Human well-being is critically dependent on Earth’s natural systems. Economic, social and technological advances have come at the expense of the Earth’s capacity to sustain current and future human well-being. Human prosperity rests on the wise use of the finite space and resources available to all life on Earth, as well as on the restoration of its life-supporting processes and capacity to absorb human waste.

Every person benefits from clean air and water, a protective stratospheric ozone layer, a hospitable climate and the many additional benefits that land and oceans provide, including food, medicines, energy and materials, as well as inspiration and a sense of place. The rich web of life, of which humanity is a part, modulates and maintains Earth’s systems in ways critical to people, for example, by reducing the severity of natural disasters and by providing soil, pollination and pest control that help people harness the planet’s fertility.

Over the past 50 years, human societies have dramatically increased the production and extraction of food, energy and materials, resulting in economic, technological and social advances and increased prosperity for many. However, the exploitation of nature has reached unsustainable levels and is undermining the Earth’s capacity to sustain human well-being, now and in the future.

The Earth’s climate is changing, and its web of life is unravelling as land and oceans degrade and chemicals and waste accumulate beyond agreed limits. The international community has set targets, informed by science, in multilateral agreements for protecting natural assets and limiting harmful environmental change. Despite some progress, efforts to date have failed to meet any of the agreed targets.

Actions need to be taken now even where the benefits may not be realised for years to mitigate multidimensional vulnerability

Environmental degradation can be a significant driver of losses in prosperity and amplify socio-political tensions. Losses in ecosystem services reduce benefits, especially to the poorest and most vulnerable groups, and hence increase poverty. Overexploitation of provisioning ecosystem services such as food, water, fibre and other raw materials has impaired the capacity of ecosystems to regulate climate and water, among other benefits.

Consequences are potentially disastrous and include disputes over environmental resources and the undermining of sustainable prosperity. Water-related ecosystems are the most heavily impacted by poor land and water management and land conversion.

The world is not on course to fulfil the Paris Agreement to limit global warming to well below 2°C above pre-industrial levels, let alone meet the 1.5°C aspiration. The Earth’s mean near-surface temperature has already risen by more than 1°C compared to the period from 1850 to 1900. At the current rate, warming will reach 1.5°C by around 2040 and possibly earlier. Taken together, current national policies to reduce greenhouse gas emissions put the world on a pathway to warming of at least 3°C by 2100, though this may change as countries update their pledges.

Current warming, which is greater over land than over the ocean and is highest in the polar regions, has already led to melting of ice sheets and glaciers, accelerating increases in sea level, more frequent and more intense extreme events, and changes in precipitation patterns, as well as shifts in climate zones, including expansion of arid zones and contraction of polar zones.

Emissions of heat-trapping greenhouse gases are still increasing, with current atmospheric concentrations much higher than at any time in the past 800,000 years. The accumulation of heat in the oceans will persist for centuries and affect future generations.

About two thirds of the warming caused by anthropogenic greenhouse gases is due to carbon dioxide, mostly originating from the use of fossil fuels and some industrial processes. About one quarter of the warming results from activities related to the land, including agriculture, pastoralism, forestry and especially changing natural land covers to human-dominated ones. Natural sinks today are only able to absorb around half of anthropogenic carbon dioxide emissions, split between terrestrial ecosystems and the ocean. The increased uptake of carbon dioxide by the oceans is causing harmful ocean acidification.

To fulfil the Paris Agreement to limit warming to well below 2°C or meet the agreement’s aspiration of restricting the increase to 1.5°C, net global emissions from human activities need to reach zero or even become negative by the middle of the century. While meeting the Paris Agreement is technically feasible, political commitment to do so is currently lacking.

Given the interconnected nature of climate change, loss of biodiversity, air and water pollution, and land degradation, it is essential that these problems are tackled together now. Immediate action is required to mitigate the climate change impacts, conserve and restore biodiversity, improve air and water quality, make more efficient use of resources and reduce the adverse effects of chemicals.

Actions need to be taken now even where the benefits may not be realised for years due to the long-lasting nature of environmental effects or to inertia in the socio-economic system. Essential actions with delayed effects include reforestation and restoration of degraded lands. We have response options that can tackle various environmental problems, reduce multifaceted vulnerability, minimise trade-offs, and enhance synergies.

Numerous response options that can preserve and restore the environment may include large-scale reforestation with native vegetation, which can simultaneously help address climate change, biodiversity loss, land degradation and water security. A key challenge is to avoid unintended consequences. For instance, large-scale afforestation schemes and replacing native vegetation with monoculture crops to supply bioenergy can be detrimental to biodiversity and water resources.

The author is a development professional with a focus on climate change and the author of the book ‘Earthly Matters’.

Published in Dawn, The Business and Finance Weekly, June 10th, 2025