Journal Article

Pervasive human-driven decline of life on Earth points to the need for transformative change

Chan, Kai M. A., Liu, Jianguo, Ichii, Kazuhito, Razzaque, Jona, Willis, Katherine J., Balvanera, Patricia, Midgley, Guy F., Shin, Yunne-Jai, Molnár, Zsolt, Polasky, Stephen, Brondízio, Eduardo S., Agard, John, Miloslavich, Patricia, Ngo, Hien T., Zayas, Cynthia N., Reyers, Belinda, Visseren-Hamakers, Ingrid, Purvis, Andy, Chowdhury, Rinku Roy, Díaz, Sandra, Garibaldi, Lucas A., Butchart, Stuart H. M., Pfaff, Alexander, Settele, Josef, Brauman, Kate A., Subramanian, Suneetha M., Obura, David, Arneth, Almut

2019

Overview

For decades, scientists have been raising calls for societal changes that will reduce our impacts on nature. Though much conservation has occurred, our natural environment continues to decline under the weight of our consumption. Humanity depends directly on the output of nature; thus, this decline will affect us, just as it does the other species with which we share this world. Díaz et al. review the findings of the largest assessment of the state of nature conducted as of yet. They report that the state of nature, and the state of the equitable distribution of nature's support, is in serious decline. Only immediate transformation of global business-as-usual economies and operations will sustain nature as we know it, and us, into the future. Science , this issue p. eaax3100 The human impact on life on Earth has increased sharply since the 1970s, driven by the demands of a growing population with rising average per capita income. Nature is currently supplying more materials than ever before, but this has come at the high cost of unprecedented global declines in the extent and integrity of ecosystems, distinctness of local ecological communities, abundance and number of wild species, and the number of local domesticated varieties. Such changes reduce vital benefits that people receive from nature and threaten the quality of life of future generations. Both the benefits of an expanding economy and the costs of reducing nature’s benefits are unequally distributed. The fabric of life on which we all depend—nature and its contributions to people—is unravelling rapidly. Despite the severity of the threats and lack of enough progress in tackling them to date, opportunities exist to change future trajectories through transformative action. Such action must begin immediately, however, and address the root economic, social, and technological causes of nature’s deterioration.

• Publisher: American Association for the Advancement of Science,The American Association for the Advancement of Science
• Subject: Adaptive systems / Aquatic ecosystems / Biodiversity / Climate change / Community ecology / Community Relations / Conservation of Natural Resources / Costs / Demographics / Domestication / Earth / Earth, Planet / Economics / Ecosystem integrity / Ecosystems / Evidence / Food / Genetic transformation / Geopolitics / Global economy / Globalization / Human Activities - trends / Human impact / Human influences / Humans / Indigenous peoples / Integrity / International trade / Introduced species / Invasive species / Local communities / Natural environment / Population Growth / Population number / Quality of Life / REVIEW SUMMARY / Scientists / Species / Supply & demand / Sustainable development / Transformations / Trends / Water pollution