Articles | Volume 16, issue 4
https://doi.org/10.5194/esd-16-979-2025
© Author(s) 2025. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
https://doi.org/10.5194/esd-16-979-2025
© Author(s) 2025. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
Research article
| Highlight paper
| 
11 Jul 2025
Research article | Highlight paper |
| 11 Jul 2025
| 11 Jul 2025
Delineating the technosphere: definition, categorization, and characteristics
Eric D. Galbraith
CORRESPONDING AUTHOR
Earth and Planetary Sciences, McGill University, Montreal, Canada
Institut de Ciència i Tecnología Ambientals (ICTA-UAB), Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, 08193, Cerdanyola del Vallès, Spain
ICREA, Pg. Lluís Companys 23, 08010, Barcelona, Spain
Abdullah Al Faisal
Earth and Planetary Sciences, McGill University, Montreal, Canada
Tanya Matitia
Earth and Planetary Sciences, McGill University, Montreal, Canada
William Fajzel
Earth and Planetary Sciences, McGill University, Montreal, Canada
Ian Hatton
Earth and Planetary Sciences, McGill University, Montreal, Canada
Helmut Haberl
Institute of Social Ecology, BOKU University, Vienna, Austria
Fridolin Krausmann
Institute of Social Ecology, BOKU University, Vienna, Austria
Dominik Wiedenhofer
Institute of Social Ecology, BOKU University, Vienna, Austria
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Chief editor
This paper presents an important perspective on the technosphere as an intertwined component of the human-Earth system in the Anthropocene.
This paper presents an important perspective on the technosphere as an intertwined component of...
Short summary
The technosphere – including buildings, infrastructure, and all other non-living human creations – is a major part of our planet, but it is not often considered as an integrated part of Earth system processes. Here we propose a refined definition of the technosphere, intended to help with integration. We also characterize the functional end uses, map the global distribution, and discuss the catalytic properties that underlie the exponential growth of the trillion tonne technosphere.
The technosphere – including buildings, infrastructure, and all other non-living human creations...
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