Scientists find ozone depletion began decades before discovery of ozone hole
Using modern tools, they also determined that carbon tetrachloride, used as a dry-cleaning and degreasing agent as early as the 1930s, was at the root of early ozone loss.
What happens when environmental change outpaces life’s ability to adapt?
A new model links Earth’s mass extinctions to mismatches between rates of environmental change and biological adaptation.
Characterizing Earth’s damping mechanisms
Fourth-year PhD candidate Perrin Davidson studies the carbon cycle to understand how the planet responds to global disturbances.
Susan Solomon named 2026 Tang Prize laureate
The MIT professor’s groundbreaking work on atmospheric chemistry helped lay steps towards recovery of the ozone layer and demonstrated the lasting impacts of carbon emissions on Earth’s climate.
Expanding and deepening climate reporting through local messengers
A new impact report shows how the MIT Environmental Solutions Journalism Fellowship has brought community-centered climate coverage to nearly 3 million readers and listeners.
A plan to preserve wetlands without stopping development
Study shows the tradeoff between conservation and growth is less stark with a locally adjusted policy featuring both tradeable offsets and taxes.
Place-based pathways to a viable future
Living Climate Futures Symposium explores climate challenges and solutions at the community level.
Learning to teach, learning to discover
MIT senior Nik Sandu bridges scientific research with a strong commitment to teaching and community.
MIT science writing students collaborate with The Associated Press
Students developed and pitched local climate stories, then worked with visual journalists from the AP over an intensive four-day weekend.
From technical solution to systems change: Tackling the problem of plastic waste
Akorfa Dagadu, an MIT senior in chemical engineering, learns the importance of community-engaged research and innovation through the PKG Center for Social Impact.
A new unit of measurement to honor an influential MIT alumnus
In a nod to the prank that first introduced the smoot, an MIT team rolls out the “klein” in homage to Martin Klein ’62 and playfully renames a beloved Charles River span the “Shortfellow Bridge.”
Robotically assembled building blocks could make construction more efficient and sustainable
New research suggests constructing a simple building from interlocking subunits should be mechanically feasible and have a much smaller carbon footprint.
A faster way to estimate AI power consumption
The “EnergAIzer” method generates reliable results in seconds, enabling data center operators to efficiently allocate resources and reduce wasted energy.
Plants can sense the sound of rain, a new study finds
Experiments by MIT engineers show rice seeds sprout faster to the sound of rain.
Two MIT alumnae named 2026 Gates Cambridge Scholars
Mitali Chowdhury ’24 and Christina Kim ’24 will pursue graduate studies at Cambridge University in the UK.