State of the Planet

News from the Columbia Climate School

Poverty / Development33

  • Rwanda to Scale Up Millennium Villages Model

    Rwanda to Scale Up Millennium Villages Model

    With a renewed sense of urgency, the government of Rwanda has committed to combating poverty and achieving the Millennium Development Goals by supporting new initiatives in health, agriculture, education, infrastructure and business development. The Honorable James Musoni, the Rwandan Minister of Local Government, cemented the partnership with the MDG Centre through a Memorandum of Understanding…

  • Conservation of Biodiversity in Orquídeas National Park

    Conservation of Biodiversity in Orquídeas National Park

    Researchers from The New York Botanical Garden are working to document the plant life in Las Orquídeas National Park, one of the last remaining prized and unexplored rainforests that borders Columbia’s Pacific coast.

  • Mobile Links Bring Progress to Millennium Villages

    Mobile Links Bring Progress to Millennium Villages

    Members of the Broadband Commission and representatives from several East African governments visited the Mayange Millennium Village earlier this month to witness some of the success mobile technology has had in advancing health, education, infrastructure and business development in one of the poorest areas of Rwanda.

  • Bringing Water to Rural Communities in Brazil

    Bringing Water to Rural Communities in Brazil

    Though Portuguese settlers and Brazilians have lived in the sertão since the 16th century, it has never been an easy place to thrive. The primary reason is water.

  • To Meghalaya and back

    To Meghalaya and back

    From our return to Jamalganj, we headed east searching for a river to carry us up to the Indian border across the Dauki Fault. Along the way, we celebrated Steve Goodbred’s birthday. However, even the biggest of the rivers proved too shallow for our boat. We switched to the

  • Crossing Sectors, Growing Economies

    Crossing Sectors, Growing Economies

    Coordinating the resources of academia, government, non-profits and the private sector can promote industrial innovation and create jobs; it also can improve education, limit the spread of diseases and increase access to food.

  • Insuring Against Drought

    Insuring Against Drought

    Research economist Dan Osgood discusses index insurance and how it is helping some poor rural communities reduce hardships caused by drought in East Africa.

  • MDGC Nairobi Hosts the Merry Year Foundation, Key Millennium Village Partners

    MDGC Nairobi Hosts the Merry Year Foundation, Key Millennium Village Partners

    In a visit to the MDG Centre in Nairobi, Merry Year Foundation delegates discussed their commitment to helping rural African communities extract themselves out of poverty and to scaling up the Millennium Village model

  • The Flow of Change: Piped Water Arrives in Ruhiira, Uganda

    The Flow of Change: Piped Water Arrives in Ruhiira, Uganda

    By Molly Powers When the Millennium Villages Project (MVP) was first launched in Ruhiira, Uganda, in 2006, community members identified their most pressing problem as lack of access to water. Nearly all 6,500 residents of the mountainous parish of Ruhiira live on hilltops, and most water sources

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

  • Rwanda to Scale Up Millennium Villages Model

    Rwanda to Scale Up Millennium Villages Model

    With a renewed sense of urgency, the government of Rwanda has committed to combating poverty and achieving the Millennium Development Goals by supporting new initiatives in health, agriculture, education, infrastructure and business development. The Honorable James Musoni, the Rwandan Minister of Local Government, cemented the partnership with the MDG Centre through a Memorandum of Understanding…

  • Conservation of Biodiversity in Orquídeas National Park

    Conservation of Biodiversity in Orquídeas National Park

    Researchers from The New York Botanical Garden are working to document the plant life in Las Orquídeas National Park, one of the last remaining prized and unexplored rainforests that borders Columbia’s Pacific coast.

  • Mobile Links Bring Progress to Millennium Villages

    Mobile Links Bring Progress to Millennium Villages

    Members of the Broadband Commission and representatives from several East African governments visited the Mayange Millennium Village earlier this month to witness some of the success mobile technology has had in advancing health, education, infrastructure and business development in one of the poorest areas of Rwanda.

  • Bringing Water to Rural Communities in Brazil

    Bringing Water to Rural Communities in Brazil

    Though Portuguese settlers and Brazilians have lived in the sertão since the 16th century, it has never been an easy place to thrive. The primary reason is water.

  • To Meghalaya and back

    To Meghalaya and back

    From our return to Jamalganj, we headed east searching for a river to carry us up to the Indian border across the Dauki Fault. Along the way, we celebrated Steve Goodbred’s birthday. However, even the biggest of the rivers proved too shallow for our boat. We switched to the

  • Crossing Sectors, Growing Economies

    Crossing Sectors, Growing Economies

    Coordinating the resources of academia, government, non-profits and the private sector can promote industrial innovation and create jobs; it also can improve education, limit the spread of diseases and increase access to food.

  • Insuring Against Drought

    Insuring Against Drought

    Research economist Dan Osgood discusses index insurance and how it is helping some poor rural communities reduce hardships caused by drought in East Africa.

  • MDGC Nairobi Hosts the Merry Year Foundation, Key Millennium Village Partners

    MDGC Nairobi Hosts the Merry Year Foundation, Key Millennium Village Partners

    In a visit to the MDG Centre in Nairobi, Merry Year Foundation delegates discussed their commitment to helping rural African communities extract themselves out of poverty and to scaling up the Millennium Village model

  • The Flow of Change: Piped Water Arrives in Ruhiira, Uganda

    The Flow of Change: Piped Water Arrives in Ruhiira, Uganda

    By Molly Powers When the Millennium Villages Project (MVP) was first launched in Ruhiira, Uganda, in 2006, community members identified their most pressing problem as lack of access to water. Nearly all 6,500 residents of the mountainous parish of Ruhiira live on hilltops, and most water sources