ABSTRACT
Climate change; the collapse of biodiversity and ecosystem services; multiple forms of pollution, including plastic; and other environmental pressures on the planetary ecosystem are combining into an existential risk to human well-being and even survival on this planet. It is obvious that the gap in effective global environmental governance to remain within planetary boundaries is part of the problem, and there are proposals to address this, including the creation of a Global Environment Agency. National action also needs to be reinforced against the pressure of economic actors intent on short-term profit from resource exploitation and pollution. Then more needs to be done to empower local communities with the capacity and knowledge to manage their own environmental resources sustainably. Mechanisms should be created to build coherence across these levels. Beyond this, the present measures of progress in financial terms, including gross domestic product (GDP), must be replaced by science-based non-financial integrated accounting for the climate system, sustainable energy supplies, biosphere integrity, pollution reduction, a regenerative food system, the integration of nature and culture, and the comprehensive use of human capacities in healthy communities.
