State of the Planet

News from the Columbia Climate School

General143

  • Bryant Awards Honorary Degree to Sachs

    Bryant Awards Honorary Degree to Sachs

    By graduating with an education that has one foot in the business world and another foot in the liberal arts, Bryant students have learned that “business and society walk hand in hand,” Sachs told the graduates.

  • Sustainability Management Students Say Farewell

    Sustainability Management Students Say Farewell

    “The relevance of our Sustainability Management degree in today’s rapidly changing world was apparent in many of the speeches made throughout both ceremonies,” stated Eileen Quigley, one of the 87 MS in Sustainability Management students that graduated from the program on May 15.

  • Final Days in Alert

    Final Days in Alert

    Time is flying, bringing us to our final days in Alert. We were able to recover samples from 12 stations, which is a great success and the second most successful year on record. Thanks to everyone who made it happen: Dale, Richard and Dan who went out every possible day to collect samples; Al and…

  • A Walk against Cancer

    A Walk against Cancer

    Alert hosted the first northernmost cancer-fighting fundraising event “Relay for Life,” an event sponsored by the Canadian Cancer Society to celebrate cancer survivors, remember loved ones lost to cancer and fight back against all cancers. The 12-hour-walk was organized by Kristy Doyle, who lost her grandfather to cancer in 2010. Participants raised a whopping $7,580 and collectively…

  • Rock Fall Shakes New Jersey Palisades

    Rock Fall Shakes New Jersey Palisades

    A 500-foot rock face came crashing down from the Palisades cliffs along the Hudson River in Alpine, N.J. on Saturday night, shaking the ground for more than half a minute and dumping a fresh layer of boulders over a 100-yard strip of parkland below State Line Lookout. The shaking was strong enough to be registered…

  • MS Student Connects to Sustainability Network In and Out of the Classroom

    MS Student Connects to Sustainability Network In and Out of the Classroom

    “Having a degree in the field of sustainability legitimizes my career path and helps me to better understand the variety of people I work with on new initiatives at Verizon.” Nicole deFuria chose the MS in Sustainability Management Program as a way to complement her professional work as a member of Verizon’s Corporate Sustainability Team.

  • What’s a tree like you doing in a place like this? Or West meets East

    What’s a tree like you doing in a place like this? Or West meets East

    In the northeastern part of Turkey, the highest Pontic Mountains meet the Black Sea. Here altitude drops from more than 3900m to sea level in a less than 30 miles. Both the orographic effect of mountains and the lake effect (well, better sea effect) cause very high precipitation allowing for rich and productive temperate forest…

  • “Wash your hands!” and Other Advice for Undergraduate Students from Columbia Graduate Students

    “Wash your hands!” and Other Advice for Undergraduate Students from Columbia Graduate Students

    Ph.D. students delving deep into some of the world’s complex sustainability issues offered advice to current undergraduates interested in pursuing their own research questions.

  • Journalism Student Completes Thesis on Texas Drought and Wildfire

    Journalism Student Completes Thesis on Texas Drought and Wildfire

    by Kaci Fowler “Environmental politics is a part of who I am,” said Robert Eshelman, an aspiring journalist in Columbia’s Graduate School of Journalism. Robert used an Earth Institute travel grant to learn and write about sustainability in his senior thesis. “I am telling stories that will have a true impact on the environment.” Robert…

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

  • Bryant Awards Honorary Degree to Sachs

    Bryant Awards Honorary Degree to Sachs

    By graduating with an education that has one foot in the business world and another foot in the liberal arts, Bryant students have learned that “business and society walk hand in hand,” Sachs told the graduates.

  • Sustainability Management Students Say Farewell

    Sustainability Management Students Say Farewell

    “The relevance of our Sustainability Management degree in today’s rapidly changing world was apparent in many of the speeches made throughout both ceremonies,” stated Eileen Quigley, one of the 87 MS in Sustainability Management students that graduated from the program on May 15.

  • Final Days in Alert

    Final Days in Alert

    Time is flying, bringing us to our final days in Alert. We were able to recover samples from 12 stations, which is a great success and the second most successful year on record. Thanks to everyone who made it happen: Dale, Richard and Dan who went out every possible day to collect samples; Al and…

  • A Walk against Cancer

    A Walk against Cancer

    Alert hosted the first northernmost cancer-fighting fundraising event “Relay for Life,” an event sponsored by the Canadian Cancer Society to celebrate cancer survivors, remember loved ones lost to cancer and fight back against all cancers. The 12-hour-walk was organized by Kristy Doyle, who lost her grandfather to cancer in 2010. Participants raised a whopping $7,580 and collectively…

  • Rock Fall Shakes New Jersey Palisades

    Rock Fall Shakes New Jersey Palisades

    A 500-foot rock face came crashing down from the Palisades cliffs along the Hudson River in Alpine, N.J. on Saturday night, shaking the ground for more than half a minute and dumping a fresh layer of boulders over a 100-yard strip of parkland below State Line Lookout. The shaking was strong enough to be registered…

  • MS Student Connects to Sustainability Network In and Out of the Classroom

    MS Student Connects to Sustainability Network In and Out of the Classroom

    “Having a degree in the field of sustainability legitimizes my career path and helps me to better understand the variety of people I work with on new initiatives at Verizon.” Nicole deFuria chose the MS in Sustainability Management Program as a way to complement her professional work as a member of Verizon’s Corporate Sustainability Team.

  • What’s a tree like you doing in a place like this? Or West meets East

    What’s a tree like you doing in a place like this? Or West meets East

    In the northeastern part of Turkey, the highest Pontic Mountains meet the Black Sea. Here altitude drops from more than 3900m to sea level in a less than 30 miles. Both the orographic effect of mountains and the lake effect (well, better sea effect) cause very high precipitation allowing for rich and productive temperate forest…

  • “Wash your hands!” and Other Advice for Undergraduate Students from Columbia Graduate Students

    “Wash your hands!” and Other Advice for Undergraduate Students from Columbia Graduate Students

    Ph.D. students delving deep into some of the world’s complex sustainability issues offered advice to current undergraduates interested in pursuing their own research questions.

  • Journalism Student Completes Thesis on Texas Drought and Wildfire

    Journalism Student Completes Thesis on Texas Drought and Wildfire

    by Kaci Fowler “Environmental politics is a part of who I am,” said Robert Eshelman, an aspiring journalist in Columbia’s Graduate School of Journalism. Robert used an Earth Institute travel grant to learn and write about sustainability in his senior thesis. “I am telling stories that will have a true impact on the environment.” Robert…