The group traveled by boat, motorcycle and finally by foot through the forest to reach cliffs where burials lay. At one site, 20 feet off the forest floor was a ledge protected by an overhang, where lay a row hollowed-out logs, along with ceramic jars.
After finally reaching the Mongla and our boat, we settled into our new home. It is a similar design, but much larger than the one we used in September. As we ate dinner and explored the ship, it started the overnight journey to the southeastern part of the Sundarbans where the wildlife is most plentiful. [...]
We spent a day on the islands (chars) in the Brahmaputra River seeing the geology and talking to the residents. Then after an evening of feasting and dancing in our new Saris and lungis, we hit the road for the trip to the Sundarbans.
To help my students in a class on hazards of Bangladesh better understand the country, I am taking them there to experience Bangladesh for themselves.
In order to maintain the status quo, let alone to grow, cities like Beijing, Tianjin, Shijiazhuang and Zhengzhou need more water. But the South-North Water Transfer Project–which when completed will transfer 174 times more water per year than the city of Los Angeles receives from various diversions of the Colorado River– is putting in place a fundamentally unsustainable growth trajectory that could undermine the stability so vigorously sought by the leaders of the nation.
[Last updated: Dec. 13, 2012] Journalists may join Earth Institute research field expeditions, which take place on every continent and every ocean. Below: selected projects, in rough chronological order. (Work in and around New York listed separately at bottom.) While in the field, researchers may be available by phone or email, depending on site. Some expeditions [...]
For the first time, China’s No. 1 central document outlining the government’s priorities for the coming year focuses on the construction of water resources acknowledging its importance as a “strategic resource” and its necessity to the economy.
As we finally reached our prime target area, it was time for me to leave the ship and return home. Despite initial struggles on navigating the Brahmaputra River, we have worked together with the ship’s crew and pilots for a successful method. And now as I leave with many new friends, the best data is coming in.
Rejoining the ship, we sailed up the Padma and Jamuna (Brahmaputra) Rivers. Hurrying to our primary area with the help of pilots, we finally collected good seismic data.
Finishing up in the muddy rivers of NE Bangladesh, we headed downstream to switch to the mighty Brahmaputra River system. However, on the way down I had to jump ship to go into traffic-clogged Dhaka for some meetings before rejoining her on the Padma, the name of the combined Ganges and Brahmaputra Rivers.
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