State of the Planet

News from the Columbia Climate School

Indonesia

  • Flooding in Jakarta: A Call to Increase Climate Change Awareness

    Flooding in Jakarta: A Call to Increase Climate Change Awareness

    Despite being frequent victims of climate-driven disasters, Indonesians are largely unaware of climate change and its impacts. Education, media attention, and conversations could be key to shifting those perceptions.

  • Rising Temperatures Lead to Increased Fire Risk in Indonesia

    Rising Temperatures Lead to Increased Fire Risk in Indonesia

    A new paper shows that rising temperatures have increased the risk of fires even during non-drought years in Indonesia, possibly making mild fire seasons in the country a thing of the past.

  • Study Finds Oil Palm Certification Plays Limited Role in Curbing Fires

    Study Finds Oil Palm Certification Plays Limited Role in Curbing Fires

    Oil palm is in everything from food to cosmetics to fuel and is consumed and used by most people without giving it a second thought. Yet oil palm cultivation is a large contributor to environmental and social problems, especially in places like Indonesia, where the business of oil palm cultivation has become the second largest…

  • Peat Fires Choking Southeast Asia Pose a New Threat to Global Climate

    Peat Fires Choking Southeast Asia Pose a New Threat to Global Climate

    The Indonesian peat fires that have been choking cities across Southeast Asia with a yellow haze are creating more than a local menace—burning peat releases immense stores of CO2, contributing to global warming.

  • Think Globally, Act Locally: Climate Adaptation in Action

    Think Globally, Act Locally: Climate Adaptation in Action

    Across Indonesia, several effective climate adaptation actions on local levels are underway. These actions serve as a reminder of the important change that starts with a community of dedicated individuals.

  • Ice on Ice

    Ice on Ice

    I have reached Jakarta, and so have the ice cores, which are being kept frozen while awaiting air shipment to the United States. The rest of the team has already returned to their homes. Next for me: back to sea level, on two research cruises that will add oceanographic information to the data we gathered on Puncak Jaya.…

  • Finished, as the Glaciers Fall Apart

    We have finished our mission at Puncak Jaya and removed the ice cores, along with all camps and people from the field. Currently, we are in the coastal city of Timika for a few days, drying out our field equipment and tents. These are the first glaciers we have ever drilled where it rains almost every day–and…

  • Decline and Fall of a Glacier

    The glaciers around Puncak Jaya have long been in visible decline. From 1936 to 2006, they lost nearly 80 percent of their area–two-thirds of that since 1970, according to a new paper by glaciologist Michael Prentice of the Indiana Geological Survey, who has long been interested in the area. Satellite images show that from 2002 to 2006…

  • The Ice Cores

    Maybe the most difficult thing about ice cores comes after the actual drilling: then you then have to get them out and transport them long distances, and make sure they don’t melt. Otherwise, all that work was for nothing. Here are some images showing how we handle them initially. (Courtesy David Christenson/Freeport McMoRan)

  • Flooding in Jakarta: A Call to Increase Climate Change Awareness

    Flooding in Jakarta: A Call to Increase Climate Change Awareness

    Despite being frequent victims of climate-driven disasters, Indonesians are largely unaware of climate change and its impacts. Education, media attention, and conversations could be key to shifting those perceptions.

  • Rising Temperatures Lead to Increased Fire Risk in Indonesia

    Rising Temperatures Lead to Increased Fire Risk in Indonesia

    A new paper shows that rising temperatures have increased the risk of fires even during non-drought years in Indonesia, possibly making mild fire seasons in the country a thing of the past.

  • Study Finds Oil Palm Certification Plays Limited Role in Curbing Fires

    Study Finds Oil Palm Certification Plays Limited Role in Curbing Fires

    Oil palm is in everything from food to cosmetics to fuel and is consumed and used by most people without giving it a second thought. Yet oil palm cultivation is a large contributor to environmental and social problems, especially in places like Indonesia, where the business of oil palm cultivation has become the second largest…

  • Peat Fires Choking Southeast Asia Pose a New Threat to Global Climate

    Peat Fires Choking Southeast Asia Pose a New Threat to Global Climate

    The Indonesian peat fires that have been choking cities across Southeast Asia with a yellow haze are creating more than a local menace—burning peat releases immense stores of CO2, contributing to global warming.

  • Think Globally, Act Locally: Climate Adaptation in Action

    Think Globally, Act Locally: Climate Adaptation in Action

    Across Indonesia, several effective climate adaptation actions on local levels are underway. These actions serve as a reminder of the important change that starts with a community of dedicated individuals.

  • Ice on Ice

    Ice on Ice

    I have reached Jakarta, and so have the ice cores, which are being kept frozen while awaiting air shipment to the United States. The rest of the team has already returned to their homes. Next for me: back to sea level, on two research cruises that will add oceanographic information to the data we gathered on Puncak Jaya.…

  • Finished, as the Glaciers Fall Apart

    We have finished our mission at Puncak Jaya and removed the ice cores, along with all camps and people from the field. Currently, we are in the coastal city of Timika for a few days, drying out our field equipment and tents. These are the first glaciers we have ever drilled where it rains almost every day–and…

  • Decline and Fall of a Glacier

    The glaciers around Puncak Jaya have long been in visible decline. From 1936 to 2006, they lost nearly 80 percent of their area–two-thirds of that since 1970, according to a new paper by glaciologist Michael Prentice of the Indiana Geological Survey, who has long been interested in the area. Satellite images show that from 2002 to 2006…

  • The Ice Cores

    Maybe the most difficult thing about ice cores comes after the actual drilling: then you then have to get them out and transport them long distances, and make sure they don’t melt. Otherwise, all that work was for nothing. Here are some images showing how we handle them initially. (Courtesy David Christenson/Freeport McMoRan)