Anthropogenic is a term that relates to human-caused changes to the environment. Changes can be direct, such as agricultural activity, or they can be indirect, such as the decline in polar bear numbers resulting from a loss of sea ice from global warming.

A carbon sink is an area that is capable of absorbing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and storing it. Examples of carbon sinks include forests and oceans, as well as underground carbon deposits, such as oil or natural gas reservoirs.

The cryosphere refers to the Earth’s ice surface and includes sea ice, ice sheets, glaciers, and permafrost, or water frozen within the ground. During the height of climate change, the cryosphere was severely degraded, leading to a drastic rise in sea levels.