Yale e360 · Page 61

While the world’s forests can play an important role in absorbing carbon dioxide and slowing climate change, new research indicates that elevated CO2 concentrations do not necessarily boost forests and that higher temperatures could cause changes in trees…

The South Pole has warmed at a rate three times the global average over the last three decades, according to a new study in the journal Nature Climate Change. Temperatures at the Amundsen-Scott research station in Antarctica rose by 1.8 degrees Celsius between…

As more people push into once-remote areas, truly quiet spots — devoid of the noise of traffic or crowds of tourists — have become increasingly scarce. Now, a coalition of activists, scientists, and park officials are trying to preserve the last quiet…

Space agencies in the United States, Japan, and the European Union have collaborated to create a new tool that visualizes environmental changes during the Covid-19 pandemic, from air and water quality, to greenhouse gases, to agriculture. The system uses data…

With rising temperatures, the world’s food supplies are at risk, with deceasing yields in key staple crops. Researchers and innovators are looking at more resilient crops and farm animals — from heat-resistant wheat, to drought-resistant rice, to Naked…

Scientists with the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) are examining new data indicating that temperatures in the Russian town of Verkhoyansk — located north of the Arctic Circle — hit a record-breaking 38 degrees Celsius (100.4 degrees Fahrenheit)…

Oil and gas giants, mining interests, and coal-fired power plants have all received financial and regulatory relief as governments around the world enact pandemic recovery plans. These moves threaten to create a dirty, high-carbon legacy that long outlasts the…

More than a decade of overwhelming evidence links air pollution and heat exposure with negative pregnancy outcomes in the United States, according to a new review of dozens of studies. The investigation, published in the Journal of the American Medical…

New Jersey is taking steps to become a major hub for offshore wind in the United States, announcing a plan to build a 30-acre port along the Delaware River for assembling and deploying turbines, plus an additional 25 acres for manufacturing facilities.…

When Guatemala created a major reserve 30 years ago, environmentalists complained that too much land was entrusted to local people and not converted to parks. Now, the parks have been overrun by ranches linked to drug traffickers, while the community-run lands…

Climate change models have underestimated the amount of carbon dioxide that will be emitted from thawing permafrost by as much as 14 percent, according to a new study published in the journal Geophysical Research Letters. The research incorporates a key…

The international commission responsible for managing Atlantic bluefin — prized for high-quality sushi — is failing to protect this magnificent fish. The regulators’ focus on fishing industry profits points up the need to change the way we view, and…

The international commission responsible for managing Atlantic bluefin — prized for high-quality sushi — is failing to protect this magnificent fish. The regulators’ focus on fishing industry profits points up the need to change the way we view, and…

Wildlife officials in Botswana are investigating the mysterious deaths of 154 elephants over a three-month period in the Okavango Delta, in the northwest corner of the country. Both poaching and poisoning have been ruled out as causes of the die-off, Reuters…

Despite America’s continued reliance on fossil fuels as its primary source of energy, the plummeting costs of alternative energy sources — like power harnessed from the sun or wind — is making them an increasingly viable choice on the competitive market.…

In one-fifth of environmental conflicts around the world, activists face criminal charges or imprisonment as a result of their work defending natural resources, according to a new analysis by researchers at the Autonomous University of Barcelona. Read more on…

With the global economy reeling from the pandemic, most nations are focusing stimulus programs on reviving employment. But Europe is moving forward with a Green Deal initiative that provides a framework for decarbonizing its economy and spurring the rest of…

Diesel fuel from a 21,000-ton oil spill in the Russian Arctic has reached a freshwater lake that serves as a gateway into the Arctic Ocean, Russian officials announced. The spill, one of the largest in Russian history, has contaminated several rivers and…

Activist Elizabeth Yeampierre has long focused on the connections between racial injustice and the environment and climate change. In the wake of the George Floyd’s killing and the outsized impact of Covid-19 on communities of color, she believes people may…

President Trump is expected to sign an executive order to expedite the permitting of new infrastructure and energy projects as a way to address the economic downturn driven by the Covid-19 pandemic, several news outlets report. The order will waive several…