Search research articles

ABOUT JoVE

Overview Leadership Blog JoVE Help Center

AUTHORS

Publishing Process Editorial Board Scope & Policies Peer Review FAQ Submit

LIBRARIANS

Testimonials Subscriptions Access Resources Library Advisory Board FAQ

RESEARCH

JoVE Journal Methods Collections JoVE Encyclopedia of Experiments Archive

EDUCATION

JoVE Core JoVE Business JoVE Science Education JoVE Lab Manual Faculty Resource Center Faculty Site

Terms & Conditions of Use

Related Concept Videos

Global Climate Change

Global Climate Change

Throughout its ~4.5 billion year history, the Earth has experienced periods of warming and cooling. However, the current drastic increase in global temperatures is well outside of the Earth’s cyclic norms, and evidence for human-caused global climate change is compelling. Paleoclimatology, the study of ancient climate conditions, provides ample evidence for human-caused global climate change by comparing recent conditions with those in the past.

Threats to Biodiversity

Threats to Biodiversity

There have been five major extinction events throughout geological history, resulting in the elimination of biodiversity, followed by a rebound of species that adapted to the new conditions. In the current geological epoch, the Holocene, there is a sixth extinction event in progress. This mass extinction has been attributed to human activities and is thus provisionally called the Anthropocene. In 2019 the human population reached 7.7 billion people and is projected to comprise 10 billion by...

What is Climate?

What is Climate?

Climate refers to the prevailing weather conditions in a specific area over an extended period. As the saying goes, “Climate is what you expect. Weather is what you get.” Climate is influenced by geographic factors, such as latitude, terrain, and proximity to bodies of water.

Habitat Fragmentation

Habitat Fragmentation

Habitat fragmentation describes the division of a more extensive, continuous habitat into smaller, discontinuous areas. Human activities such as land conversion, as well as slower geological processes leading to changes in the physical environment, are the two leading causes of habitat fragmentation. The fragmentation process typically follows the same steps: perforation, dissection, fragmentation, shrinkage, and attrition.

The Carbon Cycle

The Carbon Cycle

Carbon is the basis of all organic matter on Earth, and is recycled through the ecosystem in two primary processes: one in which carbon is exchanged among living organisms, and one in which carbon is cycled over long periods of time through fossilized organic remains, weathering of rocks, and volcanic activity. Human activities, including increased agricultural practices and the burning of fossil fuels, has greatly affected the balance of the natural carbon cycle.

Adaptations that Reduce Water Loss

Adaptations that Reduce Water Loss

Though evaporation from plant leaves drives transpiration, it also results in loss of water. Because water is critical for photosynthetic reactions and other cellular processes, evolutionary pressures on plants in different environments have driven the acquisition of adaptations that reduce water loss.

You might also read

Related Articles

Articles linked to this work by shared authors, journal, and citation graph.

Sort by

Same author

National pathways of land-use CO₂ emissions in the 21<sup>st</sup> century.

Nature communications·2026

Same author

Two decades of methane budgets at the sub-national scale in China.

Science bulletin·2026

Same author

Net release of CO<sub>2</sub> from thawing permafrost soil carbon predicted to occur earlier in this century.

Science advances·2026

Same author

Assessing the net climate benefits of improved grazing intensity in global rangelands.

Science (New York, N.Y.)·2026

Same author

A long-term (2000-2022), high-resolution (0.005°) aboveground biomass dataset of global grasslands.

Scientific data·2026

Same author

The size of tropical vegetation gross primary production.

Nature·2026

Same journal

Violet seed propulsion inspires robot design.

Science (New York, N.Y.)·2026

Same journal

A metastable solid solution transforms into complex nanostructures.

Science (New York, N.Y.)·2026

Same journal

An HIV vaccine blueprint.

Science (New York, N.Y.)·2026

Same journal

Maternal trans-vaccenic acid shapes neonatal T cell development and early-life immune imprinting.

Science (New York, N.Y.)·2026

Same journal

Preserve EEOC data collection.

Science (New York, N.Y.)·2026

Same journal

Inheriting trauma, rethinking science.

Science (New York, N.Y.)·2026

See all related articles

Search research articles

Home
Land Availability And Policy Commitments Limit Global Climate Mitigation From Forestation.

Home
Land Availability And Policy Commitments Limit Global Climate Mitigation From Forestation.

Related Experiment Video

Author Spotlight: On-Site Biochar Production for Woody Debris Incineration in Forestry

Author Spotlight: On-Site Biochar Production for Woody Debris Incineration in Forestry

Published on: January 5, 2024

Land availability and policy commitments limit global climate mitigation from forestation.

Yijie Wang¹, Yakun Zhu¹, Susan C Cook-Patton^2,3

¹School of Atmospheric Sciences, Key Laboratory of Tropical Atmosphere-Ocean System (Ministry of Education), Guangdong Province Key Laboratory for Climate Change and Natural Disaster Studies, Sun Yat-sen University, Southern Marine Science and Engineering Guangdong Laboratory (Zhuhai), Zhuhai, China.

Science (New York, N.Y.)

|August 28, 2025

View abstract on PubMed

Summary

This summary is machine-generated.

Forestation can mitigate climate change by sequestering carbon. However, global carbon sequestration estimates from forestation are uncertain due to soil carbon variability and land availability constraints.

More Related Videos

Field Collection and Laboratory Maintenance of Canopy-Forming Giant Kelp to Facilitate Restoration

Field Collection and Laboratory Maintenance of Canopy-Forming Giant Kelp to Facilitate Restoration

Published on: June 7, 2024

Monitoring Pedogenic Inorganic Carbon Accumulation Due to Weathering of Amended Silicate Minerals in Agricultural Soils.

Monitoring Pedogenic Inorganic Carbon Accumulation Due to Weathering of Amended Silicate Minerals in Agricultural Soils.

Published on: June 4, 2021

Related Experiment Videos

Author Spotlight: On-Site Biochar Production for Woody Debris Incineration in Forestry

Author Spotlight: On-Site Biochar Production for Woody Debris Incineration in Forestry

Published on: January 5, 2024

Field Collection and Laboratory Maintenance of Canopy-Forming Giant Kelp to Facilitate Restoration

Field Collection and Laboratory Maintenance of Canopy-Forming Giant Kelp to Facilitate Restoration

Published on: June 7, 2024

Monitoring Pedogenic Inorganic Carbon Accumulation Due to Weathering of Amended Silicate Minerals in Agricultural Soils.

Monitoring Pedogenic Inorganic Carbon Accumulation Due to Weathering of Amended Silicate Minerals in Agricultural Soils.

Published on: June 4, 2021

Area of Science:

Environmental Science
Climate Change Mitigation
Forest Ecology

Background:

Forestation, encompassing afforestation and reforestation, offers potential for climate change mitigation through carbon sequestration in biomass and soils.
Uncertainty in global forestation mitigation estimates stems from variable soil carbon sequestration rates and land availability assessments.

Purpose of the Study:

To develop global maps of soil carbon change associated with forestation.
To provide more accurate estimates of carbon sequestration potential under different land availability scenarios.

Main Methods:

Development of global maps detailing soil carbon gains and losses resulting from forestation.
Analysis of carbon sequestration potential considering constraints on land availability to avoid negative impacts like albedo-induced warming, and to safeguard water resources and biodiversity.

Main Results:

Forestation, with 389 million hectares available globally (considering constraints), could sequester 39.9 petagrams of carbon by 2050, a figure lower than prior projections.
Carbon sequestration potential reduces to 12.5 petagrams of carbon when land availability is limited to current policy commitments (120 million hectares).
Soil carbon changes were primarily observed in the topsoil layer.

Conclusions:

Achieving higher carbon sequestration through forestation necessitates expanding dedicated forestation areas.
Strengthening national commitments is crucial for nations possessing significant untapped forestation potential to enhance climate change mitigation efforts.