Earth Institute research expeditions investigating the dynamics of the planet on all levels take place on every continent and every ocean. Most projects originate with our main research center, Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory, and are often run in collaboration with other institutions.
Naresh Devineni will be teaching a course on the Management and Development of Water Systems as part of the new Certificate in Sustainable Water Management. In this interview, conducted by Nick Turchak, Naresh elaborates on his research topics in Hydro-climatic Data Analysis and Modeling, Water Resources Management and Risk Assessment.
The Earth Institute at Columbia University hosted a two-day workshop that brought together practitioners, trainers, and academics to explore innovative approaches to teaching and training on natural resources management in fragile states and peacebuilding contexts. The workshop concluded with a clear statement: current academic and training programs do not provide a coherent methodology for students and practitioners to adequately face the challenges posed by the confluence of fragile states, climate risks, natural resources, conflict, and peacebuilding.
The rural communities of Ceará, Brazil, had long been accustomed to drought and the problems that result: food insecurity, death of livestock, and conflict over scarce water resources. While Ceara’s problems may have been typical of a water scarce region in the developing world, the work of the Columbia Water Center and PepsiCo Foundation has [...]
Across the country, in distressed urban centers, hundreds of thousands of industrial sites have been left lying fallow. These properties, known as brownfields, embody the story of America’s twentieth-century industrial might and bear the mark of that period’s unenlightened practices. Their closing and subsequent abandonment culminated in the loss of well-paying manufacturing jobs, the creation of urban blight and the legacy of environmental contamination. However, research suggests that brownfields may be the missing link in the emerging green economy and one of the keys to America’s economic comeback.
Leading up to Rio+20, on April 25th the United Nations hosted “Healthy Oceans: Charting A New Course,” a panel discussion which brought together a range of experts to discuss the fate of the world’s oceans and what can be done to protect them.
US rice production dominates our consumption at over 90% (USDA, 2012), and the question is whether or not that choice is the best one for our water and our environment.
Over the past decade, average global food prices have more than doubled, with 2008 and 2010 seeing excruciating price spikes that each had far-reaching economic, geopolitical and social consequences.
Consilience, Columbia EcoReps and Green Umbrella are among the many groups on campus working to provide a public platform to engage the global community in thinking more broadly, thoroughly, and analytically about sustainable development
We are excited to let you know that CERC is offering a piloted version of Environmental Markets: The Nexus of Business, Regulation and Sustainability online as part of our Executive Education Program in Conservation and Environmental Sustainability.
State of the Planet is a forum for discussion on varying viewpoints. The opinions expressed by the authors and those providing comments are theirs alone, and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the Earth Institute or Columbia University.
