ABSTRACT
This chapter offers a unifying approach to contemporary geography based on two key ideas: the Anthropocene and the global. The Holocene is a geological epoch (following the Pleistocene) within the Quaternary period covering the time since the last major glacial retreat and representing the beginning of a warmer period in Earth's history, this is effectively the last 11,000 years. The Anthropocene relates to a proposed geological epoch that follows on from the Holocene, reflecting the increased impact of humanity on the planet in its entirety. It is in this context that it is possible to see the Anthropocene as part of a globalised world. However, by the late 1960s, a range of environmental issues had become a focus of attention for geographers. In relation to how such integrated approaches might be considered in the classroom, the chapter have discussed holistic geographies elsewhere.
