State of the Planet

News from the Columbia Climate School

Urbanization12

  • So Much Depends on a Tree Guard

    So Much Depends on a Tree Guard

    Adding protective barriers around street trees could reduce load on city sewers, study finds.

  • Sustainability Measurement in China: Fostering a Race to the Top

    Sustainability Measurement in China: Fostering a Race to the Top

    The Research Program on Sustainability Policy and Management recently released the China Sustainable Development Indicator System, a new sustainability indicator framework and annual ranking of the sustainability performance of Chinese cities.

  • Could Robo-Taxis Kill Public Transportation?

    Could Robo-Taxis Kill Public Transportation?

    Self-driving cars will fundamentally change how we live and work. But not all of those changes will be positive.

  • Main Streets, Malls, and Sustainable Consumption

    Main Streets, Malls, and Sustainable Consumption

    As new technologies continue to change consumption patterns, land use and social norms, we have an opportunity to ensure these changes result in an exciting sustainable lifestyle in a new type of sustainable city.

  • NASA Finds New Way to Track Ozone By Satellite

    NASA Finds New Way to Track Ozone By Satellite

    Ozone pollution near Earth’s surface is one of the main ingredients of summertime smog. But it not directly measurable from space, due to the abundance of ozone higher in the atmosphere, which masks the surface. Now, researchers have devised a way to use satellite measurements of the precursor gases that contribute to ozone formation to…

  • Eavesdropping on the Ocean’s Mighty Microorganisms

    Eavesdropping on the Ocean’s Mighty Microorganisms

    Now, nearing the end of our three-week cruise of the North Pacific off Hawaii, we are working to understand how these tiny bacteria connect and communicate with one another.

  • Cleaning Up New York City’s Waters and Beyond: Q&A with Kartik Chandran

    Cleaning Up New York City’s Waters and Beyond: Q&A with Kartik Chandran

    Kartik Chandran, an environmental engineer at Columbia, will discuss some of his urban wastewater treatment projects at a panel discussion Friday following the screening of a new film about Rio de Janeiro’s Guanabara Bay.

  • To Ease Mexico City’s Water Woes, Look up, Study Suggests

    To Ease Mexico City’s Water Woes, Look up, Study Suggests

    For Mexico City’s biggest businesses and its poorest neighborhoods, rainwater harvesting could help address an enormous water crisis plaguing the city, a recent Columbia Water Center study found.

  • New York City: a Learning Lab for Sustainable Transportation

    New York City: a Learning Lab for Sustainable Transportation

    In partnership with the Earth Institute’s Center for Sustainable Urban Development, the M.S. in Sustainability Management program has developed an exciting new inter-disciplinary course entitled Access, Innovation, and the Urban Transportation Transition. This class draws on a series of lectures, a case study approach and experiential learning in New York City.

Banner: Climate Week NYC 2025, September 21-28, 2025
  • So Much Depends on a Tree Guard

    So Much Depends on a Tree Guard

    Adding protective barriers around street trees could reduce load on city sewers, study finds.

  • Sustainability Measurement in China: Fostering a Race to the Top

    Sustainability Measurement in China: Fostering a Race to the Top

    The Research Program on Sustainability Policy and Management recently released the China Sustainable Development Indicator System, a new sustainability indicator framework and annual ranking of the sustainability performance of Chinese cities.

  • Could Robo-Taxis Kill Public Transportation?

    Could Robo-Taxis Kill Public Transportation?

    Self-driving cars will fundamentally change how we live and work. But not all of those changes will be positive.

  • Main Streets, Malls, and Sustainable Consumption

    Main Streets, Malls, and Sustainable Consumption

    As new technologies continue to change consumption patterns, land use and social norms, we have an opportunity to ensure these changes result in an exciting sustainable lifestyle in a new type of sustainable city.

  • NASA Finds New Way to Track Ozone By Satellite

    NASA Finds New Way to Track Ozone By Satellite

    Ozone pollution near Earth’s surface is one of the main ingredients of summertime smog. But it not directly measurable from space, due to the abundance of ozone higher in the atmosphere, which masks the surface. Now, researchers have devised a way to use satellite measurements of the precursor gases that contribute to ozone formation to…

  • Eavesdropping on the Ocean’s Mighty Microorganisms

    Eavesdropping on the Ocean’s Mighty Microorganisms

    Now, nearing the end of our three-week cruise of the North Pacific off Hawaii, we are working to understand how these tiny bacteria connect and communicate with one another.

  • Cleaning Up New York City’s Waters and Beyond: Q&A with Kartik Chandran

    Cleaning Up New York City’s Waters and Beyond: Q&A with Kartik Chandran

    Kartik Chandran, an environmental engineer at Columbia, will discuss some of his urban wastewater treatment projects at a panel discussion Friday following the screening of a new film about Rio de Janeiro’s Guanabara Bay.

  • To Ease Mexico City’s Water Woes, Look up, Study Suggests

    To Ease Mexico City’s Water Woes, Look up, Study Suggests

    For Mexico City’s biggest businesses and its poorest neighborhoods, rainwater harvesting could help address an enormous water crisis plaguing the city, a recent Columbia Water Center study found.

  • New York City: a Learning Lab for Sustainable Transportation

    New York City: a Learning Lab for Sustainable Transportation

    In partnership with the Earth Institute’s Center for Sustainable Urban Development, the M.S. in Sustainability Management program has developed an exciting new inter-disciplinary course entitled Access, Innovation, and the Urban Transportation Transition. This class draws on a series of lectures, a case study approach and experiential learning in New York City.