State of the Planet

News from the Columbia Climate School

20147

  • Photo Essay: A Day in the Life of the Hudson River

    Photo Essay: A Day in the Life of the Hudson River

    Once a year, Piermont Pier becomes a field station, and local students, a team of environmental investigators. On Tuesday, scientists at Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory led students through a series of field experiments designed to teach them more about the Hudson River.

  • MS Student Advocates for Sustainable Fashion

    MS Student Advocates for Sustainable Fashion

    After working in the University of Arizona’s Laboratory of Tree Ring Research, current Master of Science in Sustainability Management student Ruth Penniston joined the program with the intention of helping to bridge the gap between scientists and the rest of the world. Recently, Ruth began an internship at a sustainable fashion company, Modavanti, where she…

  • Designing a Sustainability Framework for China

    Designing a Sustainability Framework for China

    Earth Institute Executive Director Steven Cohen traveled to Beijing to formalize a partnership with the China Center for International Economic Exchanges, the preeminent think tank in China, to design sustainability metrics based on China’s unique development conditions.

  • Eco-Theater Engages Visitors at Lamont-Doherty’s Open House

    Eco-Theater Engages Visitors at Lamont-Doherty’s Open House

    Visitors to Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory’s open house on Oct. 11 could tune in to a performance of “Salty Folk” by Superhero Clubhouse, a collective of artists and environmental advocates. Created by Jeremy Pickard and Nate Weida, the play uses music and humor to illustrate the history and importance of New York Harbor through the “eyes”…

  • Administrative Internship in the Executive Director’s Office

    Administrative Internship in the Executive Director’s Office

    The Office of the Executive Director at the Earth Institute is seeking an intern to provide administrative support during the work week. Intern tasks include administrative work such as correspondence, scheduling, phone and desk coverage, photocopying, mailings, and errands. The intern may also be asked to provide research support to the team, including compiling and…

  • Volcanic Plumbing at Mid-Ocean Ridges Goes Far Deeper than Thought

    Volcanic Plumbing at Mid-Ocean Ridges Goes Far Deeper than Thought

    New pictures in the journal Nature Geoscience may help resolve a debate about how new crust forms at mid-ocean ridges where earth’s tectonic plates are slowly pulling apart.

  • Cohen: China’s Pollution Problems Mirroring U.S. Experience

    Cohen: China’s Pollution Problems Mirroring U.S. Experience

    China’s problems with air pollution mirror what the United States went through during the rapid economic growth following World War II, and the solutions will likely be the same, Earth Institute Executive Director Steven Cohen said Saturday on an English-language news program on China Central Television.

  • Watch Your Step: the Alpha Predator of the Ordovician

    Watch Your Step: the Alpha Predator of the Ordovician

    Frozen into the stone floor of a stairway landing, several flights up in Columbia’s Lewisohn Hall, sits a stark reminder of how life has evolved in the sea. Part 6 of the Columbia Geology Tour.

  • MS Professor Looks to Past for Future Drought Mitigation

    MS Professor Looks to Past for Future Drought Mitigation

    M.S. in Sustainability Management professor Ben Cook often tells his students that the past can provide critical lessons for how we manage sustainability challenges now and in the future. Thus, it is not surprising that Cook, whose research at the Earth Institute’s Lamont-Dougherty Earth Observatory focuses on drought, hydroclimate, and interactions between the land surface…

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

  • Photo Essay: A Day in the Life of the Hudson River

    Photo Essay: A Day in the Life of the Hudson River

    Once a year, Piermont Pier becomes a field station, and local students, a team of environmental investigators. On Tuesday, scientists at Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory led students through a series of field experiments designed to teach them more about the Hudson River.

  • MS Student Advocates for Sustainable Fashion

    MS Student Advocates for Sustainable Fashion

    After working in the University of Arizona’s Laboratory of Tree Ring Research, current Master of Science in Sustainability Management student Ruth Penniston joined the program with the intention of helping to bridge the gap between scientists and the rest of the world. Recently, Ruth began an internship at a sustainable fashion company, Modavanti, where she…

  • Designing a Sustainability Framework for China

    Designing a Sustainability Framework for China

    Earth Institute Executive Director Steven Cohen traveled to Beijing to formalize a partnership with the China Center for International Economic Exchanges, the preeminent think tank in China, to design sustainability metrics based on China’s unique development conditions.

  • Eco-Theater Engages Visitors at Lamont-Doherty’s Open House

    Eco-Theater Engages Visitors at Lamont-Doherty’s Open House

    Visitors to Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory’s open house on Oct. 11 could tune in to a performance of “Salty Folk” by Superhero Clubhouse, a collective of artists and environmental advocates. Created by Jeremy Pickard and Nate Weida, the play uses music and humor to illustrate the history and importance of New York Harbor through the “eyes”…

  • Administrative Internship in the Executive Director’s Office

    Administrative Internship in the Executive Director’s Office

    The Office of the Executive Director at the Earth Institute is seeking an intern to provide administrative support during the work week. Intern tasks include administrative work such as correspondence, scheduling, phone and desk coverage, photocopying, mailings, and errands. The intern may also be asked to provide research support to the team, including compiling and…

  • Volcanic Plumbing at Mid-Ocean Ridges Goes Far Deeper than Thought

    Volcanic Plumbing at Mid-Ocean Ridges Goes Far Deeper than Thought

    New pictures in the journal Nature Geoscience may help resolve a debate about how new crust forms at mid-ocean ridges where earth’s tectonic plates are slowly pulling apart.

  • Cohen: China’s Pollution Problems Mirroring U.S. Experience

    Cohen: China’s Pollution Problems Mirroring U.S. Experience

    China’s problems with air pollution mirror what the United States went through during the rapid economic growth following World War II, and the solutions will likely be the same, Earth Institute Executive Director Steven Cohen said Saturday on an English-language news program on China Central Television.

  • Watch Your Step: the Alpha Predator of the Ordovician

    Watch Your Step: the Alpha Predator of the Ordovician

    Frozen into the stone floor of a stairway landing, several flights up in Columbia’s Lewisohn Hall, sits a stark reminder of how life has evolved in the sea. Part 6 of the Columbia Geology Tour.

  • MS Professor Looks to Past for Future Drought Mitigation

    MS Professor Looks to Past for Future Drought Mitigation

    M.S. in Sustainability Management professor Ben Cook often tells his students that the past can provide critical lessons for how we manage sustainability challenges now and in the future. Thus, it is not surprising that Cook, whose research at the Earth Institute’s Lamont-Dougherty Earth Observatory focuses on drought, hydroclimate, and interactions between the land surface…