The fastest population growth in the West's wildland fringes is in ecosystems most vulnerable to wildfires

A new study maps vegetation’s fire risk across the West and shows where population in the highest-risk areas from California to Texas is booming.

Park Williams, Associate Professor of Hydroclimateology, University of California, Los Angeles • conversation
Feb. 7, 2022 ~8 min

Fungi: the missing link in tree planting schemes

Plant the right trees in the right places – with the right fungal companions.

Francis Pope, Professor of Atmospheric Sciences, University of Birmingham • conversation
Feb. 7, 2022 ~6 min


The great Amazon land grab – how Brazil's government is turning public land private, clearing the way for deforestation

Land grabs spearheaded by wealthy interests are accelerating deforestation, and Brazil’s National Congress is working to legitimize them.

Robert T. Walker, Professor of Latin American Studies and Geography, University of Florida • conversation
Feb. 2, 2022 ~10 min

How to build wildfire-resistant communities on the wildland fringe

As more people move into high fire-risk areas and rebuilding after destructive blazes, an architect explains what to do to keep properties as safe as possible.

Jeanne Homer, Professor of Architecture, Oklahoma State University • conversation
Feb. 1, 2022 ~9 min

With fewer animals to spread their seeds, plants could have trouble adapting to climate change

Forests around the world will need to shift their ranges to adapt to climate change. But many trees and plants rely on animals to spread their seeds widely, and those partners are declining.

Jens-Christian Svenning, Professor of ecology, Aarhus University • conversation
Jan. 13, 2022 ~9 min

Five fascinating insights into the inner lives of plants

David Attenborough’s new BBC documentary The Green Planet shows plants are stranger than they first appear.

Sven Batke, Lecturer in Biology, Edge Hill University • conversation
Jan. 12, 2022 ~8 min

The world's largest organism is slowly being eaten by deer

These 47,000 aspen trees are genetically identical clones with shared roots.

Richard Elton Walton, Postdoctoral Research Associate in Biology, Newcastle University • conversation
Nov. 23, 2021 ~7 min

Climate change: how elephants help pump planet-warming carbon underground

Efforts to preserve biodiversity and slow climate change make natural bedfellows.

Jeppe Aagaard Kristensen, Carlsberg Foundation Visiting Postdoctoral Fellow at Oxford Ecosystems Lab, University of Oxford • conversation
Nov. 18, 2021 ~5 min


Organized crime is a top driver of global deforestation – along with beef, soy, palm oil and wood products

More than 100 world leaders have pledged to end the destruction of forests by 2030 as a way to slow climate change. That will require changing how the world produces four widely used commodities.

Jennifer Devine, Associate Professor of Geography and Environmental Studies, Texas State University • conversation
Nov. 15, 2021 ~9 min

COP26: experts react to the UN climate summit and Glasgow Pact

Has the summit delivered on its goals?

Ran Boydell, Visiting Lecturer in Sustainable Development, Heriot-Watt University • conversation
Nov. 13, 2021 ~11 min

/

13