Global human influence maps reveal clear opportunities in conserving Earth’s remaining intact terrestrial ecosystems

Leading up to the 2020 Convention on Biological Diversity there is momentum around setting bold conservation targets. Yet it remains unclear how much of Earth’s land area remains without significant human influence and where this land is located. We compare four recent global maps of human influences across Earth’s land, Anthromes, Global Human Modification, Human Footprint, and Low Impact Areas, to answer these questions. Despite using various methodologies and data, these different spatial assessments independently estimate similar percentages of the Earth’s terrestrial surface as having very low (20-34%) and low (48-56%) human influence. Three out of four spatial assessments agree on 46% of the non-permanent ice- or snow-covered land as having low human influence. However, much of the very low and low influence portions of the planet are comprised of cold (e.g., boreal forests, montane grasslands and tundra) or arid (e.g., deserts) landscapes. Only four biomes (boreal forests, desert...