Climate Change

Another exciting weekend of performances exploring emotional responses to climate change will be the final event this semester sponsored by the Vanderbilt Eco-Grief Initiative. Experience mascots come to life, a revival of a beloved 1990s cartoon, a very tense focus group and some old-fashioned school spirit in these two plays developed in conversation with the Vanderbilt community.   Read More

New research shows that warming and aging act as a one-two punch, lowering mosquito lifespans and fanning the flames of bacterial infections. These findings highlight how climate change could alter the risks of disease spread by mosquitoes. Read More

Commissioned by the Eco-Grief Performance Project, a collaborative effort of the Science and Media Grand Challenge, the Theatre Department and the Curb Center, two plays are being performed Sept. 26-19; these works are expressions of complex emotions brought on by living in a changing climate. Read More

There is a burgeoning consensus among climate-minded policymakers and scholars that loosening zoning regulations to promote greater density while simultaneously tightening building efficiency standards can reduce emissions and address housing shortages that affect communities across the U.S. In a new paper, Christopher Serkin, Elisabeth H. & Granville S. Ridley Jr. Chair in Law at Vanderbilt Law School, argues that fewer restrictions may promote development activity, but there is no guarantee that it will result in greater density. Read More

Vanderbilt University will harness its global expertise in scientific discovery, technological innovation, public policy, law and education to launch the Vanderbilt Center for Sustainability, Energy and Climate (VSEC). The multimillion-dollar investment follows a recommendation by an interdisciplinary working group to address the crucial societal challenge of ensuring a sustainable world. Read More

Working across multiple disciplines, Vanderbilt researchers found that a relatively small proportion of funds from two recent significant pieces of environmental law – the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) of 2021 and Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) of 2022 – could lead to an outsized reduction in emissions. Read More

Heglar will offer a public lecture at Vanderbilt at 4:15 p.m. on Tuesday, Feb. 20, to kick off the Vanderbilt Eco-Grief Initiative, a yearlong interdisciplinary project that will use art to illustrate the emotions evoked by living through climate change.   Read More

Gabrielle Beck, a sophomore studying neuroscience and environmental policy, received an all-expense-paid invitation from National Climate Assessment program Director Allison Crimmins through her work as a Youth Environmental Alliance in Higher Education Fellow, where she has been able to take part in projects that deal directly with sustainability and climate change. Read More

Vanderbilt University recently hosted the Vanderbilt University-Oak Ridge National Laboratory Workshop on Climate Change and Environmental Justice, aiming to deepen collaborative research on climate change and discuss potential projects. The event, which emphasized the importance of environmental justice and resilience strategies, marked the continuation of the institutions’ efforts to collaborate on addressing global challenges. Read More

With a newly developed technique, Vanderbilt professor Jessica Oster is revealing how prehistoric climate change shaped fire activity in California. Read More

Vanderbilt University has been selected to present in two venues at the 2022 United Nations Climate Change Conference, commonly referred to as COP27, Nov. 15 at Sharm el Sheikh, Egypt. Vanderbilt research assistant professor of civil and environmental engineering and Vanderbilt Climate Change Initiative Director Leah Dundon’s proposal on Vanderbilt’s ongoing research in marine shipping... Read More

The topic of burial is never easy, but for alumna Mallory McDuff, BS'88, the sudden deaths of her parents led her to realign her final wishes with climate change, community and family in mind. Read More

In his long U.S. Navy career, Michael Brasseur, BS'97, has had numerous command postings, including his latest as a full commodore. Based in Bahrain, he commands Task Force 59, the Navy’s first unmanned task force dedicated to securing the waters around the Arabian Peninsula. He directs a team dedicated to rapidly harnessing the power of unmanned and artificial intelligence integration to promote the free flow of commerce in the area. Read More

By Marissa Shapiro THE IDEA Jonathan Gilligan (John Russell) Jonathan Gilligan, associate professor of Earth and environmental sciences and civil and environmental engineering, and a group of international researchers have illustrated potential international conflicts over climate change. One of a larger group of studies, this work engaged in a role-playing scenario set in 2040 in... Read More

By Marissa Shapiro THE IDEA Jonathan Gilligan (John Russell) Jonathan Gilligan, associate professor of Earth and environmental sciences and civil and environmental engineering, and a group of international researchers have illustrated potential international conflicts over climate change. One of a larger group of studies, this work engaged in a role-playing scenario set in 2040 in... Read More

The School of Engineering’s work in polar and climate science, plus computational mechanics, will get international exposure with a two-year travel grant from the Royal Society, the independent academic society of the U.K., for a collaboration between a Vanderbilt professor and a professor in England. The project will establish new approaches for simulating fracture propagation... Read More

While threats to food production are varied and region-specific, a single story connects them: Climate change is becoming something we can taste. This is now a kitchen-table issue, literally and otherwise. Read More

Spreading the gospel of veggie-only diets may not be the most effective way to help reduce overall, food-related greenhouse gas emissions, according to a new model based on behavioral science. In new commentary published Aug. 9 in Nature Sustainability, Jonathan Gilligan, associate professor of Earth and Environmental Sciences, examines… Read More

Stalagmite records from monsoon regions such as India are vital to understanding past variability in the global climate system and the underlying reasons for this variability. Read More

Carbon labeling may be an effective way to not only help consumers to choose foods with smaller carbon footprints, but also incentivize companies to make environmentally positive changes to their supply chains. Read More