Posts
-
Water Samples and Wildlife
After a day of coring on Tuesday, we decided to give our arms and backs a rest and collect water and plant samples. We take these samples so that we can characterize the chemical signatures of each plant type, and water from different parts of the system. Then, we can recognize those same signatures in…
-
Taking Steps (Together) in the Right Direction
The latest 2012 Climate Change Policy Tracker report released by Deutsche Bank Climate Change Advisors in partnership with the Columbia Climate Center shows that while current policies lead to emissions reductions, there is significant distance to go to reach “safe” levels of atmospheric greenhouse gases by 2020.
-
Passing Ships in the Night
By Helene Carton As part of our study of the Juan de Fuca plate from its birth at the mid-ocean ridge to its recycling at the Cascadia subduction zone, the R/V Oceanus has the task of conducting Ocean Bottom Seismometer (OBS) operations and oceanographic measurements: this is done in close coordination with the R/V Langseth,…
-
Deepest core yet from Imnavait Creek!
Our first day in the field was a wild success! We visited Imnavait Creek Peatland, named for the small stream that drains out of it into the Kuparuk River. We chose this location because it has the potential to be much older than many other peatland sites. During the last ice age, the area of the…
-
Building “Bloom & Bud,” An Educational Garden in Kisumu, Kenya
The following is a guest blog, authored by Meagan HoChing, a Harvard University student and volunteer with the Millennium Cities Initiative. I have recently had the absolute pleasure of spending two weeks in beautiful Kisumu, Kenya. I am working with two other students to perfect what we would like to call “Bloom and Bud,” which…
-
Getting There = 0.5*fun
Hello from the land of the midnight sun! We have just arrived by way of the famous Dalton Highway at Toolik Field Station, a Long Term Ecological Research site of the University of Alaska Fairbanks. We pulled up to the station just in time for dinner, a quick trip to the field station’s wood-fired sauna,…
-
MPA Students Present Initial Research Findings at Midterm Presentations
On Wednesday, June 27, students in the Master of Public Administration in Environmental Science and Policy (ESP) program presented their midterm Workshop briefings for fellow students, staff, and invited guests at the School of International and Public Affairs. This summer’s Workshop projects, intended for ESP students to gain experience tackling tough environmental problems by working…
-
A Major Legal Victory for Climate Science
Though most attention last week focused on the Supreme Court ruling upholding federal reform of the health-care system, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia issued the most important judicial decision on climate change in five years. That decision upholds the Environmental Protection Agency’s power to regulate greenhouse gases, and it…
-
Water Center, PepsiCo Foundation Present Sustainable Water Successes at Rio+20
The rural communities of Ceará, Brazil, had long been accustomed to drought and the problems that result: food insecurity, death of livestock, and conflict over scarce water resources. While Ceara’s problems may have been typical of a water scarce region in the developing world, the work of the Columbia Water Center and PepsiCo Foundation has…
