State of the Planet

News from the Columbia Climate School

Infrastructure18

  • Irrigation project success in Mali

    Columbia Water Center is working in Mali, Africa, as part of its PepsiCo Foundation funded project to improve rural water use and livelihoods. The Mali component of the project aims to develop an effective irrigation system to improve agricultural productivity and food security.

  • The True Cost of Water: NYC Event May 6

    The Green Policy and Environmental Policy Discussion Group of the The New York Academy of Science and the Columbia Water Center are sponsoring a panel discussion on The True Cost of Water on May 6. The focus of this panel discussion is the importance of economic optimization of water usage in the present and in…

  • Sustainable water systems in rural Brazil

    One of Columbia Water Center’s major programs, funded by the PepsiCo Foundation, is to develop water infrastructure in rural Brazil, in areas that have had no public water service.  CWC’s local Director, Francisco de Assis de Souza Filho, was recently in New York, and on April 23 gave a talk about ‘Designing Sustainable Water Systems:…

  • Get real: water pixies won’t solve your problems

    A currently very vocal part of the population is calling for less government and lower taxes – they apparently think that pixies will come in the night and maintain the infrastructure which provides for their comfortable lives.

  • Dark Side of Solar Has Light at the End of the Tunnel

    As the United States searches for sources of alternative energy and a means to reduce its production of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, solar power plants have emerged as a leading candidate to address both of these problems. While these plants do indeed provide an additional means of producting energy that could potentially reduce the amount…

  • Green Infrastructure

    Since May is American Wetlands Month, I want to highlight the use of constructed wetlands, or green infrastructure, as a way to manage or restore natural hydrologies to an ecosystem. The technologies mentioned below are not necessarily new or revolutionary. However, with the recent government emphasis on infrastructure and green projects, I think the scale…

  • Tampa Bay Water has Bleak Outlook

    Tampa Bay is probably most known in the water community for having one of the largest desalinization plants in the nation, and is looked upon by many as the model to see if desal is a feasible alternative for the future. So far, the plant has been full of issues, such as costing $40 million…

  • Water Center Conference: Water Security in India

    Last night (Wednesday, April 15) the Water Center kicked off its conference on Water Security in India with a lecture and reception at the Asia Society in New York. Led by a formal talk given by Alok Sikka (see here for more information about Sikka and the other panelists), the evening addressed pressing water issues…

  • Intelligent Infrastructure

    As part of the Obama administrations’ new American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, $80 billion dollars have been dedicated to investment in infrastructure. Rather than regurgitating traditional infrastructure that is based on an outdated conception of human-environment interactions, this influx of capital for infrastructure has the potential to be leveraged for innovation instead. Building Infrastructure that…

Columbia campus skyline with text Columbia Climate School Class Day 2024 - Congratulations Graduates

Congratulations to our Columbia Climate School MA in Climate & Society Class of 2024! Learn about our May 10 Class Day celebration. #ColumbiaClimate2024

  • Irrigation project success in Mali

    Columbia Water Center is working in Mali, Africa, as part of its PepsiCo Foundation funded project to improve rural water use and livelihoods. The Mali component of the project aims to develop an effective irrigation system to improve agricultural productivity and food security.

  • The True Cost of Water: NYC Event May 6

    The Green Policy and Environmental Policy Discussion Group of the The New York Academy of Science and the Columbia Water Center are sponsoring a panel discussion on The True Cost of Water on May 6. The focus of this panel discussion is the importance of economic optimization of water usage in the present and in…

  • Sustainable water systems in rural Brazil

    One of Columbia Water Center’s major programs, funded by the PepsiCo Foundation, is to develop water infrastructure in rural Brazil, in areas that have had no public water service.  CWC’s local Director, Francisco de Assis de Souza Filho, was recently in New York, and on April 23 gave a talk about ‘Designing Sustainable Water Systems:…

  • Get real: water pixies won’t solve your problems

    A currently very vocal part of the population is calling for less government and lower taxes – they apparently think that pixies will come in the night and maintain the infrastructure which provides for their comfortable lives.

  • Dark Side of Solar Has Light at the End of the Tunnel

    As the United States searches for sources of alternative energy and a means to reduce its production of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, solar power plants have emerged as a leading candidate to address both of these problems. While these plants do indeed provide an additional means of producting energy that could potentially reduce the amount…

  • Green Infrastructure

    Since May is American Wetlands Month, I want to highlight the use of constructed wetlands, or green infrastructure, as a way to manage or restore natural hydrologies to an ecosystem. The technologies mentioned below are not necessarily new or revolutionary. However, with the recent government emphasis on infrastructure and green projects, I think the scale…

  • Tampa Bay Water has Bleak Outlook

    Tampa Bay is probably most known in the water community for having one of the largest desalinization plants in the nation, and is looked upon by many as the model to see if desal is a feasible alternative for the future. So far, the plant has been full of issues, such as costing $40 million…

  • Water Center Conference: Water Security in India

    Last night (Wednesday, April 15) the Water Center kicked off its conference on Water Security in India with a lecture and reception at the Asia Society in New York. Led by a formal talk given by Alok Sikka (see here for more information about Sikka and the other panelists), the evening addressed pressing water issues…

  • Intelligent Infrastructure

    As part of the Obama administrations’ new American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, $80 billion dollars have been dedicated to investment in infrastructure. Rather than regurgitating traditional infrastructure that is based on an outdated conception of human-environment interactions, this influx of capital for infrastructure has the potential to be leveraged for innovation instead. Building Infrastructure that…