Abstract
Global Environmental Change (GEC) has been an ongoing process since the Earth’s inception, but its pace has accelerated since humans moved beyond the era of relative stability known as the Holocene and entered a new epoch called the Anthropocene. GEC can be defined today as a complex system that encompasses both biophysical and anthropogenic aspects, intricately interlinked and resulting in a series of large-scale environmental shifts. These shifts impact and are influenced by human activities, and their rapid consequences are now evident at the Earth system level, affecting the biosphere, climate, and society. Direct drivers of GEC, such as land and sea-use changes, climate change, pollution, and invasive alien species, stem from underlying social factors referred to as indirect GEC drivers. These indirect factors are demographic, societal, economic, technological, institutional, related to governance, conflict, or sanitation, and are rooted in cultural values and behaviours. This complexity helps explain why addressing GEC remains a formidable challenge.