State of the Planet

News from the Columbia Climate School

Hurricane Sandy5

  • Getting Better Prepared for the Next Big Storm

    Getting Better Prepared for the Next Big Storm

    Super Storm Sandy was an unusually powerful and destructive storm because of a rare constellation of factors, but scientists predict that we can expect more extreme weather events due to the effects of climate change. Has the super storm made us take warnings about extreme weather more seriously?

  • Resilience and Flood Risk

    Resilience and Flood Risk

    As New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo acknowledged last Tuesday, “We have a new reality when it comes to these weather patterns; we have an old infrastructure, we have old systems. That is not a good combination.” This is exactly why the flood insurance market, as a tool for change, is of interest to the mayor’s…

  • ‘This is a wake-up call – don’t hit the snooze button’

    ‘This is a wake-up call – don’t hit the snooze button’

    For years before Hurricane Sandy charged ashore on Monday, researchers from the Earth Institute knew what was coming. As the region struggles to recover from this “superstorm,” we asked some of them to consider the lessons we can learn as we move forward.

  • A Prescient Voice on Sandy: Suddenly Everyone Is Listening

    A Prescient Voice on Sandy: Suddenly Everyone Is Listening

    For much of the last decade, Klaus Jacob warned of New York’s vulnerability to severe flooding in a major storm. Four days after the storm that crippled New York and New Jersey and swamped his own home along the Hudson River, Jacob reflected on Sandy’s lessons and what comes next.

  • The Science and the Lessons of Hurricane Sandy

    The Science and the Lessons of Hurricane Sandy

    Reports and studies have been imagining events like Sandy for years now; so why were so few people ready to listen? And will this lead to a serious conversation about climate change in the halls of power?

  • Getting Better Prepared for the Next Big Storm

    Getting Better Prepared for the Next Big Storm

    Super Storm Sandy was an unusually powerful and destructive storm because of a rare constellation of factors, but scientists predict that we can expect more extreme weather events due to the effects of climate change. Has the super storm made us take warnings about extreme weather more seriously?

  • Resilience and Flood Risk

    Resilience and Flood Risk

    As New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo acknowledged last Tuesday, “We have a new reality when it comes to these weather patterns; we have an old infrastructure, we have old systems. That is not a good combination.” This is exactly why the flood insurance market, as a tool for change, is of interest to the mayor’s…

  • ‘This is a wake-up call – don’t hit the snooze button’

    ‘This is a wake-up call – don’t hit the snooze button’

    For years before Hurricane Sandy charged ashore on Monday, researchers from the Earth Institute knew what was coming. As the region struggles to recover from this “superstorm,” we asked some of them to consider the lessons we can learn as we move forward.

  • A Prescient Voice on Sandy: Suddenly Everyone Is Listening

    A Prescient Voice on Sandy: Suddenly Everyone Is Listening

    For much of the last decade, Klaus Jacob warned of New York’s vulnerability to severe flooding in a major storm. Four days after the storm that crippled New York and New Jersey and swamped his own home along the Hudson River, Jacob reflected on Sandy’s lessons and what comes next.

  • The Science and the Lessons of Hurricane Sandy

    The Science and the Lessons of Hurricane Sandy

    Reports and studies have been imagining events like Sandy for years now; so why were so few people ready to listen? And will this lead to a serious conversation about climate change in the halls of power?