Sustainability86
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Toward a Carbon-Neutral Future: Why Land and Resource Rights Matter
Climate change is a destabilizing force that touches all sectors of society, whether agriculture, forestry, infrastructure, energy, water or health. The inherently intertwined and complex nature of climate change impacts means that strong institutions, laws and policies are critical to ensuring that these impacts don’t impinge on the rights of local populations. Key among these…
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The Urgency Of Adapting To Climate Change
While ideologues continue to deny the reality of climate change, local governments do not have the luxury of indulging in the Tea Party and Koch Brothers’ favorite environmental fantasy. The impacts are real. We don’t need to shut down the economy, but we need to learn to run it without burning the place down or…
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Can Climate Litigation Support Global Action on Climate Change?
The Paris Climate Agreement officially goes into effect Nov. 4. But it will take much more to achieve its goals. Legal challenges could well provide one way for individuals, civil society and governments to support and reinforce global action on climate change.
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How a Student Project Helped to Change JetBlue’s Course
What began as research at Columbia University became the catalyst for improving the sustainability of an airline, as JetBlue recently forged a 10-year deal to buy 330 million gallons of jet fuel made partially from plants.
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Protecting Intellectual Property While Mitigating Climate Change: Can We Do Both?
The Paris Climate Agreement officially goes into effect Nov. 4. But it will take much more to achieve its goals. Legal mechanisms could well provide one way for individuals, civil society and governments to support and reinforce global action on climate change.
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Putting Garbage to Good Use with Waste-to-Energy
Burning garbage to produce electricity is a strategy for sustainable waste management that is finding favor in Europe and China. Why isn’t it practiced more in the U.S.?
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Building Consensus on Climate and Sustainability Policy
The New York Times reported on a new international agreement that will phase out hydrofluorocarbons, or HFCs, a chemical that is used in refrigerators and air conditioners that is a powerful greenhouse gas. The irony is that HFCs were developed to replace chlorofluorocarbons, or CFCs, chemicals that caused a hole in our atmosphere’s ozone layer…
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Housing in New York City: Updating the History
“Beyond doubt the large question facing New York housing production today has to do with a market that can not provide for the half of our households that are low income.”
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No Free Passes: Making Renewable Energy Responsible
As the world rushes to invest in clean energy, the potential impacts of these projects on the rights of local individuals and communities need to be properly addressed.
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
