State of the Planet

News from the Columbia Climate School

201414

  • On Bananas, Coffee and Teaching Environmental Links to Conflict

    On Bananas, Coffee and Teaching Environmental Links to Conflict

    Student demand, a surge in new ideas, and various partnerships with the Earth Institute at Columbia University have led to the new Environment, Peace, and Security Executive Seminar.

  • Kenneth Hunkins, Arctic Oceanographer

    While Adrift on Ice Floes, He Charted Unexplored Depths

  • Fall Courses in Sustainability & Conservation

    Fall Courses in Sustainability & Conservation

    The Earth Institute Center for Environmental Sustainability (EICES) at Columbia University invites you to enroll in courses this Fall via our Certificate Program in Conservation and Environmental Sustainability.

  • Photo Essay: Studying Fracking’s Effects, Up Close and Personal

    Photo Essay: Studying Fracking’s Effects, Up Close and Personal

    Ten years ago, hydraulic fracturing barely existed. Today 45,000 fracked wells produce natural gas, providing energy for millions of homes and businesses, and nearly a quarter of the nation’s electricity. But scientists are far behind in understanding how this boom affects people near wells. Geochemists Beizhan Yan and James Ross of Columbia University’s Lamont-Doherty Earth…

  • Learning from the Era of American Environmental Leadership

    Learning from the Era of American Environmental Leadership

    Earth Institute Executive Director Steve Cohen discusses what sustainability leaders can learn from American environmental leaders of the past through a new course taught at Columbia University by Leon G. Billings and Thomas C. Jorling, authors of the Clean Air Act.

  • Faculty Profile: Robert Cook

    Faculty Profile: Robert Cook

    For Robert Cook, an adjunct professor in the MPA in Environmental Science program, teaching allows him to share his unique experiences in veterinary medicine and conservation research with students as they delve into public policy legislation in the Workshop in Applied Earth Systems Management.

  • How Much Arsenic is Too Little?

    How Much Arsenic is Too Little?

    Five hundred utilities in the U.S. provide drinking water with unsafe levels of arsenic, the Environmental Protection Agency says. But how many people are getting too much arsenic in their water is much less clear, according to a study conducted in part by the Columbia Water Center.

  • Erosion, Then Explosion

    Erosion, Then Explosion

    When viewing The Great Unconformity, The result of a vast denudation, One feels a new sense of enormity … And above it lie critters crustacean!

  • Reduce, Reuse and Re-(bi)cycle

    Reduce, Reuse and Re-(bi)cycle

    Audra Stark plans to pedal 300 miles from New York City to Washington, D.C., from Sept. 20-24 to raise money for The Earth Institute and other organizations working on the issues of climate, environment and transportation. “Too often I’ve found myself and others complaining about and debating an issue without taking action in our daily…

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

  • On Bananas, Coffee and Teaching Environmental Links to Conflict

    On Bananas, Coffee and Teaching Environmental Links to Conflict

    Student demand, a surge in new ideas, and various partnerships with the Earth Institute at Columbia University have led to the new Environment, Peace, and Security Executive Seminar.

  • Kenneth Hunkins, Arctic Oceanographer

    While Adrift on Ice Floes, He Charted Unexplored Depths

  • Fall Courses in Sustainability & Conservation

    Fall Courses in Sustainability & Conservation

    The Earth Institute Center for Environmental Sustainability (EICES) at Columbia University invites you to enroll in courses this Fall via our Certificate Program in Conservation and Environmental Sustainability.

  • Photo Essay: Studying Fracking’s Effects, Up Close and Personal

    Photo Essay: Studying Fracking’s Effects, Up Close and Personal

    Ten years ago, hydraulic fracturing barely existed. Today 45,000 fracked wells produce natural gas, providing energy for millions of homes and businesses, and nearly a quarter of the nation’s electricity. But scientists are far behind in understanding how this boom affects people near wells. Geochemists Beizhan Yan and James Ross of Columbia University’s Lamont-Doherty Earth…

  • Learning from the Era of American Environmental Leadership

    Learning from the Era of American Environmental Leadership

    Earth Institute Executive Director Steve Cohen discusses what sustainability leaders can learn from American environmental leaders of the past through a new course taught at Columbia University by Leon G. Billings and Thomas C. Jorling, authors of the Clean Air Act.

  • Faculty Profile: Robert Cook

    Faculty Profile: Robert Cook

    For Robert Cook, an adjunct professor in the MPA in Environmental Science program, teaching allows him to share his unique experiences in veterinary medicine and conservation research with students as they delve into public policy legislation in the Workshop in Applied Earth Systems Management.

  • How Much Arsenic is Too Little?

    How Much Arsenic is Too Little?

    Five hundred utilities in the U.S. provide drinking water with unsafe levels of arsenic, the Environmental Protection Agency says. But how many people are getting too much arsenic in their water is much less clear, according to a study conducted in part by the Columbia Water Center.

  • Erosion, Then Explosion

    Erosion, Then Explosion

    When viewing The Great Unconformity, The result of a vast denudation, One feels a new sense of enormity … And above it lie critters crustacean!

  • Reduce, Reuse and Re-(bi)cycle

    Reduce, Reuse and Re-(bi)cycle

    Audra Stark plans to pedal 300 miles from New York City to Washington, D.C., from Sept. 20-24 to raise money for The Earth Institute and other organizations working on the issues of climate, environment and transportation. “Too often I’ve found myself and others complaining about and debating an issue without taking action in our daily…