Earth

Why Cars May Be the World’s Biggest Climate Problem

Climate change is upon us. Greenhouse gas emissions have reached an all-time high, and our changing climate has already caused ongoing worldwide megafires, sea level rise, intense heat waves and more. Because climate change knows no bounds, the fight must be a worldwide effort. For years, countries have known that a shift to clean energy… Read More
Antarctic Seas Release Shocking Amount of CO2, Diving Robots Discover

Antarctic winter seas release significantly more carbon dioxide than previously believed, according to new data collected by diving robots in the Southern Ocean. The study, conducted by the University of Washington, the Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute, Princeton University and several other oceanographic institutions, used data collected by floating sea drones that monitor the water… Read More
Flushing Your Contact Lenses Is Killing the Environment

There has been a lot of publicity surrounding the ill-effects of single-use plastics on the environment, but now the finger is pointed at a new pollutant — contact lenses. Researchers from Arizona State University (ASU) have determined that flushing or throwing contact lenses down the drain is harming animals, humans and the environment. If lenses… Read More
Scientists Fight Climate Change by Accelerating Growth of CO2-Absorbing Crystal

Researchers at Trent University, Canada, have developed a novel method to accelerate the production of magnesite at room temperature in an attempt to fight climate change. Magnesite (MgCO3), a naturally-forming mineral found in playa, or dry lake, environments, can capture and store carbon dioxide — the notorious greenhouse gas — from the environment. Scientists have… Read More
We Must Change Our Food Systems if We Want a Sustainable Future

In 2015, the United Nations came together to draft the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, a collection of 17 global goals and 169 targets that address social, economic and environmental issues. That same year, then-UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon convened an informal meeting of high-level experts and policymakers in Italy on World Food Day. Dubbed… Read More
New Algorithm Provides Real-Time Monitoring of Groundwater Pollutants

A team of researchers has developed a new, low-cost method for continuous, real-time monitoring of groundwater pollution. The development could provide a critical boost for “green” remediation efforts that reduce groundwater contamination without adversely affecting the surrounding environment. The study, entitled “In Situ Monitoring of Groundwater Contamination Using the Kalman Filter,” is the result of… Read More
Climate Change Is Weakening Trees

New research from the University of Munich (TUM) shows that although climate change has made trees grow faster, it has made wood less dense or lighter. One would think that faster tree growth would be beneficial, because trees store excess carbon dioxide from the atmosphere in their wood. But it’s not that simple. Trees with… Read More
The Widespread Effort to Solve the Global Water Crisis

As climate change, pollution and population levels are on the rise, humanity is at risk of depleting its most necessary resource — freshwater. The issue is so severe that by 2025, 1.8 billion people are expected to live in areas with absolute water scarcity, and ⅔ of the world could be under water-stressed conditions, the… Read More
Some Corals Can Withstand Climate Change, Study Shows

Rising ocean temperatures have put many coral species at risk of bleaching or death, but a new study shows that not all corals respond the same way to climate change. Researchers at the University of Miami studied two different types of corals found in Florida and the Caribbean and found that one of them —… Read More
Women Killin’ It in Fight Against Hunger on College Campuses

The price of a college education is often synonymous with hefty loans and burdensome fees, but what if it’s so much that you can’t even pay for your next meal? For up to half of all college students, this is a stark reality. Going hungry in college is an issue that plagues students all over… Read More
Why You Need to Start Eating Insects

Adding insects to our diet would benefit both the environment and human health. Eating crickets, for example, can help support the growth of beneficial gut bacteria and reduce inflammation in the body, according to a new study. Valerie Stull, a recent doctoral graduate of the University of Wisconsin–Madison Nelson Institute for Environmental Studies, wanted to… Read More
How Forests Are Dependent on Animal and Fungus Diversity

A healthy forest needs not only diverse tree species, but also diverse animal and fungus species, a new study suggests. A team of researchers led by the German Center for Integrative Biodiversity Research (iDiv) and the Martin Luther University of Halle-Wittenberg, Germany, spent 10 years delving inside a species-rich, semi-natural forests in the subtropics of… Read More
This Week on Sustainability

Happy Friday! Check out this week on sustainability — Climate Change Is Depleting The Ocean of Oxygen, Killing Fisheries University: University of Toronto and the University of California, Santa Cruz A team of ocean scientists suggest that an increase in CO2 in the earth’s atmosphere can deplete the oceans of oxygen and put the future… Read More
The Causes and Solutions to Today’s Worldwide Megafires

2018’s heat waves have the world on fire. Record-setting wildfires have stormed through and torched an unusually high number of regions, including the Arctic Circle. The reason — it’s too hot. Overall, 2018 is on pace to be the fourth-warmest year ever. This July, Death Valley set the record for the hottest month ever measured… Read More
Climate Change Is Depleting the Ocean of Oxygen, Killing Fisheries

History could repeat itself, warns ocean scientists. They have found an example from history of how an increase in CO2 in the earth’s atmosphere can deplete the oceans of oxygen. Researchers from the University of Toronto and the University of California, Santa Cruz, worked together in the study. Their paper is published in the journal… Read More