Planetary Boundaries Research Network
PB.net is a research network that aims to deepen scientific understanding of the linked social and biophysical dynamics of the Earth system. New approaches are needed to help humanity deal with the challenges of climate change and other global environmental risks.
We have three broad objectives:
- Develop scientific insights about the dynamic changes, interactions, and thresholds in linked social-natural systems, with a particular focus on the planetary scale;
- Underpin these insights with the best available evidence;
- Channel these insights effectively to users, informing society’s sustainability decisions.
Planetary Boundaries research seeks to identify and analyse critical sustainability issues at the planetary scale, by linking knowledge about the physical basis of Earth system processes, the nature of human perturbations, and the consequences of these changes. Achieving this dynamic understanding requires a step-change from today’s methodological and analytic approaches to conceptualising and modelling the global human-environment system.
PB.net coordinates diverse research efforts towards this goal, developing a shared knowledge platform for activities in scientific synthesis, research capacity building, and direct engagement with agents of change in global sustainability.
