State of the Planet

News from the Columbia Climate School

Ecology66

  • Attack of the Warzone Water Bottles

    Attack of the Warzone Water Bottles

    Using bottled water in war zones uses oil and pollutes the environment. But Defense officials are looking to move toward sustainability.

  • A Warm Welcome to the New Baby Zebra at the Bronx Zoo

    A Warm Welcome to the New Baby Zebra at the Bronx Zoo

    Terri, a baby zebra born earlier this year in the Bronx Zoo, made her public debut this week, strutting her pale brownish stripes in the Wildlife Conservation Society’s African Plains exhibit.

  • What You Can Do to Protect Biodiversity

    What You Can Do to Protect Biodiversity

    What can we as individuals do to help slow the loss of biodiversity? Since consumption of resources is a root cause of biodiversity loss, we can consume less and be more mindful about what we consume.

  • Professor Jeffrey Sachs Extends Term as Director of the Earth Institute

    Professor Jeffrey Sachs Extends Term as Director of the Earth Institute

    The Earth Institute, Columbia University announced that Professor Jeffrey Sachs has agreed to extend his term as its director. Since his tenure began in 2002, Sachs has led the Earth Institute to become a leading scientific authority on sustainable development while simultaneously expanding its reach worldwide. Through his guidance, the Earth Institute and its scientists…

  • Southern Louisiana’s Vanishing Act

    Southern Louisiana’s Vanishing Act

    Louisiana’s wetlands — the largest system in the United States — are shrinking at an alarming rate.

  • Climate News Roundup: Week of 4/10

    Climate News Roundup: Week of 4/10

    Fewer penguins survive warming Antarctic climate, Reuters, Apr. 11 A study published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences finds that in Antarctica, only 10 percent of juvenile chinstrap and Adelies penguins now survive the first independent trip they take from their winter habitat back to their colonies, know as the penguin’s “transition…

  • Slippery Snake Needs a Name

    Slippery Snake Needs a Name

    The Bronx Zoo released an online poll asking participants to vote on the name of the poisonous Egyptian cobra that slithered away from its habitat at the Bronx Zoo.

  • Workshop on Mainstreaming Climate Change into Development

    Workshop on Mainstreaming Climate Change into Development

    The Workshop on Mainstreaming Climate Change into Development will discuss how to mainstream climate change into economic and social development. It will introduce the main outcomes from the Conference of the Parties in Cancun (COP16) in terms of challenges and opportunities, within the Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC) Region and discuss the financing structure…

  • Haiti’s Charcoal Challenge

    Haiti’s Charcoal Challenge

    Three Columbia University graduate students recently spent a week in Haiti trying to understand the nuances of the charcoal production process. The study site was in the Port-à-Piment watershed of the South Department where local people are on the front lines of climate, agricultural, and water challenges.

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

  • Attack of the Warzone Water Bottles

    Attack of the Warzone Water Bottles

    Using bottled water in war zones uses oil and pollutes the environment. But Defense officials are looking to move toward sustainability.

  • A Warm Welcome to the New Baby Zebra at the Bronx Zoo

    A Warm Welcome to the New Baby Zebra at the Bronx Zoo

    Terri, a baby zebra born earlier this year in the Bronx Zoo, made her public debut this week, strutting her pale brownish stripes in the Wildlife Conservation Society’s African Plains exhibit.

  • What You Can Do to Protect Biodiversity

    What You Can Do to Protect Biodiversity

    What can we as individuals do to help slow the loss of biodiversity? Since consumption of resources is a root cause of biodiversity loss, we can consume less and be more mindful about what we consume.

  • Professor Jeffrey Sachs Extends Term as Director of the Earth Institute

    Professor Jeffrey Sachs Extends Term as Director of the Earth Institute

    The Earth Institute, Columbia University announced that Professor Jeffrey Sachs has agreed to extend his term as its director. Since his tenure began in 2002, Sachs has led the Earth Institute to become a leading scientific authority on sustainable development while simultaneously expanding its reach worldwide. Through his guidance, the Earth Institute and its scientists…

  • Southern Louisiana’s Vanishing Act

    Southern Louisiana’s Vanishing Act

    Louisiana’s wetlands — the largest system in the United States — are shrinking at an alarming rate.

  • Climate News Roundup: Week of 4/10

    Climate News Roundup: Week of 4/10

    Fewer penguins survive warming Antarctic climate, Reuters, Apr. 11 A study published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences finds that in Antarctica, only 10 percent of juvenile chinstrap and Adelies penguins now survive the first independent trip they take from their winter habitat back to their colonies, know as the penguin’s “transition…

  • Slippery Snake Needs a Name

    Slippery Snake Needs a Name

    The Bronx Zoo released an online poll asking participants to vote on the name of the poisonous Egyptian cobra that slithered away from its habitat at the Bronx Zoo.

  • Workshop on Mainstreaming Climate Change into Development

    Workshop on Mainstreaming Climate Change into Development

    The Workshop on Mainstreaming Climate Change into Development will discuss how to mainstream climate change into economic and social development. It will introduce the main outcomes from the Conference of the Parties in Cancun (COP16) in terms of challenges and opportunities, within the Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC) Region and discuss the financing structure…

  • Haiti’s Charcoal Challenge

    Haiti’s Charcoal Challenge

    Three Columbia University graduate students recently spent a week in Haiti trying to understand the nuances of the charcoal production process. The study site was in the Port-à-Piment watershed of the South Department where local people are on the front lines of climate, agricultural, and water challenges.