Environment

The water in Lake Powell, one of the nation’s largest reservoirs, has fallen so low amid the Western drought that federal officials are resorting to emergency measures to avoid shutting…

It’s no secret that Earth’s biodiversity is at risk. According to the International Union for the Conservation of Nature, 26% of all mammals, 14% of birds and 41% of amphibians…

There’s growing recognition that Indigenous communities are among the most vulnerable to the effects of climate change and that traditional ecological knowledge is vital to adapting to environmental changes. As…

Coastal wetlands are vitally important ecosystems. They store carbon dioxide, protect seaside communities from storms and provide habitats for marine life. Yet in the past two decades, Earth has lost 4,000…

Rising competition for many of the world’s important crops is sending increasing amounts toward uses other than directly feeding people. These competing uses include making biofuels; converting crops into processing…

The last decade was defined by commitments to tackle the climate crisis. It began with a slow trickle and ended in a torrent of countries, cities and companies announcing goals to end…

Vulnerable populations in small towns face significantly more public health risks than statewide averages, finds new research in Iowa. Study leader Benjamin Shirtcliff focused on three Iowa towns—Marshalltown, Ottumwa, and…

It’s been 30 years since the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change was finalized and opened for signatures. Since then, countries have held 27 rounds of negotiations with the goal of…

Twenty-five years ago, when I was a young anthropologist working in northern Siberia, the Indigenous hunters, fishers and trappers I lived with would often stop and solemnly offer something to…

Growing food in a sustainable, environmentally friendly way – while also producing enough of it – is among the most important challenges facing the U.S. and the world today. The…

Heatwaves on both land and ocean can have deadly impacts. However, efforts to predict imminent ocean heatwaves still lag behind research predicting land-based extremes. The new study, published in Nature, provides the foundation for an…