Johan Rockström

Why you should listen

Johan Rockström is an internationally recognized scientist for his work on global sustainability. He helped lead a team of scientists that developed the planetary boundaries framework, first published in 2009 and updated in 2015 and 2023. The framework advocates for keeping our planet within the nine planetary boundaries in order to maintain a "safe operating space for humanity." The planetary boundaries have been embraced as a cornerstone of sustainable development and has been used to help guide governments, international organizations, NGOs and companies considering sustainable development.

Before focusing on the planetary scale, Rockström's research focused on water resources and building resilience in water-scarce regions. After completing a PhD at Stockholm University's Systems Ecology Department in 1997, he spent over a decade working on applied water research in tropical regions.

Rockström cofounded the Stockholm Resilience Centre and is currently director of the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research in Germany. He co-chaired the EAT-Lancet Commission on healthy diets from sustainable food systems, published in 2019 and he is co-chair of Future Earth and the Earth Commission. In May 2024 he was awarded with the 2024 Tyler Prize for Environmental Achievement for his pioneering work on the Planetary Boundaries framework.

Rockström has published more than 150 research articles, including articles in Science and Nature, and 20 book chapters. He is a regular speaker at the World Economic Forum in Davos and has also published five books: Breaking Boundaries (2021), The Human Quest (2012) and Big World Small Planet (2015), with National Geographic photographer Mattias Klum; coauthored Water Resilience for Human Prosperity (2014); and coauthored Bankrupting Nature (2012) with Swedish writer and politician Anders Wijkman.