Vienna Anthropocene Network

The Anthropocene – A New Epoch in Earth History

What is the Anthropocene?

The Anthropocene is a term suggested to describe the present as a period in which human activities are massively changing the ecological state of the planet. This means that humans have become a planetary force with long-term impacts on environments and ecosystems. These changes are so profound that geologists and Earth System scientists have suggested that we no longer live in the geological epoch called Holocene, but in the Anthropocene (from Greek anthropos = human and kainós = new/recent). 

NASA | Tim Kopra

From the Holocene to the Anthropocene

Our planet is changing alarmingly fast. Global temperatures rise, plastic waste covers vast ocean areas, species go extinct. All these changes are driven by anthropogenic impact. In other words – they are caused by humans.

  • 8.2
    Billion People

    Number of humans currently living on Earth.

  • 1
    Planet

    All of us share just one planet.

  • 1950s – Now
    Great Acceleration

    Human pressures increase dramatically.

Defining the Anthropocene

Based on research by the Anthropocene Working Group (AWG), the Anthropocene is assumed to have started in the mid 20th century. Its onset is marked by the so-called Great Acceleration, when human activitiy rapidly increased. The consequences of this anthropogenic impact on the planet are clearly visible in the “Planetary Boundaries” model by the Stockholm Resilience Center which identifies nine processes that regulate the stability and resilience of the Earth System.

While anthropogenic pressures on the Earth System grow, the exact duration of the Anthropocene is still an object of debate. Some scientists reject the 1950s as starting point, and instead propose defining the Anthropocene as a continuous geological “event” that is time-transgressive and dates back much longer. The official decision of the ICS and IUGS not to formalise the Anthropocene as new geological epoch amplified rather than settled this debate, resulting in an ongoing geoscientific controversy.

Diagram of the planetary boundaries showing the safe operating space for humanity in green and several areas in red where these are exceeded, such as climate change and novel entities,
Azote for Stockholm Resilience Centre, based on analysis Sakschewski and Caesar et al. 2025 | CC BY-NC-ND 3.0

The Planetary Boundaries Framework

The Earth in the Anthropocene – A Radically Altered Planet

  • A factory emitting smoke that mixes with dark, looming clouds, in front a single wind turbine
    Tim van der Kuip | Unsplash
  • Melting sea ice
    Grace Mwaniki | Unsplash
  • Traffic and street lights of a large city at dusk
    Jitian Pan
  • Aerial view of a slate mine
    Dion Beetson | Unsplash
  • Desert landscape in bleak colours with dead trees
    Dikaseva | Unsplash
  • Underwater image of plastic floating on the coean surface next to a school of fishes
    Naja Bertolt Jensen | Unsplash
    • Portrait photo of Michael Wagreich
      Global changes affecting our planet in the Anthropocene are equivalent to the large asteroid impact that caused one of Earth’s mass extinctions 66 million years ago.
      Michael Wagreich, Professor of Geology and Co-Founder of the Vienna Anthropocene Network

    Anthropocene Lecture Series

    About the Lecture Series