State of the Planet

News from the Columbia Climate School

Urbanization27

  • Professor Jeffrey Sachs Extends Term as Director of the Earth Institute

    Professor Jeffrey Sachs Extends Term as Director of the Earth Institute

    The Earth Institute, Columbia University announced that Professor Jeffrey Sachs has agreed to extend his term as its director. Since his tenure began in 2002, Sachs has led the Earth Institute to become a leading scientific authority on sustainable development while simultaneously expanding its reach worldwide. Through his guidance, the Earth Institute and its scientists…

  • Growing Up: Water Efficiency and Sunless Farming

    Growing Up: Water Efficiency and Sunless Farming

    As Earth’s population continues to grow and a dynamic global climate shifts our expectations of where and when food can be grown, scientists are trying to find new ways to get more from less.

  • A Medical Mission to a Millennium City

    A Medical Mission to a Millennium City

    The following is a guest blog, authored by Dr. Medhat Allam, Chairman of International Surgical Mission Support, one of MCI’s partners. In Kenya, like with many developing counties, residents often lack access to specialized medical care. International Surgical Mission Support (ISMS), which strives to train medical professionals and provide free care to those in need,…

  • Millennium City and U.S. Students Chat and Read Aloud Online, Celebrating World Read Aloud Day

    Millennium City and U.S. Students Chat and Read Aloud Online, Celebrating World Read Aloud Day

    Words – and worlds – were shared in celebration of the second annual World Read Aloud Day, organized by LitWorld, on March 9, 2011. As part of LitWorld’s much larger celebration of reading, literacy and learning, students from across the Millennium Cities connected with students in the United States via Skype, to share stories and…

  • Widening the World for Students

    Widening the World for Students

    The following is a guest blog, authored by David Homa, an anthropology and economics teacher at Los Gatos High School in California, one of MCI’s School2School partners. As the world shrinks through the use of technology, it is possible to widen the world to students all over the world. During the past week, I have…

  • Despite Grim Water Futures, China and US Discuss Everything but Water

    Despite Grim Water Futures, China and US Discuss Everything but Water

    Notably absent from this week’s program is any planned dialogue regarding energy demand and water supply, two issues whose inverse trajectories are threatening the environmental and economic futures of both nations.

  • Could East River Tides Help Power NYC?

    Could East River Tides Help Power NYC?

    Typically, discussions about hydropower center around hydroelectric dams and ocean wind turbines. That could change, however, if Verdant Power – an energy company based out of New York – succeeds in its latest venture.

  • Parched for Peace: A Slight Digression, Just for Kicks

    Parched for Peace: A Slight Digression, Just for Kicks

    Yesterday, FIFA announced that the 2022 World Cup would be held in Qatar, the first Middle Eastern country ever chosen to host the tournament.

  • My Work as a GSK Volunteer for MCI: Gathering Baseline Data on Maternal and Neonatal Health Services in Kisumu, Kenya

    My Work as a GSK Volunteer for MCI: Gathering Baseline Data on Maternal and Neonatal Health Services in Kisumu, Kenya

    The following is a guest blog, authored by Mayuko Hashimoto, a GlaxoSmithKline PULSE volunteer from Tokyo, Japan, who is working with the Millennium Cities Initiative for six months in Kisumu, Kenya to further maternal and neonatal survival. As a volunteer with GlaxoSmithKline, I’ll be in Kisumu for six months to support the Millennium Cities Initiative…

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

  • Professor Jeffrey Sachs Extends Term as Director of the Earth Institute

    Professor Jeffrey Sachs Extends Term as Director of the Earth Institute

    The Earth Institute, Columbia University announced that Professor Jeffrey Sachs has agreed to extend his term as its director. Since his tenure began in 2002, Sachs has led the Earth Institute to become a leading scientific authority on sustainable development while simultaneously expanding its reach worldwide. Through his guidance, the Earth Institute and its scientists…

  • Growing Up: Water Efficiency and Sunless Farming

    Growing Up: Water Efficiency and Sunless Farming

    As Earth’s population continues to grow and a dynamic global climate shifts our expectations of where and when food can be grown, scientists are trying to find new ways to get more from less.

  • A Medical Mission to a Millennium City

    A Medical Mission to a Millennium City

    The following is a guest blog, authored by Dr. Medhat Allam, Chairman of International Surgical Mission Support, one of MCI’s partners. In Kenya, like with many developing counties, residents often lack access to specialized medical care. International Surgical Mission Support (ISMS), which strives to train medical professionals and provide free care to those in need,…

  • Millennium City and U.S. Students Chat and Read Aloud Online, Celebrating World Read Aloud Day

    Millennium City and U.S. Students Chat and Read Aloud Online, Celebrating World Read Aloud Day

    Words – and worlds – were shared in celebration of the second annual World Read Aloud Day, organized by LitWorld, on March 9, 2011. As part of LitWorld’s much larger celebration of reading, literacy and learning, students from across the Millennium Cities connected with students in the United States via Skype, to share stories and…

  • Widening the World for Students

    Widening the World for Students

    The following is a guest blog, authored by David Homa, an anthropology and economics teacher at Los Gatos High School in California, one of MCI’s School2School partners. As the world shrinks through the use of technology, it is possible to widen the world to students all over the world. During the past week, I have…

  • Despite Grim Water Futures, China and US Discuss Everything but Water

    Despite Grim Water Futures, China and US Discuss Everything but Water

    Notably absent from this week’s program is any planned dialogue regarding energy demand and water supply, two issues whose inverse trajectories are threatening the environmental and economic futures of both nations.

  • Could East River Tides Help Power NYC?

    Could East River Tides Help Power NYC?

    Typically, discussions about hydropower center around hydroelectric dams and ocean wind turbines. That could change, however, if Verdant Power – an energy company based out of New York – succeeds in its latest venture.

  • Parched for Peace: A Slight Digression, Just for Kicks

    Parched for Peace: A Slight Digression, Just for Kicks

    Yesterday, FIFA announced that the 2022 World Cup would be held in Qatar, the first Middle Eastern country ever chosen to host the tournament.

  • My Work as a GSK Volunteer for MCI: Gathering Baseline Data on Maternal and Neonatal Health Services in Kisumu, Kenya

    My Work as a GSK Volunteer for MCI: Gathering Baseline Data on Maternal and Neonatal Health Services in Kisumu, Kenya

    The following is a guest blog, authored by Mayuko Hashimoto, a GlaxoSmithKline PULSE volunteer from Tokyo, Japan, who is working with the Millennium Cities Initiative for six months in Kisumu, Kenya to further maternal and neonatal survival. As a volunteer with GlaxoSmithKline, I’ll be in Kisumu for six months to support the Millennium Cities Initiative…