

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Anthropocene dynamics news

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Theme publications

Spatio-temporal analysis of dynamics and future scenarios of anthropic pressure on biomes in Brazil

Journal / article | 2022

Silva Bezerra, F. G., Mann de Toledo, P., von Randow, C., Aguiar, A. P. et al. 2022. Spatio-temporal analysis of dynamics and future scenarios of anthropic pressure on biomes in Brazil. Ecological Indicators. https://doi-org.ezproxy.its.uu.se/10.1016/j.ecolind.2022.108749

Anthropogenic transformations, which have become intensified by land use and land cover changes and industrialization, have contributed to increased anthropogenic pressure on biodiversity. These disturbances contribute toward fragmentating habitats at different scales and putting species at risk, in addition to compromising the main biogeochemical cycles. To better understand the spatiotemporal dynamics of anthropogenic pressu...

Environmental behaviours within ecological and social limits: integrating well-being with behavioural research for sustainability

Journal / article | 2022

Chaigneau, T. and Schill, C. 2022. Environmental behaviours within ecological and social limits: integrating well-being with behavioural research for sustainability. Current Opinion in Environmental Sustainability. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cosust.2022.101201

There is a pressing need to reduce inequalities and bring everyone above a foundational level of well-being whilst simultaneously staying within planetary boundaries. Yet, there is a limited understanding of how moving into and maintaining such 'safe and just' spaces affect environmental behaviours. To fill this gap, we argue for integrating human well-being and behaviour research. In particular, to 1) implement social thresho...

Fewer basins will follow their Budyko curves under global warming and fossil‐fueled development

Journal / article | 2022

Jaramillo, F., Piemontese, L., Berghuijs, W. R., Wang-Erlandsson, L., Greve, P., Wang, Z. 2022. Fewer basins will follow their Budyko curves under global warming and fossil-fueled development. Water Resources Research. https://doi.org/10.1029/2021WR031825

The Budyko framework consists of a curvilinear relationship between the evaporative ratio (i.e., actual evaporation over precipitation) and the aridity index (i.e., potential evaporation over precipitation) and defines evaporation's water and energy limits. A basin's movement within the Budyko space illustrates its hydroclimatic change and helps identify the main drivers of change. On the one hand, long-term aridity changes dr...

Globally widespread and increasing violations of environmental flow envelopes

Journal / article | 2022

Virkki, V., Alanärä, E., Porkka, M., Ahopelto, L., Gleeson, T., Mohan, C., Wang-Erlandsson, L., Flörke, M., Gerten, D., Gosling, S. N., Hanasaki, N., Müller Schmied, H., Wanders, N., and Kummu, M. 2022. Globally widespread and increasing violations of environmental flow envelopes. Hydrology and Earth Systems Science. https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-26-3315-2022

Human actions and climate change have drastically altered river flows across the world, resulting in adverse effects on riverine ecosystems. Environmental flows (EFs) have emerged as a prominent tool for safeguarding the riverine ecosystems, but at the global scale, the assessment of EFs is associated with high uncertainty related to the hydrological data and EF methods employed. Here, we present a novel, in-depth global EF as...

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