State of the Planet

News from the Columbia Climate School

Author: Earth Institute33

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  • Work on Dead Sea Geology Earns Yael Kiro an Award

    Work on Dead Sea Geology Earns Yael Kiro an Award

    Yael Kiro, an associate research scientist at Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory, has received the 2017 Professor Rafi Freund Award from the Israel Geological Society for work published on the ancient climate history of the Dead Sea.

  • Forest-Friendly Development Can Bolster Peace in Colombia, Paper Says

    Forest-Friendly Development Can Bolster Peace in Colombia, Paper Says

    As Colombia rebuilds following last year’s historic peace deal with Marxist FARC rebels, it has an opening to advance sustainable land development, a new study contends.

  • The Science of Carbon Dioxide and Climate

    The Science of Carbon Dioxide and Climate

    The vast majority of scientists around the world agree that our climate is changing at a faster rate than ever recorded in human history because of our use of fuels such as coal and oil, so-called fossil fuels. The conclusion rests on basic physics known since the early 1800s, when physical scientists first recognized that…

  • Grasslands More Sensitive to Dryness than Rainfall, Study Says

    Grasslands More Sensitive to Dryness than Rainfall, Study Says

    A new study shows that dryness of the atmosphere affects U.S. grassland productivity more than rainfall does. The findings could have important implications for predicting how plants will respond to warming climate conditions.

  • What’s So Funny About Science?

    What’s So Funny About Science?

    An astrophysicist, a TV comedy writer and the author of an opera about the Big Bang walk into a room…

  • Columbia, Princeton Scientists Share 2017 Vetlesen Prize

    Columbia, Princeton Scientists Share 2017 Vetlesen Prize

    S. George Philander of Princeton University and Mark A. Cane of Columbia University’s Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory, who untangled the complex forces that drive El Niño, the world’s most powerful weather cycle, have won the 2017 Vetlesen Prize for achievement in earth sciences.

  • Lamont to Develop New Earthquake and Tsunami Warning System

    Lamont to Develop New Earthquake and Tsunami Warning System

    A new pilot program led by the Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory aims to provide earlier and more accurate warnings of damaging ground-shaking from earthquakes and the imminent arrival of tsunamis.

  • Columbia Alumni Making Sense of Sustainable Investing

    Columbia Alumni Making Sense of Sustainable Investing

    While more institutional investors are factoring sustainability in their investment decisions, there is little agreement about what sustainability means, or how to measure it. Interviews with three sustainable investment professionals—all graduates of Columbia University’s Sustainability Management graduate program—indicate a growing demand for investing that accounts for sustainability performance, but also obstacles to discerning the best…

  • Learn About Environmental Sustainability and Conservation

    Learn About Environmental Sustainability and Conservation

    The Earth Institute Center for Environmental Sustainability offers an Executive Education Program in Environmental Sustainability and Conservation that is geared toward professionals seeking an understanding of our natural world and our changing environment.

  • Work on Dead Sea Geology Earns Yael Kiro an Award

    Work on Dead Sea Geology Earns Yael Kiro an Award

    Yael Kiro, an associate research scientist at Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory, has received the 2017 Professor Rafi Freund Award from the Israel Geological Society for work published on the ancient climate history of the Dead Sea.

  • Forest-Friendly Development Can Bolster Peace in Colombia, Paper Says

    Forest-Friendly Development Can Bolster Peace in Colombia, Paper Says

    As Colombia rebuilds following last year’s historic peace deal with Marxist FARC rebels, it has an opening to advance sustainable land development, a new study contends.

  • The Science of Carbon Dioxide and Climate

    The Science of Carbon Dioxide and Climate

    The vast majority of scientists around the world agree that our climate is changing at a faster rate than ever recorded in human history because of our use of fuels such as coal and oil, so-called fossil fuels. The conclusion rests on basic physics known since the early 1800s, when physical scientists first recognized that…

  • Grasslands More Sensitive to Dryness than Rainfall, Study Says

    Grasslands More Sensitive to Dryness than Rainfall, Study Says

    A new study shows that dryness of the atmosphere affects U.S. grassland productivity more than rainfall does. The findings could have important implications for predicting how plants will respond to warming climate conditions.

  • What’s So Funny About Science?

    What’s So Funny About Science?

    An astrophysicist, a TV comedy writer and the author of an opera about the Big Bang walk into a room…

  • Columbia, Princeton Scientists Share 2017 Vetlesen Prize

    Columbia, Princeton Scientists Share 2017 Vetlesen Prize

    S. George Philander of Princeton University and Mark A. Cane of Columbia University’s Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory, who untangled the complex forces that drive El Niño, the world’s most powerful weather cycle, have won the 2017 Vetlesen Prize for achievement in earth sciences.

  • Lamont to Develop New Earthquake and Tsunami Warning System

    Lamont to Develop New Earthquake and Tsunami Warning System

    A new pilot program led by the Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory aims to provide earlier and more accurate warnings of damaging ground-shaking from earthquakes and the imminent arrival of tsunamis.

  • Columbia Alumni Making Sense of Sustainable Investing

    Columbia Alumni Making Sense of Sustainable Investing

    While more institutional investors are factoring sustainability in their investment decisions, there is little agreement about what sustainability means, or how to measure it. Interviews with three sustainable investment professionals—all graduates of Columbia University’s Sustainability Management graduate program—indicate a growing demand for investing that accounts for sustainability performance, but also obstacles to discerning the best…

  • Learn About Environmental Sustainability and Conservation

    Learn About Environmental Sustainability and Conservation

    The Earth Institute Center for Environmental Sustainability offers an Executive Education Program in Environmental Sustainability and Conservation that is geared toward professionals seeking an understanding of our natural world and our changing environment.