---
title: "Anthropocene Working Group"
chunk: 2/2
source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anthropocene_Working_Group"
category: "reference"
tags: "science, encyclopedia"
date_saved: "2026-05-05T03:57:13.545922+00:00"
instance: "kb-cron"
---

== Research ==
The Anthropocene Working Group is one of four workings groups part of the Subcommission on Quaternary Stratigraphy (the other three being the Pleistocene–Holocene boundary working group, Middle/Late Pleistocene boundary working group, and Early/Middle Pleistocene boundary working group). The AWG members (including Paul Crutzen, who was awarded the Nobel prize for chemistry in 1995 for his researcher on ozone depletion; John McNeill, a pioneering researcher in the field of environmental history; and Naomi Oreskes, author of the book Merchants of Doubt) have diverse disciplinary backgrounds, ranging from international law, archaeology, and history to philosophy, natural science, and geography. Since no direct funding supports the research program, communication among members happens mostly through email, whereas meetings are usually founded by hosting institutions.
As for most of the epochs in the Phanerozoic (the current Eon, starting 539 million years ago), determining the beginning of the Anthropocene by locating and agreeing upon its lower boundary is a necessary step in its process of formal recognition as a geochronological/chronostratigraphic unit. A lower boundary is defined by locating a GSSP (informally known as 'golden spike') in the stratigraphic section of a stage, the chronostratigraphic taxonomic equivalent of an epoch. Alternatively, if a 'golden spike' cannot be located, a GSSA can be agreed upon, although this methodology is usually implemented for Precambrian boundaries. There is a specific set of rules that a GSSP must fulfill in order to be recognized as a valid primary geologic marker.
A central object of research for the AWG is establishing when, where, and how to locate the lower boundary of the Anthropocene. This means assigning a starting date to the Anthropocene (and an end to the Holocene), locating primary as well as auxiliary markers defining Anthropocene geologic record, and determining the proper methodology to implement in the overall process of formalization (GSSP or GSSA, what proxies to use as markers, etc.). Although debates on the taxonomical level of the Anthropocene in the chronostratigraphic chart / geologic time scale (Stage/Age, Series/Epoch, or System/Period) have occurred, the AWG has been considering the Anthropocene to best fit the requirements to be taxonomically recognized as an epoch.
In January 2014, the Geological Society of London published A Stratigraphical Basis for the Anthropocene, a collection of scientific essays dedicated to assessing and analyzing the anthropogenic signatures defining the Anthropocene, and its requirements to be recognized as a distinct chronostratigraphic unit from the Holocene. The volume constitutes a landmark publication for the AWG, collecting a preliminary body of scientific evidence for the Anthropocene, and establishing research areas and trajectories retraced in the following years.
In February 2019, the AWG published The Anthropocene as a Geological Time Unit: A Guide to the Scientific Evidence and Current Debate. It represents an extensive summary of evidence collected supporting the case of formalization of the Anthropocene as a geological time unit. The synthesis comprehends evidence ranging from stratigraphy, lithostratigraphy, mineralogy, biostratigraphy, chemostratigraphy, to climatology, Earth system science, and archaeology. The monograph also links the Anthropocene to the question concerning anthropogenic climate change, and the role of human technology and the technosphere in impacting the functioning of the Earth system. In the first chapter, the authors also provide a genealogy of the term 'Anthropocene,' and a statement of the role of the AWG as a scientific research program.
In May, 2019, the AWG completed a binding vote determining two major research questions:

"Should the Anthropocene be treated as a formal chrono-stratigraphic unit defined by a GSSP?"
"Should the primary guide for the base of the Anthropocene be one of the stratigraphic signals around the mid-twentieth century of the Common Era?"
Both questions received a positive response, with 29 votes in favor, 4 votes against, and no abstention (33 votes received out of 34 potential voting members).
On July 11, 2023, the AWG proposed Crawford Lake, Canada as GSSP candidate site of the Anthropocene series in a joint press conference with the Max Planck Society.

== Media ==

In 2016 seven prominent members of the AWG – Erle Ellis, John McNeill, Eric Odada, Andrew Revkin, Will Steffen, Davor Vidas and Jan Zalasiewicz –  were interviewed in the feature documentary Anthropocene which showed on campuses and at film festivals worldwide and helped the term gain public attention. The documentary was the first feature-length film about the new epoch, and was described by Earth.com as one of the top ten documentaries to help raise environmental awareness. While the seven AWG members formed a broad consensus about the Anthropocene's history and the term's significance, they took contrasting views when invited by director Steve Bradshaw to consider the Anthropocene either as a tragedy – with extinctions and upheavals – or as a dark comedy.

== See also ==
Research program
Geochronology
Chronostratigraphy
List of GSSPs
History of geology
Attribution of recent climate change
Human ecology

== References ==