Stanford Earth Matters covers insights, discoveries, and solutions from the Stanford Doerr School of Sustainability.
COP27: How to reduce emissions and still feed the world
Stanford and Princeton co-hosted an official side event at COP27 to present the 2022 Global Carbon Budget, outline approaches to impact at scale at the Stanford Doerr School of Sustainability, and discuss the challenges and solutions for decarbonizing agriculture.
There’s room for improvement in a popular climate-smart agricultural practice
Federal subsidies promote planting cover crops to store carbon in agricultural soils, among other benefits, but the approach as currently practiced can reduce yields in the U.S. Corn Belt, researchers find. Their analysis highlights the need to better implement the practice. (Source: Stanford News)
Beavers will become a bigger boon to river water quality as U.S. West warms
American beaver populations are booming in the western United States as conditions grow hotter and drier. New research shows their prolific dam building benefits river water quality so much, it outweighs the damaging influence of climate-driven droughts.
COP27: Environmental justice and other topics to watch at climate negotiations
International negotiators will meet in Egypt this Sunday for the latest U.N. climate change conference. Stanford experts in a range of fields discuss issues likely to be in the spotlight, including compensation to developing countries for climate change-related damages. (Source: Stanford News)
Building resilience in the era of megafire
Climate change and decades of fire suppression have fueled increasingly destructive wildfires across the western U.S. and Canada. Stanford scholars and wildfire experts outline how a path forward requires responsive management, risk reduction, and Indigenous stewardship.
Coastal cathedrals
Years after Hurricane Katrina altered his life’s course, Elliott White Jr. set out to understand what drives coastal wetland loss as a way to help lessen harm from future climate impacts for vulnerable coastal communities. (Source: Stanford News)
Food security in a warming world
Heat waves, drought, and floods driven by climate change are already impacting access to food and driving food insecurity in many parts of the world. Stanford professor David Lobell explains how food production and access are impacted by climate change. (Source: Stanford Center for Innovation in Global Health)
Wildfire smoke is unraveling decades of air quality gains
Stanford researchers have developed an AI model for predicting dangerous particle pollution to help track the American West’s rapidly worsening wildfire smoke. The detailed results show millions of Americans are routinely exposed to pollution at levels rarely seen just a decade ago.
A scientist uses radar technology to map the insides of ice sheets
The technique helps us understand ice sheets right here on Earth -- and whether there could be life far, far beyond. (Source: Stanford Engineering)
Stanford researchers discuss equity in storm planning and response
Hurricanes and severe storms exacerbate inequalities. Ahead of a Sept. 21 webinar on the subject, Stanford experts discussed how to ensure equity in planning and response for such extreme weather events, economic benefits of nature-based storm defenses, and related issues. (Source: Stanford Woods Institute for the Environment)
Will AI help or perpetuate the climate crisis?
Panelists in the Advancing Technology for a Sustainable Planet workshop detailed AI’s energy and regulatory challenges. (Source: Stanford HAI)
Q&A: Harnessing the power of nature to address water and climate challenges
A Stanford water policy expert discusses how investments in nature could simultaneously help states bolster water supplies and achieve their climate goals. (Source: Stanford News)
New 'lab on a chip' may accelerate carbon storage efforts
A tiny new device allows scientists to directly observe and quantify how rocks change in the presence of acids, enabling more accurate assessments of sites for underground storage of carbon dioxide, hydrogen, and industrial waste.
Extreme heat's impact on labor
Few regulations exist to protect laborers from increasingly frequent extreme heat events. Stanford experts explain extreme heat’s impacts on workplace risks, marginalized communities, and the economy. (Source: Stanford Woods Institute for the Environment)
An AI solution to climate models’ gravity wave problem
Stanford scientists are among a growing number of researchers harnessing artificial intelligence techniques to bring more realistic representations of ubiquitous atmospheric ripples into global climate models
Stanford’s Deborah Sivas on Supreme Court’s decision to limit EPA’s powers to fight climate change
Stanford law Professor and environmental law expert Deborah Sivas explains the key points of the SCOTUS decision to reduce the regulatory power of the EPA and discusses the implications for climate change. (Source: Stanford Law School)
Four questions for Liz Hadly
The Stanford environmental biologist and global change specialist discusses recent flooding in Yellowstone National Park – and what it means for the future of the planet. (Source: Stanford News)
Summer reading: Inspiring curiosity and critical thinking about sustainability
Faculty and scholars associated with the Stanford Doerr School of Sustainability recommend these 26 books for your summer reading.
Climate change and air pollution impacts on children’s health
Children are more likely than adults to suffer health impacts due to environmental impacts. Kari Nadeau of Stanford’s Sean N. Parker Center for Allergy & Asthma Research discusses related risks, as well as what caregivers and health care workers can do about them.