Initiative to quantify terrestrial carbon sources and sinks

Questions related to the distribution and spatio‐temporal dynamics of the terrestrial carbon fluxes are at the core of current scientific and policy debates. In recent years, the primary concern has been the increasing CO2 content in the atmosphere, its effect on climate, and the associated role of terrestrial ecosystems in mitigating the increase and impact of climate change. However, terrestrial carbon dynamics is also closely related to biodiversity land degradation, and other pressing policy and assessment questions. Yet at the global level, no system in place now can provide quantitative information about carbon sources and sinks systematically, reliably, and accurately.