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  • Publication | 2023
Safe and just Earth system boundaries
Global Food and Nutrition Security

The stability and resilience of the Earth system and human well-being are inseparably linked, yet their interdependencies are generally under-recognized; consequently, they are often treated independently. 

In the modelling and literature assessment the authors quantify safe and just Earth system boundaries (ESBs) for climate, the biosphere, water and nutrient cycles, and aerosols at global and subglobal scales. They propose ESBs for maintaining the resilience and stability of the Earth system (safe ESBs) and minimizing exposure to significant harm to humans from Earth system change.

First, they identify ‘safe’ boundaries for maintaining and enhancing the stability and resilience of the Earth system over time, thereby safeguarding its functions and ability to support humans and all other living organisms. Second,they used three criteria to assess whether adhering to the safe ESBs could protect people from significant harm: interspecies justice and Earth system stability; intergenerational justice and intragenerational justice between countries, communities and individuals.  The stricter of the safe or just boundaries sets the integrated safe and just ESB.

The findings show that justice considerations constrain the integrated ESBs more than safety considerations for climate and atmospheric aerosol loading. Seven of eight globally quantified safe and just ESBs and at least two regional safe and just ESBs in over half of global land area are already exceeded.

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