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With summer around the corner, city dwellers are planning their shoreline retreats to escape unbearable heat. Urban regions typically stay warmer during this season due to their structure. What if there were ways to reduce this effect by making minimal changes to metropolitan lifestyles? Cities can effectively preserve natural land by permitting one region to …
Continue reading “What is the impact of the Urban Heat Island Effect?”
At least 820 million people suffer from hunger and malnutrition globally and human population growth is likely to exacerbate this problem in the future. It is becoming increasingly important to develop sustainable and efficient methods to meet food demands. To address this global issue, Dr. Sanju A. Sanjaya and Bagyalakshmi Muthan from West Virginia State …
Continue reading “Creating Power Foods with Gene Technology”
David Burslem, University of Aberdeen; Christopher Philipson, Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Zurich, and Mark Cutler, University of Dundee The destruction of tropical forests is a major contributor to biodiversity loss and the climate crisis. In response, conservationists and scientists like us are debating how to best catalyze the recovery of these forests. How do …
Continue reading “Regrowing a tropical forest – is it better to plant trees or leave it to nature?”
Rain is a euphoric natural occurrence. Homeowners often install tin roofs, sheltered sunrooms, and skylights to maximize the calming effects of rainfall. Unfortunately, this tranquil weather pattern can negatively impact the global ecosystem if the built environment isn’t prepared for it. As precipitation increases in the atmosphere, Earth’s surface experiences a rise in stormwater runoff. …
Continue reading “Environmental Dangers of Stormwater Runoff”
Public health encompasses much more than domestic government policies and political debates. Most practitioners in the public health field are working on the front lines in order to keep all of humanity safe and healthy. Now more than ever, in order to protect humanity we must be able to save and sustain our entire planet. …
Continue reading “How you can use your degree in public health to help the planet”
Fears over supermarket shortages during the early stages of the Covid-19 pandemic led many people to buy their food from local producers, raising the prospect of a transformation in the way people get their food in the future. But while eating locally and shorter supply chains are often viewed as a more sustainable alternative to …
Continue reading “Why buying local food isn’t necessarily better for the environment”
Soil covers all of the earth, and it’s more than just rocks and plant matter. These layers of soil are teeming with biodiversity and living organisms. Your food largely depends on the soil where it is grown. If there isn’t enough of one nutrient or the soil’s structure is failing, then the amount of food …
Continue reading “The Effects of Soil Erosion on Our Environment”
Ever wonder where all of your extra food scraps and garbage go once you throw them away? Food that is produced but not eaten ends up in landfills and creates methane, a greenhouse gas that is harmful to the environment. As landfills continue to overflow, it’s clear that taking steps to lower our carbon footprint …
Ocean pollution is widespread, worsening, and poses a clear and present danger to human health and wellbeing. But the extent of this danger has not been widely comprehended – until now. Our recent study provides the first comprehensive assessment of the impacts of ocean pollution on human health. Jacqueline McGlade, UCL and Philip Landrigan, Boston …
Continue reading “Ocean pollution is a clear danger to human health”
What if an unfathomably hot, never-ending, never-varying heat source existed that could be harnessed for energy production? This heat source does exist. Right beneath our feet. The top of the Earth’s mantle hovers around 1000 degrees celsius, achieving access to it would make the efficiency of all other current energy sources pale by comparison. With …
Continue reading “Can Geothermal Energy Save Us From Climate Change?”
