Understanding the earth’s climate system has never been more crucial.

At a time when the evidence is stronger than ever that human activity is the primary cause for global climate change, Ruddiman's breakthrough text provides a thorough and multi-disciplinary introduction to the earth’s climate. It offers a clear, engaging, objective portrait of the current state of climate science, including compelling recent findings on global warming and important advances in understanding past climates.

Ruddiman's textbook presents an overview of the record of early human effects on landscapes and climate, from the beginnings of agriculture development through to the Industrial Revolution, moving into present day.