Planetary Boundaries Science (PBScience) Lab

Planetary Boundaries are defined for the nine biophysical systems and processes that regulate the functioning of life support on Earth, and ultimately the stability and resilience of the Earth system. The scientifically defined boundary levels collectively define the safe operating space of the Earth system. Transgressing or overshooting one or more of the nine interconnected planetary boundaries leads to increasing risk, uncertainty, and ultimately a high-risk zone where destabilization of Earth’s key systems can occur. Currently, we have transgressed at least six of the nine planetary boundaries, so monitoring them is more important than ever.

The Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research and its key partners have therefore launched Planetary Boundaries Science (PBScience), a major scientific effort to improve our ability to observe and model how the Earth system evolves under the pressure of human activity, as well as our ability to measure the state of the Earth system on a regular basis at high resolution. At the heart of this effort is the Planetary Boundaries Science Lab. 

The Lab leads the production of the Planetary Health Check report, an annual report on the state of Earth’s Health that highlights the latest science findings and updates the current state and risk level of each of the nine Planetary Boundaries. The report is authored and reviewed by a diverse international scientific community, and employs cutting-edge Earth system and tipping-point modelling, ambitious whole-Earth monitoring, and includes big data analytics with state-of-the-art methods. The long-term aim is to make the observational data and modelled outcomes accessible to all, thereby driving positive change and bringing us back within the safe operating zone.

In September 2024, the PBScience team launched the first-ever edition of the annual Planetary Health Check report. Our next updated report is due in September 2025.

The report may be cited as:

L. Caesar*, B. Sakschewski*, L. S. Andersen, T. Beringer, J. Braun, D. Dennis,
D. Gerten, A. Heilemann, J. Kaiser, N.H. Kitzmann, S. Loriani, W. Lucht, J. Ludescher, M. Martin,
S. Mathesius, A. Paolucci, S. te Wierik, J. Rockström, 2024, Planetary Health Check Report 2024.
Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research, Potsdam, Germany.

(*equal contributors to this work and designated as co-first authors)

The state of the planet concerns every citizen on Earth. The PBScience Lab is also working closely with the Planetary Guardians - a collective of activists, business leaders, and former heads of state who have come together to bring evidence-based science to a global audience. All of them are committed to leveraging their respective platforms to bring Planetary Boundaries science, with its whole-Earth view on sustainability and powerful calls to action, to their audiences.