Canadian photographer Edward Burtynsky is widely recognised for his depictions of global industrial landscapes and his work is included in the collections of over 60 major museums around the world, including the Museum of Modern Art and the Guggenheim Museum in New York, the Reina Sofia Museum in Madrid and the Tate Modern in London.

Burtynsky first encountered the term “Anthropocene” when he was invited to contribute to a special issue of National Geographic in 2008. At the time, a small but growing band of scientists began to conclude that humanity had altered the planet to the extent that we had entered a new geologic time scale.

For Burtynsky, defining the Anthropocene is a matter of urgency. Once formalised, he believes it will act as a body of evidence that policymakers can use to promote and enact changes that could slow or reverse climate change. He worries that we might be nearing the point of no return.