Waste-to-Energy or Wasted Energy?
What happens with our waste? Out-of-sight, out-of-mind. Despite our best efforts, and maybe a few new year’s resolutions, a lot
Read more
Case Studies
Where Categorizing Hurricanes Falls Short
Hurricane Katrina was one of the most devastating hurricanes in history, leading to over 1800 fatalities and tying Hurricane Harvey as the costliest hurricane on record. But at the time Katrina made landfall, it was “only” ranked as Category 3 by the Saffir-Simpson scale, which goes up to Category 5. So why did Katrina, at only Category 3, cause so much more destruction than most Category 5 storms? And what does that tell us about what the Saffir-Simpson scale is missing?
Read more
Will climate change bring cultural change?
Sometimes science isn’t enough to protect a species. Sometimes, culture is necessary. People are likely to care most about protecting species they find culturally important. But are these culturally important species the most threatened due to climate change? A case study from Costa Rica offers some insights into this question.
Read more
Let the games begin! Having fun and playing games can improve the lives of people and wildlife.
With environmental conditions deteriorating across the globe, there’s no time to stop and play games. Except for when the solutions to these problems can be found by playing games. Find out how researchers, conservationists, and farmers in France all played a game to improve land management in a wet grassland.
Read more
Kitty Conundrum Cleared Up: Scientists Create Cat Food that Reduces Allergy Symptoms
Citation: Ebenezer Satyaraj, Harold James Wedner, Jean Bousquet. Keep the cat, change the care pathway: A transformational approach to managing
Read more
Using genetics to reveal how coffee agriculture affects a forest dwelling rodent
Strong conservation plans are enriched by data that show which features of the habitat are important for wildlife. DNA analyses can reveal how landscape features join or separate populations without necessarily needing the observational data collected from studying animals moving in the wild. These methods can be helpful for conservation policies for elusive or understudied species. Read on to find out how coffee plantations affect an elusive forest dwelling rodent.
Read more
California Electrification – what buildings, the grid, and the environment need in an age of energy transition and climate change
A team of energy scientists from California tackle the big question of what will electricity demand look like in a changing climate? By analyzing the evolution of the electric grid to supply an increasing demand under the state’s climate action plan AND the increasing demand to make people comfortable in a variable and changing climate, these researchers have given imperative insight into the future of California electrification.
Read more
Large Carnivores on the Rise
Many large carnivores have been increasing in number along with people, which could lead to more conflicts between the carnivores and people. Wolves in particular are starting to make a comeback after their population sizes were reduced due to hunting and loss of prey. It is important to bring wolves back because they play an important role in maintaining the balance of an ecosystem by controlling the population size of their prey. Their reintroduction and increasing population sizes have led to research to figure out how wolves and people can live peacefully together.
Read more
The missing ingredient in the conservation cake is…culture
Even with all the science in the world, conservation plans still can fall short. What conservation plans sometimes fail to consider is the cultural importance of a species to groups of people.
Read more
Why is it important to do research at seal rehabilitation centers?
For many animal lovers, working as a seal rehabilitator seems like a dream job. You spend all day taking care of baby seals and release them when they’re strong enough to live on their own. But have these types of rehabilitation centers done enough research on what makes a seal ready for release? Could the time spent in rehabilitation cause the seals future problems or make it harder for them to survive in the wild? If so, should we stop seal rehabilitation all together?
Read more