State of the Planet

News from the Columbia Climate School

Energy51

  • Water and Energy – an Integrated Approach

    In the news, electricity and resource use seems to get the most exposure – people are looking at emissions, global warming, and oil and coal dependence.  One thing that is for certain is that electricity use needs to decrease if we are to decreased our dependence on oil, our CO2 emissions, and become a greener…

  • LIMPET: Land Installed Marine Powered Energy Transformer

    I recently posted a piece on the ‘Deep Green’ project to generate electricity from deep ocean currents. Here is another of the ocean-based generation schemes: Land Installed Marine Powered Energy Transformer, or LIMPET.

  • Sea-kites harvest the energy of the ocean

    A test site for a process called ‘Deep Green’ will be built off the coast of Northern Ireland in 2011, according to Minesto, a Saab spinoff. Sea kites will fly deep under water, using ocean currents to lift them, while an attached turbine harvests the the kinetic energy and turns it into electricity.

  • Vote for the Earth Institute in the eBay Fundraising Tournament for the Environment

    Do you share our belief that the world has the know-how and resources to solve our environmental challenges in a sustainable manner? Do you support efforts by the scientific community to help understand the effects of climate change, reduce environmental degradation, and advance renewable energy technologies? Then please vote for the Columbia Water Center’s parent…

  • Mandating energy benchmarking: the next step for cities in addressing climate change?

      by Marne Sussman Within the past two years, two cities in the U.S. have passed ordinances mandating that existing buildings benchmark their energy usage. Benchmarking requires a building owner to report energy use data which can then be compared to data from buildings of a similar size and function and to past data from…

  • A Rogue Water Project

    Even today, many Central Asian nations rely on infrastructure that was clumsily implemented by the Soviet Union in the 1970s, and Tajikistan is no exception.  In fact, she is the poorest country in Central Asia and has long been quarrelling with Uzbekistan and even Afghanistan over resources and related policies.  One such controversial project involves…

  • Ideas for the Sustainable City: Green Buildings

    On March 23, the Environmental Protection Agency released a list of the 40 cities with the highest percentage of energy-efficient buildings. While Los Angeles, Washington and San Francisco made the top three, NYC came in at number ten. When we think about carbon emissions, we often think of cars, trucks, factories, and power plants. We think…

  • Climate and Meningitis in Africa

    A new Google Earth tour explores the link between climate and meningitis outbreaks in Africa.

  • 30 Rock and Responsible Energy Use

    NBC’s Green Week 2009 featured an entertaining energy challenge for the characters of 30 Rock, when Jack tasks Kenneth and the office with reducing the show’s energy consumption by five per cent. Here are some highlights of how characters committed to help the cause. Liz Lemon: Agrees to remove the mini fridge from her office…

Columbia campus skyline with text Columbia Climate School Class Day 2024 - Congratulations Graduates

Congratulations to our Columbia Climate School MA in Climate & Society Class of 2024! Learn about our May 10 Class Day celebration. #ColumbiaClimate2024

  • Water and Energy – an Integrated Approach

    In the news, electricity and resource use seems to get the most exposure – people are looking at emissions, global warming, and oil and coal dependence.  One thing that is for certain is that electricity use needs to decrease if we are to decreased our dependence on oil, our CO2 emissions, and become a greener…

  • LIMPET: Land Installed Marine Powered Energy Transformer

    I recently posted a piece on the ‘Deep Green’ project to generate electricity from deep ocean currents. Here is another of the ocean-based generation schemes: Land Installed Marine Powered Energy Transformer, or LIMPET.

  • Sea-kites harvest the energy of the ocean

    A test site for a process called ‘Deep Green’ will be built off the coast of Northern Ireland in 2011, according to Minesto, a Saab spinoff. Sea kites will fly deep under water, using ocean currents to lift them, while an attached turbine harvests the the kinetic energy and turns it into electricity.

  • Vote for the Earth Institute in the eBay Fundraising Tournament for the Environment

    Do you share our belief that the world has the know-how and resources to solve our environmental challenges in a sustainable manner? Do you support efforts by the scientific community to help understand the effects of climate change, reduce environmental degradation, and advance renewable energy technologies? Then please vote for the Columbia Water Center’s parent…

  • Mandating energy benchmarking: the next step for cities in addressing climate change?

      by Marne Sussman Within the past two years, two cities in the U.S. have passed ordinances mandating that existing buildings benchmark their energy usage. Benchmarking requires a building owner to report energy use data which can then be compared to data from buildings of a similar size and function and to past data from…

  • A Rogue Water Project

    Even today, many Central Asian nations rely on infrastructure that was clumsily implemented by the Soviet Union in the 1970s, and Tajikistan is no exception.  In fact, she is the poorest country in Central Asia and has long been quarrelling with Uzbekistan and even Afghanistan over resources and related policies.  One such controversial project involves…

  • Ideas for the Sustainable City: Green Buildings

    On March 23, the Environmental Protection Agency released a list of the 40 cities with the highest percentage of energy-efficient buildings. While Los Angeles, Washington and San Francisco made the top three, NYC came in at number ten. When we think about carbon emissions, we often think of cars, trucks, factories, and power plants. We think…

  • Climate and Meningitis in Africa

    A new Google Earth tour explores the link between climate and meningitis outbreaks in Africa.

  • 30 Rock and Responsible Energy Use

    NBC’s Green Week 2009 featured an entertaining energy challenge for the characters of 30 Rock, when Jack tasks Kenneth and the office with reducing the show’s energy consumption by five per cent. Here are some highlights of how characters committed to help the cause. Liz Lemon: Agrees to remove the mini fridge from her office…