Environmental Crises at the End of Safavid History: The Collapse of Iran's Early Modern Imperial Ecology, 1666–1722

The 17th century was a period of transition in world history. It was marked globally by social movements emerging in response to widespread drought, famine, disease, warfare, and dislocation linked to climate change. Historians have yet to situate Safavid Iran (1501–1722) within the “General Crisis.” This article, coauthored by an environmental historian and a climate scientist, revisits primary sources and incorporates tree-ring evidence to argue that an ecological crisis beginning in the late 17th century contributed to the collapse of the imperial ecology of the Safavid Empire. A declining resource base and demographic decline conditioned the unraveling of imperial networks and the empire's eventual fall to a small band of Afghan raiders in 1722. Ultimately, this article makes a case for the connectedness of Iran to broader global environmental trends in this period, with local circumstances and human agency shaping a period of acute environmental crisis in Iran.

Darcy L. Peter: Harnessing Alaska’s Native Knowledge

A climate scientist finds her dream job not far from home.

On the role of global change science in sustainable development: Reflecting on Ye Duzheng’s contributions

Ye Duzheng was a world-renowned climate scientist and a pioneer of global change science in China and across the world. This paper revisits his ideas on linking global change science to sustainable development and his understanding of orderly human activities, along with his activities in leading research on global change science beginning in the early 1980s. Ye’s work has clearly shown that literacy in global change science and Earth system science and the interaction between the social and natural sciences and between policymakers and stakeholders at different levels are essential to sustainable development.

Katharine Hayhoe Named United Nations’ Champion of the Earth

A climate scientist and dedicated AGU member is recognized for her extraordinary work.