The Earth’s environment is the source of economic, social, cultural activities, with nature shaping human life over the centuries. The rapid growth in the world population, from 1 billion in 1830 to 7 billion today, add pressures for air quality, oceans, land use and resources as basic as water. Awareness is building about over-reliance on fossil fuels, how carbon and other emissions contribute to global warming and volatile weather. Every industry requires energy, and cross-border industrialization, transportation and other economic activities contribute to environmental degradation. Yet globalization also spurs awareness and activism over the need for global cooperation and standards to promote sustainability and environmental protection.

Megacities Might Not Save the Planet After All

Inequality contributes to low energy use
Lizzie Wade
April 29, 2015

The Moral Issue of Our Time

From all corners of the planet, activists are tackling climate change as a moral cause
Jeff Nesbit
April 24, 2015

Yale Study Maps US Climate Opinion in Unprecedented Geographic Detail

Most action on controlling carbon in the US is from state and local governments
Kevin Dennehy
April 22, 2015

Mozambique Will Be Stripped of Its Forests “in Just a Few Years”

Corruption and poverty threaten Africa’s hardwood forests
Andrea Dijkstra
April 8, 2015

Flatlining: A Ray of Hope in the Debate Over Climate Change

Carbon emissions plateaued for one year
April 6, 2015