title: Reconnecting to the biosphere.
abstract: Humanity has emerged as a major force in the operation of the biosphere, with a significant imprint on the Earth System, challenging social-ecological resilience. This new situation calls for a fundamental shift in perspectives, world views, and institutions. Human development and progress must be reconnected to the capacity of the biosphere and essential ecosystem services to be sustained. Governance challenges include a highly interconnected and faster world, cascading social-ecological interactions and planetary boundaries that create vulnerabilities but also opportunities for social-ecological change and transformation. Tipping points and thresholds highlight the importance of understanding and managing resilience. New modes of flexible governance are emerging. A central challenge is to reconnect these efforts to the changing preconditions for societal development as active stewards of the Earth System. We suggest that the Millennium Development Goals need to be reframed in such a planetary stewardship context combined with a call for a new social contract on global sustainability. The ongoing mind shift in human relations with Earth and its boundaries provides exciting opportunities for societal development in collaboration with the biosphere--a global sustainability agenda for humanity.
authors.affiliation: Stockholm Resilience Centre, Stockholm University, Sweden. carl.folke@beijer.kva.se
authors.forename: Carl
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Folke
authors.forename: Asa
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Jansson
authors.forename: Johan
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Rockström
authors.forename: Per
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Olsson
authors.forename: Stephen R
authors.initials: SR
authors.lastname: Carpenter
authors.forename: F Stuart
authors.initials: FS
authors.lastname: Chapin
authors.forename: Anne-Sophie
authors.initials: AS
authors.lastname: Crépin
authors.forename: Gretchen
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Daily
authors.forename: Kjell
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Danell
authors.forename: Jonas
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Ebbesson
authors.forename: Thomas
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Elmqvist
authors.forename: Victor
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Galaz
authors.forename: Fredrik
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Moberg
authors.forename: Måns
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Nilsson
authors.forename: Henrik
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Osterblom
authors.forename: Elinor
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Ostrom
authors.forename: Asa
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Persson
authors.forename: Garry
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Peterson
authors.forename: Stephen
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Polasky
authors.forename: Will
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Steffen
authors.forename: Brian
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Walker
authors.forename: Frances
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Westley
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D018534:Earth, Planet; D004463:Ecology; D005618:Fresh Water; D006801:Humans