 The global climate is changing rapidly, leading to increasingly extreme weather events, mainly due to the rising temperature in the Earth's atmosphere, a rising temperature driven by increasing emission of greenhouse gases, carbon dioxide, methane, nitrous oxide. These all trap heat in the atmosphere. More than 24% of these gases are emitted by agricultural practices and they continue to increase due to inappropriate changes in land use, excessive use of chemical fertilizer, increasing numbers of ruminants, and deforestation. Of these gases, nitrous oxide is 300 times more powerful than carbon dioxide in causing global warming, and it stays in the atmosphere for more than 120 years. Microbial processes in the soil convert nitrogen fertilizers and animal manure into nitrous oxide, which is then emitted into the atmosphere. To minimize this process, it is crucial to identify first the origin and then measure the extent of the emission. Since nitrous oxide contains nitrogen atoms, it is possible to use what is known as the nitrogen-15 stable isotope technique, which calls for applying nitrogen-15 labeled fertilizers to defined soil plots, and then measuring the difference between the labeled and unlabeled nitrous oxide that is emitted. This allows accurate and precise tracing of the nitrous oxide emissions. As for methane and carbon dioxide, whose atmospheric concentrations began increasing with the industrial revolution in the mid to late 1700s, both contain a carbon atom. This means the movement and origin of both can be measured by the carbon-13 stable isotope technique, and again provide information crucial to the mitigation of greenhouse gases. Only through the use of these stable isotope techniques is it possible to obtain essential information on the origin and extent of agriculturally derived greenhouse gases. Information which is pivotal in global efforts to reduce these gases and develop the sustainable, climate-smart agricultural practices that will shape the future.