News & Blog
Demystifying Emissions Accounting with the Clean Energy Transition Institute: a Capstone Project
Jade Sauvé, UW Oceanography As the world strives to meet ambitious climate goals, one critical yet often overlooked challenge is tracking and accounting for greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. Emissions accounting plays a pivotal role in helping policymakers, businesses, and communities measure progress toward decarbonization. However, for many in the Northwest U.S., understanding how emissions are quantified and reported can seem like a daunting task.
Read moreWhere We Go From Here - A Youth's Reflections on Moving Towards Action as a Community
My name is Isaac Olson, and 4 years ago, I was a lot more naïve. In December 2020, I was still in my first year as an undergraduate at the UW, barely aware of what my future degrees would be. I had no idea that I would still be at the UW after 4 years, having gotten bachelor’s degrees in both Oceanography and Environmental Studies, and now pursuing a master’s degree with the School of Marine and Environmental Affairs.
Read moreGraubard Fellowship supports high resolution mapping of Sea Surface Temperature anomalies
by Naomi Wharton The ocean can store approximately 1000 times more heat than the atmosphere. As a result, where and when energy is released from the ocean to the atmosphere can have significant consequences for weather and climate patterns. Sea surface temperature (SST) is a key indicator of air-sea processes that transfer energy between the ocean and atmosphere across many spatial and temporal scales.
Read moreRoles of Uncultured Microbes in the Nitrogen Cycle of Oxygen Deficient Zones
by Jordan Winter, UW Oceanography Graduate Student Oxygen deficient zones (ODZs) are areas of the ocean with sluggish circulation that result in anoxic water columns hundreds of meters thick. These regions harbor many unique microbes and are expanding in depth and extent due to climate change. A common energy strategy for ODZ microbes is denitrification, which is the multi-step process of reducing nitrate to nitrogen gas.
Read moreAll (Undergraduates) Deserve A Climate Education
As Earth’s atmosphere, land, and oceans heat and host increasing amounts of fossil carbon, humanity struggles with one of the biggest challenges of our time, anthropogenic climate change. This struggle is ever more apparent at every level of society. How we address this challenge will determine our future as well as that of many species on the planet. Yet, according to the Yale Climate Opinion Survey results of 2023, over 60% of us in the U.S.
Read moreUCo Autumn Update: Building Community
In striving to gain strength as an undergraduate climate community, this Autumn quarter has been eventful for the PCC Undergraduate Cohort (UCo). Heading into this academic year, we built on our strength as a Registered Student Organization (RSO) and set our focus on hosting more events. Our goals were to further build an undergraduate community and plan events focused on the interests and energies of the members.
Read moreGraduate Climate Conference 2024: A step towards interdisciplinary collaboration and dialogue in addressing the climate crisis
The Graduate Climate Conference (GCC) provides a unique forum where emerging scientists can exchange ideas, share research and build interdisciplinary collaborations to address the climate crisis. Now in its 18th year, the conference was held on November 1-3, 2024, at the Pack Forest Conference Center, hosting nearly 120 graduate students from institutions in the U.S. and internationally. Organized by graduate students for graduate students, the GCC’s mission is to strengthen student connections and advance climate research in a supportive, inclusive environment.
Read moreFeatured Research Accelerator Project : Applying Microbial-Plant Partnerships to Build Soil Carbon
Much of the world’s crop production relies on the application of conventional nitrogen and phosphorus fertilizers to soil. Although applied with the intention of providing sufficient nutrients to the crop to increase yield, much of the nutrients in the fertilizer go unused because many crops have poor nutrient use efficiency. This results in excess soil nitrogen and phosphorus, which then can leak into groundwater resulting in contamination and surface water eutrophication.
Read moreConversations in Climate Progress and Interventions: The 2024 PCC Summer Institute
The 2024 Summer Institute was held at UW’s Friday Harbor Laboratories, nestled on San Juan Island in the northern region of Puget Sound. This year’s event spanned three days, September 9th through the 11th. The theme was the controversial topic of geoengineering, which explores technologies with the potential to alter Earth’s climate system to offset the impacts of anthropogenic climate change.
Read moreEmbracing Bioplastics: A Sustainable Alternative to Fossil Fuel-Based Plastics
Lexi Maerz 20 May 2024 On January 29th, 2024, Science on Tap held their monthly science talk at Ravenna Third Place Bookstore, where I was honored to be featured as their guest speaker. I am a Master’s student in Bioresource Science and Engineering at the University of Washington researching sustainable alternatives to fossil-fuel based plastics. I shared my insights into the promising future of bioplastics, showcasing my own work in the lab.
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