State of the Planet

News from the Columbia Climate School

climate change140

  • Columbia Engineers an Impact on Water Sustainability

    Columbia Engineers an Impact on Water Sustainability

    The most recent issue of the Columbia Engineering Magazine profiles many of the Columbia University Engineering faculty who are addressing the issues of sustainability in the water, climate and energy fields. Several of Columbia Water Center’s researchers and collaborators were featured. Here are some teasers that demonstrate the depth and breadth of the talent at…

  • The New York DEP: A New Kind of Modeling Agency

    The New York DEP: A New Kind of Modeling Agency

    Last Friday, Don Pierson of the NY DEP gave a lecture at the Columbia Water Center as part of our Fall Seminar Series. The talk, entitled “A Project to Evaluate the Effects of Climate Change on the NYC Drinking Water Supply,” detailed the process behind current DEP efforts to model the possible effects of climate…

  • Sachs: ‘US Remains Trapped and Paralyzed on Climate Change’

    Sachs: ‘US Remains Trapped and Paralyzed on Climate Change’

    Jeffrey Sachs discusses the inaction and inability of the US to enact any meaningful climate legislation with future prospects growing dim with the changing of the guard in Congress after last week’s midterm elections.

  • Can We Have Our Water and Drink It, Too? Exploring the Water Quality-Quantity Nexus

    Can We Have Our Water and Drink It, Too? Exploring the Water Quality-Quantity Nexus

    Water quantity and quality have generally been considered as separate problems and have usually been treated as such in policy-making and environmental restoration efforts. Increasingly, however, research and experience is beginning to show a strong link between water quantity and quality.

  • Measuring the Ice From a Bird’s Eye View!

    Measuring the Ice From a Bird’s Eye View!

    Operation IceBridge Antarctica ramps up for a second year of ice surveys. Originating from Chile, a series of airborne missions will be flown almost daily from the airbase in Punta Arenas.

  • Denmark’s New Mark: Fossil-free by 2050

    Denmark’s New Mark: Fossil-free by 2050

    Last Monday, October 11th, Columbia University’s Earth Institute and the Consulate General of Denmark co-hosted “The Climate Challenge: Revitalizing the Debate”. The daylong symposium included three panel sessions, in which experts from academia, the private sector, government and non-governmental organizations discussed the effects and implications of global climate change as well as steps –both taken…

  • Deutsche Bank and Earth Institute Debunk Climate Skeptics

    To address global warming skeptics, the Earth Institute’s Columbia Climate Center authored a report in partnership with Deutsche Bank Climate Change Advisors to examine many of the claims and counter-claims against climate change science. The report concludes that despite the noise generated by misinformation, a vast body of scientific research affirms that human-made climate change…

  • Peruvians Fight for Their Right to Water

    Peruvians Fight for Their Right to Water

    On September 17, one man was killed and 18 others injured when police attempted to break up demonstrators protesting an irrigation project recently approved by the Peruvian government.

  • Cyprus: A Case Study in Water Challenges

    One tends to think of islands as wet places (surrounded as they are by water) but the island of Cyprus in the Eastern Mediterranean sea belies that characterization. Among many childhood memories I have of that place, some of the most vivid are of the wide-open, piercing blue of cloudless skies and the sun-scorched, dusty…

Colorful icons representing nature, sustainable living, and renewable energy with text "Earth Day 2026"

The first Earth Day in 1970 ignited a movement to stop polluting our planet. Today, our scientists and experts are tackling the most pressing challenges to achieve real-world impact. This Earth Day, join us in our commitment to realizing a just and sustainable future for our planet. Visit our Earth Day website for ideas, resources, and inspiration.

  • Columbia Engineers an Impact on Water Sustainability

    Columbia Engineers an Impact on Water Sustainability

    The most recent issue of the Columbia Engineering Magazine profiles many of the Columbia University Engineering faculty who are addressing the issues of sustainability in the water, climate and energy fields. Several of Columbia Water Center’s researchers and collaborators were featured. Here are some teasers that demonstrate the depth and breadth of the talent at…

  • The New York DEP: A New Kind of Modeling Agency

    The New York DEP: A New Kind of Modeling Agency

    Last Friday, Don Pierson of the NY DEP gave a lecture at the Columbia Water Center as part of our Fall Seminar Series. The talk, entitled “A Project to Evaluate the Effects of Climate Change on the NYC Drinking Water Supply,” detailed the process behind current DEP efforts to model the possible effects of climate…

  • Sachs: ‘US Remains Trapped and Paralyzed on Climate Change’

    Sachs: ‘US Remains Trapped and Paralyzed on Climate Change’

    Jeffrey Sachs discusses the inaction and inability of the US to enact any meaningful climate legislation with future prospects growing dim with the changing of the guard in Congress after last week’s midterm elections.

  • Can We Have Our Water and Drink It, Too? Exploring the Water Quality-Quantity Nexus

    Can We Have Our Water and Drink It, Too? Exploring the Water Quality-Quantity Nexus

    Water quantity and quality have generally been considered as separate problems and have usually been treated as such in policy-making and environmental restoration efforts. Increasingly, however, research and experience is beginning to show a strong link between water quantity and quality.

  • Measuring the Ice From a Bird’s Eye View!

    Measuring the Ice From a Bird’s Eye View!

    Operation IceBridge Antarctica ramps up for a second year of ice surveys. Originating from Chile, a series of airborne missions will be flown almost daily from the airbase in Punta Arenas.

  • Denmark’s New Mark: Fossil-free by 2050

    Denmark’s New Mark: Fossil-free by 2050

    Last Monday, October 11th, Columbia University’s Earth Institute and the Consulate General of Denmark co-hosted “The Climate Challenge: Revitalizing the Debate”. The daylong symposium included three panel sessions, in which experts from academia, the private sector, government and non-governmental organizations discussed the effects and implications of global climate change as well as steps –both taken…

  • Deutsche Bank and Earth Institute Debunk Climate Skeptics

    To address global warming skeptics, the Earth Institute’s Columbia Climate Center authored a report in partnership with Deutsche Bank Climate Change Advisors to examine many of the claims and counter-claims against climate change science. The report concludes that despite the noise generated by misinformation, a vast body of scientific research affirms that human-made climate change…

  • Peruvians Fight for Their Right to Water

    Peruvians Fight for Their Right to Water

    On September 17, one man was killed and 18 others injured when police attempted to break up demonstrators protesting an irrigation project recently approved by the Peruvian government.

  • Cyprus: A Case Study in Water Challenges

    One tends to think of islands as wet places (surrounded as they are by water) but the island of Cyprus in the Eastern Mediterranean sea belies that characterization. Among many childhood memories I have of that place, some of the most vivid are of the wide-open, piercing blue of cloudless skies and the sun-scorched, dusty…