State of the Planet

News from the Columbia Climate School

Ecology45

  • Spring Courses in Conservation, Ecology & Policy

    Spring Courses in Conservation, Ecology & Policy

    The Earth Institute Center for Environmental Sustainability (EICES) at Columbia University provides executive training in environmental sustainability through courses in science, economics and policy. We invite you to join our leading experts and practitioners, strengthen your understanding of human-ecosystem interactions, and become an effective environmental leader and decision-maker.

  • ‘Are You Using This Idea for Your Thesis Research?’ [UPDATE]

    ‘Are You Using This Idea for Your Thesis Research?’ [UPDATE]

    “Are you using this idea for your thesis research?” I heard this as I stood in front of a classroom full of old-growth forest ecology students. The question had come from Neil Pederson, who was sitting directly in front of me. He was asking this question because I had just spent the past 12 minutes…

  • Extreme Weather Adds Up to Troubling Future

    Extreme Weather Adds Up to Troubling Future

    Extreme weather and climate-related events already have cost the United States billions of dollars. A recent symposium focused on what we know about the causes and how changing climate affects agriculture, water supplies, wildlife and our economy.

  • Migration in Risk-Prone Areas

    Migration in Risk-Prone Areas

    Access to data that lets us analyze global migration patterns is critical to climate change adaptation planning, among other applications.

  • Coral Reef Ecology: Bermuda – Spring Break Course

    Coral Reef Ecology: Bermuda – Spring Break Course

    Bermuda is a world leader in marine conservation and the perfect place to experience the wonder of coral reefs. Let the Earth Institute Center for Environmental Sustainability (EICES) and the Bermuda Institute of Ocean Sciences (BIOS) be your guides to the world of corals through lectures, labs, and fieldwork.

  • Rosario’s Farm: Rising Tides, Shrimp from the Forest

    Rosario’s Farm: Rising Tides, Shrimp from the Forest

    Rosario Costa-Cabral and her brothers harvest hundreds of fruits, oils and wood products from the stream-laced forest of the Amazon River delta. But the climate here is changing: Tides rise higher, and seasonal floods are growing worse.

  • Wildlife: The Other High-Value Resource

    Wildlife: The Other High-Value Resource

    As wildlife trafficking has become more lucrative, widespread and organized over the past few years, the definition of high-value natural resources should be modified to include the commercial values of wildlife and its products.

  • Explore Field Ecology in Puerto Rico

    Explore Field Ecology in Puerto Rico

    The Earth Institute’s Summer Ecosystem Experiences for Undergraduates (SEE-U) program provides undergraduate students of all majors from all accredited colleges or universities with a global understanding of ecology and environmental sustainability.

  • Smaller Colorado River Projected for Coming Decades, Study Says

    Smaller Colorado River Projected for Coming Decades, Study Says

    Some 40 million people depend on the Colorado River Basin for water but warmer weather from rising greenhouse gas levels and a growing population may signal water shortages ahead.

Composite banner with modern building at night and portrait of Dean Alexis Abramson that reads "Science for the Planet"

By studying thousands of buildings and analyzing their electricity use, Columbia Climate School Dean Alexis Abramson has been able to uncover ways to significantly cut energy consumption and emissions. Watch the Video: “Engineering a Cooler Future Through Smarter Buildings“

  • Spring Courses in Conservation, Ecology & Policy

    Spring Courses in Conservation, Ecology & Policy

    The Earth Institute Center for Environmental Sustainability (EICES) at Columbia University provides executive training in environmental sustainability through courses in science, economics and policy. We invite you to join our leading experts and practitioners, strengthen your understanding of human-ecosystem interactions, and become an effective environmental leader and decision-maker.

  • ‘Are You Using This Idea for Your Thesis Research?’ [UPDATE]

    ‘Are You Using This Idea for Your Thesis Research?’ [UPDATE]

    “Are you using this idea for your thesis research?” I heard this as I stood in front of a classroom full of old-growth forest ecology students. The question had come from Neil Pederson, who was sitting directly in front of me. He was asking this question because I had just spent the past 12 minutes…

  • Extreme Weather Adds Up to Troubling Future

    Extreme Weather Adds Up to Troubling Future

    Extreme weather and climate-related events already have cost the United States billions of dollars. A recent symposium focused on what we know about the causes and how changing climate affects agriculture, water supplies, wildlife and our economy.

  • Migration in Risk-Prone Areas

    Migration in Risk-Prone Areas

    Access to data that lets us analyze global migration patterns is critical to climate change adaptation planning, among other applications.

  • Coral Reef Ecology: Bermuda – Spring Break Course

    Coral Reef Ecology: Bermuda – Spring Break Course

    Bermuda is a world leader in marine conservation and the perfect place to experience the wonder of coral reefs. Let the Earth Institute Center for Environmental Sustainability (EICES) and the Bermuda Institute of Ocean Sciences (BIOS) be your guides to the world of corals through lectures, labs, and fieldwork.

  • Rosario’s Farm: Rising Tides, Shrimp from the Forest

    Rosario’s Farm: Rising Tides, Shrimp from the Forest

    Rosario Costa-Cabral and her brothers harvest hundreds of fruits, oils and wood products from the stream-laced forest of the Amazon River delta. But the climate here is changing: Tides rise higher, and seasonal floods are growing worse.

  • Wildlife: The Other High-Value Resource

    Wildlife: The Other High-Value Resource

    As wildlife trafficking has become more lucrative, widespread and organized over the past few years, the definition of high-value natural resources should be modified to include the commercial values of wildlife and its products.

  • Explore Field Ecology in Puerto Rico

    Explore Field Ecology in Puerto Rico

    The Earth Institute’s Summer Ecosystem Experiences for Undergraduates (SEE-U) program provides undergraduate students of all majors from all accredited colleges or universities with a global understanding of ecology and environmental sustainability.

  • Smaller Colorado River Projected for Coming Decades, Study Says

    Smaller Colorado River Projected for Coming Decades, Study Says

    Some 40 million people depend on the Colorado River Basin for water but warmer weather from rising greenhouse gas levels and a growing population may signal water shortages ahead.