State of the Planet

News from the Columbia Climate School

climate change134

  • 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.

  • Communicating with the Six Americas of Climate Change

    Communicating with the Six Americas of Climate Change

    The 2009 study by the Yale Project on Climate Change and the George Mason University Center for Climate Change Communication, “Global Warming’s Six Americas: An Audience Segmentation Analysis,” classified Americans based on their views on climate change into six groups (Alarmed, Concerned, Cautious, Disengaged, Doubtful, Dismissive). This report helped climate communicators distinguish and better attune…

  • Climate News Roundup: Week of 4/03

    Climate News Roundup: Week of 4/03

    Glaciers in Chile ‘melt at fastest rate in 350 years,’ BBC, Apr. 3 According to new research by the Universities of Aberystwyth, Exeter, and Stockholm, mountain glaciers of the Patagonian icefield are melting and causing sea level rise at the fastest rate in the past 350 years.  Using remote-sensing technology, the scientists were able to…

  • A Flood at Home More Motivational Than a Flood of Information

    A Flood at Home More Motivational Than a Flood of Information

    Is it necessary for your house to be flooded for you to feel personally threatened by climate change? Maybe not – but according to a March behavior study, a soggy basement will probably make you more inclined to take action to mitigate climate change. Despite the consensus within the scientific community that immediate action is…

  • Some People’s Climate Beliefs Shift With Weather

    Study Shows Daily Malleability on a Long-Term Question

  • Workshop on Mainstreaming Climate Change into Development

    Workshop on Mainstreaming Climate Change into Development

    The Workshop on Mainstreaming Climate Change into Development will discuss how to mainstream climate change into economic and social development. It will introduce the main outcomes from the Conference of the Parties in Cancun (COP16) in terms of challenges and opportunities, within the Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC) Region and discuss the financing structure…

  • Climate News Roundup: Week of 3/20

    Climate News Roundup: Week of 3/20

    USDA Funds Research on Crops and Climate Change, Businessweek, Mar. 21 The federal government is investing $60 million in three major studies on the effects of climate change on crops and forests. This adaptation strategy is meant to help farmers and foresters maintain their supply of food and timber, while experiencing shifting weather patterns. The…

  • Improving Climate Prediction in Africa

    Improving Climate Prediction in Africa

    Africa lags the developed world in weather stations but still produces a surprising amount of data. Too bad few people are using it. Scientists at Columbia University and a growing number of others—among them Bill Gates and the charity arm of Google—are pushing to open Africa’s climate archive to the world by making it free.…

  • Climate Change to Exacerbate Rising Food Prices

    Climate Change to Exacerbate Rising Food Prices

    Despite all human provisions to maintain a steady and even increasing food supply, post-Green-Revolution agriculture remains heavily dependent on seasonal weather. Just in the past few years, weather extremes caused significant jumps in food prices, causing social, economic, and political disturbances in both developing and developed countries. Between 2006 and 2008, world average prices rose…

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

  • 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.

  • Communicating with the Six Americas of Climate Change

    Communicating with the Six Americas of Climate Change

    The 2009 study by the Yale Project on Climate Change and the George Mason University Center for Climate Change Communication, “Global Warming’s Six Americas: An Audience Segmentation Analysis,” classified Americans based on their views on climate change into six groups (Alarmed, Concerned, Cautious, Disengaged, Doubtful, Dismissive). This report helped climate communicators distinguish and better attune…

  • Climate News Roundup: Week of 4/03

    Climate News Roundup: Week of 4/03

    Glaciers in Chile ‘melt at fastest rate in 350 years,’ BBC, Apr. 3 According to new research by the Universities of Aberystwyth, Exeter, and Stockholm, mountain glaciers of the Patagonian icefield are melting and causing sea level rise at the fastest rate in the past 350 years.  Using remote-sensing technology, the scientists were able to…

  • A Flood at Home More Motivational Than a Flood of Information

    A Flood at Home More Motivational Than a Flood of Information

    Is it necessary for your house to be flooded for you to feel personally threatened by climate change? Maybe not – but according to a March behavior study, a soggy basement will probably make you more inclined to take action to mitigate climate change. Despite the consensus within the scientific community that immediate action is…

  • Some People’s Climate Beliefs Shift With Weather

    Study Shows Daily Malleability on a Long-Term Question

  • Workshop on Mainstreaming Climate Change into Development

    Workshop on Mainstreaming Climate Change into Development

    The Workshop on Mainstreaming Climate Change into Development will discuss how to mainstream climate change into economic and social development. It will introduce the main outcomes from the Conference of the Parties in Cancun (COP16) in terms of challenges and opportunities, within the Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC) Region and discuss the financing structure…

  • Climate News Roundup: Week of 3/20

    Climate News Roundup: Week of 3/20

    USDA Funds Research on Crops and Climate Change, Businessweek, Mar. 21 The federal government is investing $60 million in three major studies on the effects of climate change on crops and forests. This adaptation strategy is meant to help farmers and foresters maintain their supply of food and timber, while experiencing shifting weather patterns. The…

  • Improving Climate Prediction in Africa

    Improving Climate Prediction in Africa

    Africa lags the developed world in weather stations but still produces a surprising amount of data. Too bad few people are using it. Scientists at Columbia University and a growing number of others—among them Bill Gates and the charity arm of Google—are pushing to open Africa’s climate archive to the world by making it free.…

  • Climate Change to Exacerbate Rising Food Prices

    Climate Change to Exacerbate Rising Food Prices

    Despite all human provisions to maintain a steady and even increasing food supply, post-Green-Revolution agriculture remains heavily dependent on seasonal weather. Just in the past few years, weather extremes caused significant jumps in food prices, causing social, economic, and political disturbances in both developing and developed countries. Between 2006 and 2008, world average prices rose…