Environment

A new way to harness wasted methane

Approach developed at MIT could help curb needless “flaring” of potent greenhouse gas.

October 17, 2017

One of the newly launched research projects from the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, and funded by the CEE Seed Fund awards, seeks to examine the impact of resource allocation and community ecology on crop productivity and resilience in Hawaii.

Establishing interdisciplinary approaches to agriculture and fundamental biological processes

Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering awards cross-disciplinary seed funds.

October 11, 2017

David Des Marais recently joined the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering faculty, and will work in the department’s Ralph M. Parsons Laboratory for Environmental Science and Engineering.

Finding the root cause of plant resilience

The Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering welcomes plant ecologist Dave Des Marais to the MIT faculty.

October 10, 2017

MIT to host summit on climate leadership in northeast U.S., eastern Canada

Michael Bloomberg will deliver keynote address.

September 29, 2017

A new MIT study finds cement’s microscopic properties are key to stronger, more sustainable buildings and bridges.

A concrete solution

Insight into cement’s microscopic properties may lead to stronger, more sustainable concrete.

September 29, 2017

Johan Rockstrom speaks at the Environmental Solutions Initiative's first People and the Planet lecture of 2017.

Johan Rockström: Presenting a framework for preserving Earth’s resilience

Stockholm Resilience Center executive director and Stockholm University professor speaks at the Environmental Solutions Initiative’s People and the Planet lecture series.

September 26, 2017

Erica James, associate professor of medical anthropology and urban studies in the Department of Urban Studies and Planning, co-presents with Dennis McLaughlin, H.M. King Bhumibol Professor in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering (not pictured) on the results of their research project, Leverage Points: Opportunities for Increasing Food Production in Developing Countries, funded by ...

Projects make inroads on global food and water challenges

MIT researchers supported by J-WAFS present results of their work on food and water security.

September 21, 2017

“This is not saying that disaster occurs the next day,” says Professor Daniel Rothman about his new study. “It’s saying that, if left unchecked, the carbon cycle would move into a realm which would be no longer stable, and would behave in a way that would be difficult to predict. In the geologic past, this type of behavior is associated with mass extinction.”

Mathematics predicts a sixth mass extinction

By 2100, oceans may hold enough carbon to launch mass extermination of species in future millennia.

September 20, 2017

Harry Brekelmans, right, the projects and technology director for Royal Dutch Shell, speaks with MITEI co-founder and director Robert Armstrong.

Shell executive describes inevitable transition to carbon-free energy

Harry Brekelmans says Shell has significant commitment to renewable energy, carbon pricing.

September 7, 2017

A national study by MIT researchers provides one of the first in-depth looks at the characteristics of places that have adopted food recycling, revealing several new facts in the process.

Study: For food-waste recycling, policy is key

Successful programs aren’t limited to well-off towns with strong environmental movements.

August 17, 2017

“The Freezer Challenge not only encouraged our lab to perform freezer maintenance and inventorying, but also provoked a collaborative effort with neighboring labs that resulted in the adoption of new freezer management practices within our building,” says MIT research technician Keven Dooley.

Putting the freeze on lab energy waste

MIT Green Labs’ first-ever Freezer Challenge encourages energy conservation through better freezer and sample storage practices.

August 9, 2017

Phytoplankton and chips

Simons Foundation supports enhanced computer infrastructure for MIT's Darwin Project, which focuses on marine microbes and microbial communities.

August 4, 2017

A new study shows that without significant reductions in carbon emissions, deadly heat waves could begin within as little as a few decades to strike regions of India, Pakistan, and Bangladesh. This map shows the maximum wet-bulb temperatures (which combine temperature and humidity) that have been reached in this region since 1979.

Deadly heat waves could hit South Asia this century

Without action, climate change could devastate a region home to one-fifth of humanity, study finds.

August 2, 2017

Geologists report that about 251.9 million years ago, a huge pulse of magma rose up through the Earth, in a region that today is known as the Siberian Traps.

Underground magma pulse triggered end-Permian extinction

Study ties specific interval during an extended period of volcanism to Earth’s most severe mass extinction.

July 31, 2017

After piloting its smart microgardening system in Boston homes and restaurants, and following a successful Kickstarter campaign last fall, SproutsIO is ramping up production and hitting the shelves in a few months.

SproutsIO aims to power a “Personal Produce” movement

Smart, soil-free microgarden lets users optimize growing conditions while cutting water and resource use.

July 26, 2017

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