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.
The Arctic may seem remote, but the overall rate of global warming, our climate and weather, sea levels, and many ecosystems and species will be affected by the warming that is occurring there.
Coastal Wetlands provide homes for migrating and native birds, protected areas for hatcheries, flood mitigation and an unrivaled biodiversity of microorganisims that serves as the basis of the marine food chain. Nature here works hard to compensate for an increasingly heavy human footprint.
In a gigantic and remote rainforest of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, a team of scientists have discovered a new species of Old World monkey known as the “Lesula.”
An estimated 9 million species of living things inhabit the Earth. But those species are disappearing at an alarming rate, and this loss of biodiversity appears to be a major driver of environmental changes that can affect the biological and chemical processes that humans rely on.
As biodiversity takes a hit from climate change, forward thinking groups store seed samples in gene banks. The idea: if an entire species is wiped out, scientists can repopulate from the samples. Hello, plant versions of Adam and Eve.
SEE-U Dominican Republic provides students with many enriching opportunities to engage in fieldwork and study biodiversity and ecosystems in their natural environments.
In partnership with Columbia’s Global Center in Amman, the Columbia University Middle East Research Center, undergraduate students of all majors have the unique opportunity to study ecosystems and environmental sustainability in Jordan.
Summer 2012 applications for the Student Ecosystem Experiences for Undergraduate program are now being accepted. Undergraduate students of all majors can apply for the opportunity to conduct field work and study unique ecosystems abroad.
A new study in Science finds that the oceans may be acidifying faster today from industrial emissions than they did during four major extinctions in the last 300 million years when carbon levels spiked naturally.
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.
