2026 / Health and well-being, Reciprocal healing

Humans: Intertwined With Life and the Basic Elements in the Anthropocene Biosphere

Citation

Folke, C., Hattle, A., Jørgensen, P. S., Österblom, H., Bjordam, T., Bratman, G., Lashus, C., Normark, S., Wang-Erlandsson, L., Daily, G., Donges, J., Galbraith, E., Jobbágy, E., König, A., Milani, T., Nyström, M., Reyers, B., Rocha, J., Rockström, J., & Schill, C. (2026). Humans: Intertwined with life and the basic elements in the Anthropocene biosphere. Ambio, 55(10), 2295–2320. doi.org/10.1007/s13280-026-02474-z

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The idea that people and nature are deeply connected — and that both are part of the biosphere — is becoming more accepted in modern science. But what does it actually mean for a human being to be connected to nature that way? In this Ambio article, researchers explore this question from two angles.

First, they examine the human body as an open, living system in constant exchange with the chemical elements found on Earth. This view focuses on how elements and life processes interact inside us, and why those relationships are essential for our bodies to work properly.

Then they widen the lens to look at the biosphere as a whole, showing how microorganisms, fungi, plants, and animals in ecosystems shape and drive the flows of elements through the air, water, and food we depend on to survive.

Together, these two perspectives show that humans evolved within — and remain part of — a complex, dynamic web of life–element relationships that spans every scale and ecosystem in the biosphere. In the Anthropocene, our bodies still depend on these life-driven elemental cycles just as much as ever, no matter our culture, level of economic development, or technological progress. That inseparability is the basic reality of living in the biosphere, and it has real implications for how we understand the relationship between people and the environment, and how we tackle the challenges of the Anthropocene. It also means that caring for the biosphere is not just a matter of knowledge or ethics, but a hands-on, embodied practice. It involves learning about the living relationships that mobilize, renew, and circulate the elements that sustain life, and actively caring for and strengthening those relationships.

Abstract

The notion of people and nature as intertwined and embedded in the biosphere is gaining traction in contemporary scientific discourses. But what does it mean for a human being to be intertwined? Here, we explore this question through two lenses: looking at the human body as an open living system in continuous exchange with the chemical elements on Earth; and looking across the biosphere, at the intricate functioning of the web of life in mediating these exchanges. The first lens focuses on relationships between chemical elements and life processes within us humans, relationships that are critical for our bodies to operate and function. We then expand the perspective to show how microorganisms, fungi, plants, and animals in ecosystems shape and mediate the elemental flows through the air, water, and food that our bodies require for survival. The two lenses highlight that humans have evolved as part of, and remain integrated with, these complex and dynamic life–element interdependencies, spanning all scales and domains across the biosphere. In the Anthropocene, humans remain as bodily dependent on life-mediated elemental cycles as ever, irrespective of culture, economic development, or technological advances. This inseparability reflects the core reality of existing in the biosphere, with implications for how to approach and understand human–environment relations and confront the challenges of the Anthropocene. It further implies that biosphere stewardship is not only a cognitive or ethical orientation, but also an embodied practice: one that involves learning about, caring for, and enhancing the living relations that mobilise, regenerate, and circulate life-sustaining elements.