State of the Planet

News from the Columbia Climate School

200929

  • Fix a Leak Week, March 16-20, 2009

    New York’s Department of Environmental Protection is sponsoring Fix a Leak Week this week throughout the city. In addition to the free water-saving kits (mentioned below in Samantha’s post), the city seems to be actively tackling the issue of water preservation.

  • Behavior, policy, and climate change

    Climate change is often discussed as the ultimate market failure: in the absence of laws that change incentives, decisions to maximize individual self-interest will not produce the socially desirable outcome of reducing carbon emissions and preserving the climate system. The role of individual and institutional behavior in bringing about the necessary changes is rarely discussed outside…

  • IBM’s Water Membrane

    Scientists at IBM Research, together with collaborators from Central Glass, KACST and the University of Texas, Austin have created a new membrane that filters out salts as well as potentially harmful toxins in water such as arsenic while using less energy than other forms of water purification. According to the press release, this materials in…

  • Laptops and MTV in Rural Kenyan School

    Flashback for a second. Though it may seem like long time ago, it’s been a mere 2 months since Obama took the oath. A lot has changed since. On the evening of January 20, the President and the First Lady whirled through his new backyard stopping off at several different parties, one of which was…

  • Water for Profit?

    I’ve long been fascinated by the concept of privatization of water.  I can think of few topics related to natural resources that are so controversial.  I tend to reject the claim, espoused by many including former Water Center speaker Maude Barlow, that water is a basic human right and therefore should never be private.  While water…

  • Water Usage Per Person

    Seeing Samantha’s post on water conservation kits reminded me how much water we use in the US compared to others in the world. The above data is from UNDP Human Development Report 2006. For your reference, 1 liter = 0.264172052 US gallons. I hope there are a lot of related posts that come from this…

  • Pole of Inaccessibility

    Hidden beneath 2.5 miles of ice, the Gamburtsev Mountains in eastern Antarctica are the most mysterious peaks on Earth. Michael Studinger, a scientist at Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory, helped lead a recent expedition to map these invisible mountains using geophysical instruments. He will speak this Sunday about his trip. He answers a few questions here: Q:…

  • Picturing Climate Change

    Intense public interest in changing climate has led to a wave of books. Among the entries,  one upcoming standout is Climate Change: Picturing the Science, from W.W. Norton in April. The book is a  journey around the globe via essays and images from top-flight scientists and photographers. The visuals and narration range from field research in remote polar regions to the giant gates now being erected in European…

  • Free water saving kits from NYC DEP

    If you go to the New York City Department of Environmental Protection website, you’ll see that nearly half the items on the homepage are about water. There’s the large scale, like protecting and maintaining the sewer systems and watersheds, and also the smaller scale, such as their rain barrel and residential water conservation programs. As…

Photo of the Earth from space with the text "Lamont at AGU25" on top.

AGU25, the premier Earth and space science conference, takes place December 15-19, 2025 in New Orleans, Louisiana. This year’s theme—Where Science Connects Us—puts in focus how science depends on connection, from the lab to the field to the ballot box. Once again, Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory and Columbia Climate School scientists, experts, students, and educators are playing an active role, sharing our research and helping shape the future of our planet. #AGU25 Learn More

  • Fix a Leak Week, March 16-20, 2009

    New York’s Department of Environmental Protection is sponsoring Fix a Leak Week this week throughout the city. In addition to the free water-saving kits (mentioned below in Samantha’s post), the city seems to be actively tackling the issue of water preservation.

  • Behavior, policy, and climate change

    Climate change is often discussed as the ultimate market failure: in the absence of laws that change incentives, decisions to maximize individual self-interest will not produce the socially desirable outcome of reducing carbon emissions and preserving the climate system. The role of individual and institutional behavior in bringing about the necessary changes is rarely discussed outside…

  • IBM’s Water Membrane

    Scientists at IBM Research, together with collaborators from Central Glass, KACST and the University of Texas, Austin have created a new membrane that filters out salts as well as potentially harmful toxins in water such as arsenic while using less energy than other forms of water purification. According to the press release, this materials in…

  • Laptops and MTV in Rural Kenyan School

    Flashback for a second. Though it may seem like long time ago, it’s been a mere 2 months since Obama took the oath. A lot has changed since. On the evening of January 20, the President and the First Lady whirled through his new backyard stopping off at several different parties, one of which was…

  • Water for Profit?

    I’ve long been fascinated by the concept of privatization of water.  I can think of few topics related to natural resources that are so controversial.  I tend to reject the claim, espoused by many including former Water Center speaker Maude Barlow, that water is a basic human right and therefore should never be private.  While water…

  • Water Usage Per Person

    Seeing Samantha’s post on water conservation kits reminded me how much water we use in the US compared to others in the world. The above data is from UNDP Human Development Report 2006. For your reference, 1 liter = 0.264172052 US gallons. I hope there are a lot of related posts that come from this…

  • Pole of Inaccessibility

    Hidden beneath 2.5 miles of ice, the Gamburtsev Mountains in eastern Antarctica are the most mysterious peaks on Earth. Michael Studinger, a scientist at Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory, helped lead a recent expedition to map these invisible mountains using geophysical instruments. He will speak this Sunday about his trip. He answers a few questions here: Q:…

  • Picturing Climate Change

    Intense public interest in changing climate has led to a wave of books. Among the entries,  one upcoming standout is Climate Change: Picturing the Science, from W.W. Norton in April. The book is a  journey around the globe via essays and images from top-flight scientists and photographers. The visuals and narration range from field research in remote polar regions to the giant gates now being erected in European…

  • Free water saving kits from NYC DEP

    If you go to the New York City Department of Environmental Protection website, you’ll see that nearly half the items on the homepage are about water. There’s the large scale, like protecting and maintaining the sewer systems and watersheds, and also the smaller scale, such as their rain barrel and residential water conservation programs. As…