Justin Adams, global managing director, lands, at The Nature Conservancy contributed this article to Live Science's Expert Voices: Op-Ed & Insights.

This is a big year for the planet. Just look at the United Nations' calendar.

Just last week, the global community saw the launch of the U.N.'s new and ambitious 15-year Sustainable Development Goals. And in December, leaders will be convening at the U.N.'s Conference of Parties (COP) 21 in Paris with the hopes of coming to a worldwide agreement — after more than 20 years in the process — to reverse runaway carbon emissions and minimize climate change.