The northern Bering and Chukchi Seas are among the most productive marine ecosystems in the Pacific Arctic region and are important carbon sinks and seasonal sources of organic materials. Recent shifts in sea ice cover are having profound consequences for seasonal phytoplankton production as well as affecting upper trophic level species, including species harvested locally…

Changes in Earth’s climate are increasingly affecting natural resources in Hawai‘i and on many other Pacific Islands and territories. Increasing temperatures, decreasing rainfall, and more intense droughts and severe storms are just some of the challenges faced by resource managers. Therefore, the need for high-quality reliable climate data and translated products that can be used…

Agriculture, one of the largest drivers of terrestrial habitat loss and climate change, is fundamental to human health and well-being, and plays a critical role in socio-economic development. However, tracking agricultural change is difficult because of the uneven availability and varying quality of data, particularly in Africa. Marsh Institute Researcher Lyndon Estes (Geography) received funding…

Marsh Institute Research Scientist William Lynn recently participated in the National Wolf Conversation, which brought together a variety of stakeholders with diverse perspectives on wolf conservation and recovery. Lynn, an ethicist, served as a wolf trustee, representing the interests of the animals themselves. In an interview published on Medium, Lynn noted that conflicts between groups…

w cost solutions are critical for the rapid transition to the low-carbon economies needed to meet climate goals. Avoided forest conversion offers the second highest climate mitigation potential (behind reforestation) of the 20 natural climate solution pathways. Importantly, avoided forest conversion could deliver over forty percent of total emissions reductions at <$10 per ton CO2e.…

Santa Margarita Ranch, located in Southern Arizona’s Altar Valley watershed, is bordered by the Baboquivari Mountains and Tohono O’odham Nation Reservation to the West, Mexico to the South, and the Buenos Aires National Wildlife Refuge to the East. The region is home to approximately 700 species, including the endangered black-footed ferret and the vulnerable southern…

Concurrent urgent calls to decarbonize energy and transportation systems are driving major new mining developments, in particular, deeper into the developing regions of Latin America, Africa and Asia, with projects focused on extracting a group of minerals seen as critical to the energy transition. In addition, oil and gas companies are now highly motivated to…

Avoiding forest conversion contributes to biodiversity conservation and climate change mitigation, with substantial benefits to wildlife and human sustainability. Marsh Institute Researcher Chris Williams received funding from the Open Space Institute for the project Avoided Forest Conversion as a Climate and Conservation Opportunity in the United States, which will identify and map hotspots of deforestation…

Residential septic systems are a primary source of nitrogen loading to nearby water bodies which can negatively impact water quality. Long Island Sound is one such water body at risk to substantial residentially-sourced nitrogen loading.  Marsh Institute Director Robert Johnston, in collaboration with researchers at University of Connecticut, University of Maryland, and University of Miami,…