Environment

Left: A water sample undergoing testing using the J-WAFS-funded water quality test kit soon to be deployed throughout Nepal. Right: Citrus trees infected with citrus greening disease are highly contagious and can wipe out whole orange groves. A J-WAFS-funded sensor could help farmers detect the disease much earlier.

J-WAFS announces 2019 Solutions Grants supporting agriculture and clean water

Projects address access to clean water in Nepal via wearable E. coli test kits, improving the resilience of commercial citrus groves, and more.

September 17, 2019

"Whether they select advanced reactors or fusion reactors, utilities, policy, or advocacy, our students could move the industry beyond the 1960s,” says MIT Professor Michael Short. “They could give new meaning and substance to the department’s motto, ‘science, systems and society.’”

Department of Nuclear Science and Engineering spreads its wings

New 22-ENG undergraduate degree provides expansive vision of nuclear studies and nuclear careers.

September 13, 2019

Professor John Sterman displays maps showing the consequences of sea-level rise on various coastal cities, as part of the “SimPlanet” event at MIT.

Reaching climate solutions through negotiation

At “SimPlanet” event, students test-drive new computer simulation to reveal outcomes of different policy decisions.

September 6, 2019

A wind turbine on the coast of Lake Erie in Cleveland, Ohio

Shift to renewable electricity a win-win at statewide level

MIT research finds health savings from cleaner air exceed policy costs.

August 14, 2019

At MIT, as globally connected citizens with many opportunities for work- and research-related air travel, many community members contribute more to climate change than the average American.

Air travel in academia

Media Lab designs a pilot carbon-offsets program.

August 7, 2019

Health effects of China’s climate policy extend across Pacific

Improved air quality in China could prevent nearly 2,000 premature deaths in the U.S.

July 29, 2019

Kanton atoll, the only inhabited island of the Phoenix Islands, in the Republic of Kiribati.

Tuna are spawning in marine protected areas

Despite being highly migratory, tuna may benefit from ocean sanctuaries, study finds.

July 24, 2019

Coal-fired electric plant, Henan Province, China

Pathways to a low-carbon China

Study projects a key role for carbon capture and storage.

July 8, 2019

When carbon emissions pass a critical threshold, it can trigger a spike-like reflex in the carbon cycle, in the form of severe ocean acidification that lasts for 10,000 years, according to a new MIT study.

Breaching a “carbon threshold” could lead to mass extinction

Carbon dioxide emissions may trigger a reflex in the carbon cycle, with devastating consequences, study finds.

July 8, 2019

Greentown Labs is the largest clean technology incubator in North America by both square feet and the number of member companies. The open layout of its entrance, shown here, is designed to host events and encourage collaboration.

How Greentown Labs became the epicenter of clean tech

The incubator’s winding journey to success helped its startup community grow closer while addressing environmental challenges.

June 25, 2019

Winners in the Patagonia Case Competition: (l-r) Audrey Bazerghi, Cherry Gao, Jordan Landis, Cristina Bleicher, Ellena Kim, and Ty Christoff-Tempesta.

Graduate students win first place in 2019 Patagonia Case Competition

MIT PhD and MBA students proposed a winning solution for sustainable food and apparel packaging.

June 24, 2019

A new study finds clay minerals, such as those at the bottom of rivers and oceans, can bind with bits of decomposing plants and phytoplankton in a natural carbon-storing process.

An escape route for carbon

Study shows minerals sequester carbon for thousands of years, which may explain oxygen’s abundance in the atmosphere.

June 12, 2019

Agricultural productivity technologies for small-holder farmers; sustainable supply chain interventions in the palm oil industry; interventions that can provide clean water for cities and surrounding ecosystems — these are just a few of the research topics that grantees are pursuing, supported by the Abdul Latif Jameel Water and Food Systems Lab (J-WAFS) at MIT.

J-WAFS announces seven new seed grants

Nine principal investigators from MIT will receive grants totaling over $1 million for solutions-oriented research into global food and water challenges.

May 29, 2019

Gretchen Daily presents the 17th annual Kendall Lecture.

Finding value in nature and ensuring green growth

For the 17th annual Kendall Lecture, Gretchen Daily analyzes species and ecosystem services and leverages natural capital to build a green financial system.

May 23, 2019

Since 2013, annual emissions of a banned, ozone-depleting chlorofluorocarbon (CFC) have increased by nearly 8,000 tons from eastern China. That year South Korea's Gosan GAW Regional Station, on the southwestern tip of Jeju Island, started detecting spikes in CFC-11 levels drifting in from eastern Asia.

Scientists discover the source of new CFC emissions

Despite global phase-out, the ozone-depleting chemical is still in production in eastern China.