“We know there are thresholds we don’t want to cross,” says Chris Field. “But we don’t know precisely where they are.”

By analyzing decades of experiments, the researchers mapped the potential of carbon dioxide to increase forest biomass by the end of the century, when atmospheric concentrations of the gas could nearly double. This, in turn, will enable plants and trees to store more carbon.

Soil, writes Rob Jackson, “is a no-risk climate solution with big co-benefits. Fostering soil health protects food security and builds resilience to droughts, floods, and urbanization.”

"We ought to recognize that we have profound limits on the amount of land available and we have to be careful about how we utilize it,” Chris Field says about a new United Nations scientific report.