State of the Planet

News from the Columbia Climate School

evolutionary biology

  • What Helps Animals Adapt (or Not) to Climate Change?

    What Helps Animals Adapt (or Not) to Climate Change?

    As our climate changes, some animals seem to be able to adapt while others cannot. What makes adaptation possible? Can humans help it along?

  • Hatchets, Ratchets & Pivots: Book Talk by Ruth DeFries

    Hatchets, Ratchets & Pivots: Book Talk by Ruth DeFries

    As Professor Ruth DeFries aptly stated in her opening remarks at yesterday’s book launch for “The Big Ratchet,” if you look at satellite pictures of the earth, you see the imprint of the human species everywhere. Humans have come to dominate the planet. But how did this come to be? This question, among others, is…

Columbia Climate School Giving Day on October 28, 2026, featuring students and renewable energy imagery

October 28, 2026 is Columbia Giving Day! Your gift to Columbia Climate School helps advance interdisciplinary research, educate the next generation of leaders, and transform bold ideas into real-world solutions for climate, Earth, and society.

  • What Helps Animals Adapt (or Not) to Climate Change?

    What Helps Animals Adapt (or Not) to Climate Change?

    As our climate changes, some animals seem to be able to adapt while others cannot. What makes adaptation possible? Can humans help it along?

  • Hatchets, Ratchets & Pivots: Book Talk by Ruth DeFries

    Hatchets, Ratchets & Pivots: Book Talk by Ruth DeFries

    As Professor Ruth DeFries aptly stated in her opening remarks at yesterday’s book launch for “The Big Ratchet,” if you look at satellite pictures of the earth, you see the imprint of the human species everywhere. Humans have come to dominate the planet. But how did this come to be? This question, among others, is…