State of the Planet

News from the Columbia Climate School

201645

  • With Climate, Fertilizing Oceans Could be Zero-Sum Game

    In Pacific, Added Iron May Not Pull Carbon From Air as Thought

  • Students Help an Urban Farm Rethink Its Future

    Students Help an Urban Farm Rethink Its Future

    In the Fair Haven section of New Haven, Conn., rates of obesity and diabetes are high, and access to healthy fresh food can be limited. For some residents, the New Haven Farms wellness program is just the prescription, but the organization is struggling to grow. Now, students studying sustainability management through the Earth Institute have…

  • The Clean Power Plan Overcomes Another Attack

    The politics of climate change remains contentious, with Democrats more concerned about the issue than Republicans. What is most interesting about the polling data is that young people are far more concerned about climate change than older people.

  • In Gulf of Mexico, Microbes Thrive Above Natural Oil Seeps

    New insight into how plankton and oil interact

  • Developing a Sustainable Tourism Industry in China

    Developing a Sustainable Tourism Industry in China

    Last week, members of the Research Program on Sustainability Policy and Management traveled to Huizhou, China, to present their initial findings for a study on sustainable tourism for the IBM Smarter Cities initiative.

  • Study Tracks an Abrupt Climate Shift as Ice Age Glaciers Began to Retreat

    Study Tracks an Abrupt Climate Shift as Ice Age Glaciers Began to Retreat

    That change would have affected the monsoons, today relied on to feed over half the world’s population, and could have helped tip the climate system over the threshold for deglaciation.

  • Faculty Profile: Marianne Lado

    Faculty Profile: Marianne Lado

    “In today’s world, whether we think about the local, regional, national or even international settings, tackling sustainability requires consideration of the communities most affected by environmental degradation and ensuring that community members have meaningful opportunities to participate in decisions affecting their lives.”

  • 2015: The Hottest Year

    2016 May Be Even Hotter

  • There’s Plenty of Blame for Flint, Michigan’s Water Crisis

    The federal government sets the drinking water standards in America, even though monitoring and administration is delegated to the states. The federal EPA had the authority and responsibility to intervene. The failure in Flint belongs to all of us and it should lead to some hard thinking about the causes of this completely avoidable environmental…

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

  • With Climate, Fertilizing Oceans Could be Zero-Sum Game

    In Pacific, Added Iron May Not Pull Carbon From Air as Thought

  • Students Help an Urban Farm Rethink Its Future

    Students Help an Urban Farm Rethink Its Future

    In the Fair Haven section of New Haven, Conn., rates of obesity and diabetes are high, and access to healthy fresh food can be limited. For some residents, the New Haven Farms wellness program is just the prescription, but the organization is struggling to grow. Now, students studying sustainability management through the Earth Institute have…

  • The Clean Power Plan Overcomes Another Attack

    The politics of climate change remains contentious, with Democrats more concerned about the issue than Republicans. What is most interesting about the polling data is that young people are far more concerned about climate change than older people.

  • In Gulf of Mexico, Microbes Thrive Above Natural Oil Seeps

    New insight into how plankton and oil interact

  • Developing a Sustainable Tourism Industry in China

    Developing a Sustainable Tourism Industry in China

    Last week, members of the Research Program on Sustainability Policy and Management traveled to Huizhou, China, to present their initial findings for a study on sustainable tourism for the IBM Smarter Cities initiative.

  • Study Tracks an Abrupt Climate Shift as Ice Age Glaciers Began to Retreat

    Study Tracks an Abrupt Climate Shift as Ice Age Glaciers Began to Retreat

    That change would have affected the monsoons, today relied on to feed over half the world’s population, and could have helped tip the climate system over the threshold for deglaciation.

  • Faculty Profile: Marianne Lado

    Faculty Profile: Marianne Lado

    “In today’s world, whether we think about the local, regional, national or even international settings, tackling sustainability requires consideration of the communities most affected by environmental degradation and ensuring that community members have meaningful opportunities to participate in decisions affecting their lives.”

  • 2015: The Hottest Year

    2016 May Be Even Hotter

  • There’s Plenty of Blame for Flint, Michigan’s Water Crisis

    The federal government sets the drinking water standards in America, even though monitoring and administration is delegated to the states. The federal EPA had the authority and responsibility to intervene. The failure in Flint belongs to all of us and it should lead to some hard thinking about the causes of this completely avoidable environmental…