State of the Planet

News from the Columbia Climate School

Health38

  • Asthma Hot Spots Linked to Trucks, Low-Grade Heating Oil

    New York Children Suffer Block by Block Depending on Soot Levels

  • Water, Water Everywhere, But Nary a Drop to Drink

    Water, Water Everywhere, But Nary a Drop to Drink

    It is a unique challenge of our generation that many in the developing world have cellular phones and TVs, but lack reliable access to water. Odd, perhaps, given that water is marketed as essential for life, a human right, and heart rending pictures of women and children walking miles to fetch water are routinely flashed…

  • “The Population Bomb: Defused or Still Ticking?” Seminar Recap

    “The Population Bomb: Defused or Still Ticking?” Seminar Recap

    “Thank you for coming on this gorgeous day, to sit in an airless, lightless room and discuss how to save the world,” said John Mutter, director of Columbia’s PhD in Sustainable Development and a member of the Earth Institute faculty, in welcoming the audience of the Sustainable Development Seminar, “The Population Bomb: Defused or Still…

  • Celebrating International Women’s Day: Triumphs and Challenges

    There is much to celebrate, this International Women’s Day. Three fabulously courageous women won last year’s Nobel Peace Prize, and just a year earlier the United Nations established UN Women, a new agency dedicated to gender equality worldwide and headed by another strong woman leader and role model, former President of Brazil Michelle Bachelet. School…

  • One Planet, Too Many People?

    One Planet, Too Many People?

    Can we manage the needs of 9 billion people for water, food and energy without depleting our resources and ruining the environment? “The solutions,” says Tim Fox, “are all within the capability of existing technology.”

  • U.S., 5 Nations to Cut Methane, Soot Emissions

    U.S., 5 Nations to Cut Methane, Soot Emissions

    The United States and five other countries agreed this week to fund an effort to cut emissions of methane, soot and other pollutants to start to slow the rate of human-induced climate change.

  • Malaria and the Mason-Dixon

    Malaria and the Mason-Dixon

    When push came to shove, it was a microscopic virus that would draw the frontiers of a nation, and help to decide the life and livelihood of millions upon millions of the Americans who came to live there.

  • Does La Niña Lead to Flu Pandemics?

    Does La Niña Lead to Flu Pandemics?

    Four major flu pandemics of the last century, including the deadly 1918 flu, were all proceeded by La Niña conditions in the Pacific, according to a recent paper.

  • Breakthrough in Saving Lives in Rural Africa

    Breakthrough in Saving Lives in Rural Africa

    It’s mid-morning in the Tiby Millennium Village in Mali. Rokia, a community health worker, sits with a young mother in a spare courtyard of the household. Gently she asks the key questions.

Colorful icons representing nature, sustainable living, and renewable energy with text "Earth Day 2026"

The first Earth Day in 1970 ignited a movement to stop polluting our planet. Today, our scientists and experts are tackling the most pressing challenges to achieve real-world impact. This Earth Day, join us in our commitment to realizing a just and sustainable future for our planet. Visit our Earth Day website for ideas, resources, and inspiration.

  • Asthma Hot Spots Linked to Trucks, Low-Grade Heating Oil

    New York Children Suffer Block by Block Depending on Soot Levels

  • Water, Water Everywhere, But Nary a Drop to Drink

    Water, Water Everywhere, But Nary a Drop to Drink

    It is a unique challenge of our generation that many in the developing world have cellular phones and TVs, but lack reliable access to water. Odd, perhaps, given that water is marketed as essential for life, a human right, and heart rending pictures of women and children walking miles to fetch water are routinely flashed…

  • “The Population Bomb: Defused or Still Ticking?” Seminar Recap

    “The Population Bomb: Defused or Still Ticking?” Seminar Recap

    “Thank you for coming on this gorgeous day, to sit in an airless, lightless room and discuss how to save the world,” said John Mutter, director of Columbia’s PhD in Sustainable Development and a member of the Earth Institute faculty, in welcoming the audience of the Sustainable Development Seminar, “The Population Bomb: Defused or Still…

  • Celebrating International Women’s Day: Triumphs and Challenges

    There is much to celebrate, this International Women’s Day. Three fabulously courageous women won last year’s Nobel Peace Prize, and just a year earlier the United Nations established UN Women, a new agency dedicated to gender equality worldwide and headed by another strong woman leader and role model, former President of Brazil Michelle Bachelet. School…

  • One Planet, Too Many People?

    One Planet, Too Many People?

    Can we manage the needs of 9 billion people for water, food and energy without depleting our resources and ruining the environment? “The solutions,” says Tim Fox, “are all within the capability of existing technology.”

  • U.S., 5 Nations to Cut Methane, Soot Emissions

    U.S., 5 Nations to Cut Methane, Soot Emissions

    The United States and five other countries agreed this week to fund an effort to cut emissions of methane, soot and other pollutants to start to slow the rate of human-induced climate change.

  • Malaria and the Mason-Dixon

    Malaria and the Mason-Dixon

    When push came to shove, it was a microscopic virus that would draw the frontiers of a nation, and help to decide the life and livelihood of millions upon millions of the Americans who came to live there.

  • Does La Niña Lead to Flu Pandemics?

    Does La Niña Lead to Flu Pandemics?

    Four major flu pandemics of the last century, including the deadly 1918 flu, were all proceeded by La Niña conditions in the Pacific, according to a recent paper.

  • Breakthrough in Saving Lives in Rural Africa

    Breakthrough in Saving Lives in Rural Africa

    It’s mid-morning in the Tiby Millennium Village in Mali. Rokia, a community health worker, sits with a young mother in a spare courtyard of the household. Gently she asks the key questions.