State of the Planet

News from the Columbia Climate School

Water46

  • The Uncertainties of Groundwater and Climate in India: An Interview with Chandra Kiran Krishnamurthy

    The Uncertainties of Groundwater and Climate in India: An Interview with Chandra Kiran Krishnamurthy

    Since he arrived at the Columbia Water Center at its founding in 2008, Chandra Kiran Krishnamurthy has been unswervingly focused on two questions. First, how will groundwater depletion and climate change affect agriculture in India? And given the dire nature of the crisis, what can we do to help people adapt?

  • Hitting the Green in Cuba–Again

    Hitting the Green in Cuba–Again

    In a somewhat distressing development, the New York Times reports that the Cuban golf industry will soon be back in business after a 50-year hiatus that started when Fidel Castro first came to power.

  • Squeezing the Last Drops out of Sicily

    Squeezing the Last Drops out of Sicily

    If you were to drive south from Palermo, Sicily toward Monreale, you would be ringed in by green mountains, the sparkling white of ancient and modern buildings and the azure Mediterranean Sea receding behind you. Continuing south through the island’s mountainous interior, you would pass verdant agricultural fields on your way past Corleone, the namesake…

  • Water-Saving Project in Punjab, India Reaches Out to Farmers Through Cooperatives

    Water-Saving Project in Punjab, India Reaches Out to Farmers Through Cooperatives

    After working with over 500 farmers last year to conduct a field experiment on the use of tensiometers to reduce irrigation in rice fields, this year they will be working with about 5,000. As part of this expansion, our program partners at the Punjab Agricultural University (PAU) are working with Cooperative Societies, a network of…

  • The Push to Dam China’s Rivers

    The Push to Dam China’s Rivers

    China already has half the world’s large hydroelectric dams (25,800), but along the Yangtze River and its tributaries, 100 large dams are either being planned or built and 43 additional dams are in the works.

  • Giving the Earth a Cool Shower–Is Massive Irrigation Hiding the Greenhouse Effect Around the World?

    Giving the Earth a Cool Shower–Is Massive Irrigation Hiding the Greenhouse Effect Around the World?

    According to research published in Climate Dynamics by Benjamin I. Cook, Michael Puma and Nir Krakauer, it is possible that massive irrigation is masking expected warming trends from Greenhouse Gasses .

  • Attack of the Warzone Water Bottles

    Attack of the Warzone Water Bottles

    Using bottled water in war zones uses oil and pollutes the environment. But Defense officials are looking to move toward sustainability.

  • Ohio and Mississippi River Floods in Photos

    Ohio and Mississippi River Floods in Photos

    Heavy rains over the American South and Midwest have deluged the region, causing unprecedented flood damage. View photos of the event from around the web.

  • Post bin Laden, Working Toward Afghanistan’s Water Security

    Post bin Laden, Working Toward Afghanistan’s Water Security

    Osama bin Laden is history, but decades of war and civil strife pose challenges to Afghanistan’s water infrastructure.

Photo of the Earth from space with the text "Lamont at AGU25" on top.

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

  • The Uncertainties of Groundwater and Climate in India: An Interview with Chandra Kiran Krishnamurthy

    The Uncertainties of Groundwater and Climate in India: An Interview with Chandra Kiran Krishnamurthy

    Since he arrived at the Columbia Water Center at its founding in 2008, Chandra Kiran Krishnamurthy has been unswervingly focused on two questions. First, how will groundwater depletion and climate change affect agriculture in India? And given the dire nature of the crisis, what can we do to help people adapt?

  • Hitting the Green in Cuba–Again

    Hitting the Green in Cuba–Again

    In a somewhat distressing development, the New York Times reports that the Cuban golf industry will soon be back in business after a 50-year hiatus that started when Fidel Castro first came to power.

  • Squeezing the Last Drops out of Sicily

    Squeezing the Last Drops out of Sicily

    If you were to drive south from Palermo, Sicily toward Monreale, you would be ringed in by green mountains, the sparkling white of ancient and modern buildings and the azure Mediterranean Sea receding behind you. Continuing south through the island’s mountainous interior, you would pass verdant agricultural fields on your way past Corleone, the namesake…

  • Water-Saving Project in Punjab, India Reaches Out to Farmers Through Cooperatives

    Water-Saving Project in Punjab, India Reaches Out to Farmers Through Cooperatives

    After working with over 500 farmers last year to conduct a field experiment on the use of tensiometers to reduce irrigation in rice fields, this year they will be working with about 5,000. As part of this expansion, our program partners at the Punjab Agricultural University (PAU) are working with Cooperative Societies, a network of…

  • The Push to Dam China’s Rivers

    The Push to Dam China’s Rivers

    China already has half the world’s large hydroelectric dams (25,800), but along the Yangtze River and its tributaries, 100 large dams are either being planned or built and 43 additional dams are in the works.

  • Giving the Earth a Cool Shower–Is Massive Irrigation Hiding the Greenhouse Effect Around the World?

    Giving the Earth a Cool Shower–Is Massive Irrigation Hiding the Greenhouse Effect Around the World?

    According to research published in Climate Dynamics by Benjamin I. Cook, Michael Puma and Nir Krakauer, it is possible that massive irrigation is masking expected warming trends from Greenhouse Gasses .

  • Attack of the Warzone Water Bottles

    Attack of the Warzone Water Bottles

    Using bottled water in war zones uses oil and pollutes the environment. But Defense officials are looking to move toward sustainability.

  • Ohio and Mississippi River Floods in Photos

    Ohio and Mississippi River Floods in Photos

    Heavy rains over the American South and Midwest have deluged the region, causing unprecedented flood damage. View photos of the event from around the web.

  • Post bin Laden, Working Toward Afghanistan’s Water Security

    Post bin Laden, Working Toward Afghanistan’s Water Security

    Osama bin Laden is history, but decades of war and civil strife pose challenges to Afghanistan’s water infrastructure.