A collection of 405 Powerpoint slides featuring graphics from the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) One Planet Many People: Atlas of Our Changing Environment report are available online and can be downloaded for free. In this report, the impact of a single generation of human activity on the world's physical geography is stunningly captured through current and historical satellite imagery.
The One Planet Many People report focuses on five environmental themes: the effects of urbanization, the environmental consequences of energy consumption, the loss of habitats and/or biodiversity, the state of global water resources and coastal areas, and global land use practices. It's authors warn that "to survive, we must put the era of nature conquest behind us and embark on a new era— the sustainability and stewardship era." UNEP has made the graphics from this report readily available in order "to facilitate the use of imagery by environmental policy makers, non-governmental organizations, the private sector, academics, teachers and citizens." The images highlight an array of human-caused changes to the planet, including the rapid expansion of urban areas and the shrinking of polar ice caps, glaciers, lakes, and forests. The downloadable slideshows are divided both by theme and region.
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Download chapters from the full 334-page report, for free, here.
Earthtrends maintains extensive international time series related to the five themes of the report, including data relating to:
