State of the Planet

News from the Columbia Climate School

plant evolution

  • In an Alpine Plant Species, Ancient Alleles May Help Drive Climate Change Adaptation

    In an Alpine Plant Species, Ancient Alleles May Help Drive Climate Change Adaptation

    Researchers found that two alleles in the wood pink plant species may allow the perennials to adapt to warming temperatures.

  • How Did Africa’s Grasslands Get Started?

    How Did Africa’s Grasslands Get Started?

    Millions of years ago, vegetation across much of the world underwent a transformation as grasses with a new way of doing photosynthesis displaced previously dominant plants, shrubs and trees. A new study examines what got these plants started, and why they spread so far and wide.

  • How Australia Got Planted

    How Australia Got Planted

    A new study has uncovered when and why the native vegetation that today dominates much of Australia first expanded across the continent.

  • Study Finds Genetic Clues to How Plants Adapt to Climate

    Study Finds Genetic Clues to How Plants Adapt to Climate

    Using supercomputers to analyze hundreds of thousands of genetic markers, scientists say they have found how a common weed uses its genetic code to adapt to changes in its environment such as cold and drought. The findings could help develop crops that are more adaptable to climate change.

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.

  • In an Alpine Plant Species, Ancient Alleles May Help Drive Climate Change Adaptation

    In an Alpine Plant Species, Ancient Alleles May Help Drive Climate Change Adaptation

    Researchers found that two alleles in the wood pink plant species may allow the perennials to adapt to warming temperatures.

  • How Did Africa’s Grasslands Get Started?

    How Did Africa’s Grasslands Get Started?

    Millions of years ago, vegetation across much of the world underwent a transformation as grasses with a new way of doing photosynthesis displaced previously dominant plants, shrubs and trees. A new study examines what got these plants started, and why they spread so far and wide.

  • How Australia Got Planted

    How Australia Got Planted

    A new study has uncovered when and why the native vegetation that today dominates much of Australia first expanded across the continent.

  • Study Finds Genetic Clues to How Plants Adapt to Climate

    Study Finds Genetic Clues to How Plants Adapt to Climate

    Using supercomputers to analyze hundreds of thousands of genetic markers, scientists say they have found how a common weed uses its genetic code to adapt to changes in its environment such as cold and drought. The findings could help develop crops that are more adaptable to climate change.