Chapter 08 · Finance, data & evidenceSustainability Language

Anthropocene

Meaning statusContestedSource recordDirect document linkedWhy these are different

Definition

A term popularised by atmospheric chemist Paul Crutzen and biologist Eugene Stoermer in 2000 to describe an interval in which human activity has become the dominant influence on the Earth system. In March 2024 the Subcommission on Quaternary Stratigraphy voted 12–4 (with 2 abstentions) against ratifying a formal Anthropocene epoch beginning around 1950, a decision confirmed by the International Union of Geological Sciences.

References

Apollo — University of Cambridge Repository (Earth's Future, AGU)"The Anthropocene Is More Than a Time Interval"

SQS rejection confirmed by IUGS; proposal to treat the Anthropocene as an informal planetary event.

Engineering (Chinese Academy of Engineering)"The Anthropocene Is Dead — Long Live the Anthropocene"

Crutzen/Stoermer origin (2000); AWG process (2009–2023); Great Acceleration framing; vote outcome.

Overview

What it means

The rejected proposal would have defined the epoch by a "golden spike" in Crawford Lake, Canada, marking the Great Acceleration of population, industry and pollution after ~1950. Its rejection was procedural and conceptual, not a denial of human impact: many scientists now frame the Anthropocene informally as an ongoing planetary "event" of Earth-system transformation rather than a formal time unit.

How it is used

Despite lacking formal status, the term is deeply embedded across science, humanities and policy — in Earth-system science, sustainability discourse, and cultural criticism — as shorthand for the era of human planetary influence.

Why it matters

The Anthropocene frames sustainability as a geological-scale responsibility and underpins concepts such as planetary boundaries. The 2024 vote is frequently misreported as science "rejecting" human-driven change; the accurate reading is that one formalisation approach failed while the concept remains scientifically and culturally productive.

Definitions and controversy

Definition status is "Contested": formal stratigraphic status was rejected, while informal usage continues to grow; start-date proposals range from early agriculture to the mid-20th century.