Since 2011, enormous seaweed blooms have spread across the Atlantic Ocean, spanning over 5,000 miles from West Africa to the Gulf of Mexico. Known as the Great Atlantic Sargassum Belt, the leviathan — visible from space — has wreaked havoc on environments and economies throughout the Caribbean Sea and Gulf of Mexico, where unprecedented quantities of seaweed routinely break away from …
Rutgers Department of Chemical and Biochemical Engineering Professors Granted USDA/Sungrant Award
RCEI affiliate and PI Shishir Chundawat will lead a team of researchers to develop integrated technologies for conversion of cellulosic biomass and biomass-derived CO2 to fuels/chemicals. The project was selected for funding by the Northeast SunGrant program at Pennsylvania State University and supported directly by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA). For this project Chundawat will collaborate closely with …
Are Crops Worldwide Sufficiently Pollinated?
A Rutgers-led study shows diminished crop yield is globally common but low yields could be addressed by increasing the number of pollinators A team of researchers led by Rutgers University-New Brunswick scientists has analyzed crop yields of more than 1,500 fields on six continents, and found that production worldwide of important, nutritionally dense foods such as fruits, vegetables, nuts and …
Study Reveals Canadian Wildfires Are Affecting U.S. Air Quality and Raising Health Concerns
Rutgers researchers examined particulate matter from a June 2023 fire that triggered advisories for more than 100 million Americans in the Northeast. Climate-driven wildfire events are rapidly transferring harmful particulate matter containing toxic chemicals over long distances, compromising air quality in the New Jersey and New York City areas, according to Rutgers Health research. Published in Environmental Science & Technology and to …
Rutgers to Lead $16 Million in Climate Projects Along New Jersey Coast
University researchers to lead green infrastructure, community engagement, K-12 education and planning initiatives as part of a $72.5 million federal grant Rutgers University researchers will lead several components of a $72.5 million federal initiative to fortify New Jersey’s coast against climate change and extreme weather events. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration awarded the grant to the New Jersey Department …
New Book by RCEI Affiliate and Distinguished Professor Alexander Gates
RCEI affiliate Alexander Gates, Distinguished Service Professor of Earth and Environmental Science, Rutgers-Newark, has authored “Reclaiming Our Planet: How Environmental History Can Help Solve the Climate Crisis.” Professor Gates explores past environmental crises that humanity has faced and successfully addressed to encourage readers that slowing and preventing climate change is possible. Gates also analyzes the advantages and disadvantages of renewable …
Rutgers Experts Testify at Joint NJ Senate and Assembly Environment Committees Hearing
By Marjorie Kaplan RCEI Affiliates Anthony Broccoli and Lisa Auermuller testified at a joint hearing of the New Jersey Assembly Environment, Natural Resources, and Solid Waste and Senate Environment and Energy Committees in Toms River, New Jersey on August 1, 2024. The committees met to hear from invited speakers on the topics of beach replenishment, climate resiliency along the …
Rutgers Climate and Energy Institute Hosts GradCAMP Scholars Workshop
By Shannon Dickey & Marjorie Kaplan As a partner in the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Northeast Climate Hub, Rutgers Climate and Energy Institute (RCEI) hosted the USDA Graduate Student Climate Adaptation and Mitigation Partners (GradCAMP) scholars workshop May 14-15, 2024. Twenty graduate student fellows from across the region met at Rutgers University-New Brunswick campus to create Climate Equity Factsheets and …
Distinguished Professor Charles Dismukes Receives the 2024 Edison Patent Award
RCEI affiliate Charles Dismukes, Distinguished Professor, and his Rutgers colleagues Anders Laursen, Research Associate; Martha Greenblatt, Distinguished Professor; and Karin Calvinho, PhD Candidate—all from the Department of Chemistry and Chemical Biology—have received the 2024 Edison Patent Award from the Research & Development Council of New Jersey. This is the state’s highest recognition for inventors and innovation for their Nickel Phosphide …
RCEI Groundwork Grants to Address Climate and the Bioeconomy
By: Marjorie Kaplan RCEI has awarded Groundwork Grants to faculty affiliates Charles Dismukes, Yalin Li, Mary Whelan, and Qingze Zhou to facilitate planning for comprehensive competitive research proposals and scholarship toward the emerging global emphasis on the bioeconomy in addressing climate change. Bioeconomy harnesses the power of biology in novel production of goods, services, and energy to grow the economy …