The Hidden Forces Shaping the Jersey Shore

Edith Zhao2026, Affiliate News

The Jersey Shore may look familiar from summer to summer, but it is never truly fixed. It is an evolving coastal system in which sand color, beach width, water clarity and even ocean temperature can change quickly.

Few scientists know this shifting landscape as well as Rutgers geologist and RCEI affiliate Kenneth Miller. A Board of Governors Professor in the Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences in the Rutgers School of Arts and Sciences, Miller is a stratigrapher, paleoceanographer and micropaleontologist whose research …

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In Tests of Athletic Performance, Plant-Based Diets Hold Their Own

Edith Zhao2026, Affiliate Research

A Rutgers Director of Behavioral Nutrition and other researchers find no significant differences in recreational athletes’ endurance or strength Could athletes trade meat for plants and maintain their performance? In a multi-university study, researchers found that recreational runners and resistance trainers did just that. The study, published in Nutrition Journal and coauthored by Rutgers Director of Behavioral Nutrition and Registered Dietitian, RCEI affiliate Peggy …

Rutgers Food Systems Researchers Complete Community-Led Food Security Policy Initiative Across the Federated States of Micronesia

Edith Zhao2026, Affiliate News

A Rutgers University food systems research team has completed a series of in-person stakeholder review meetings in Yap, Chuuk, and Kosrae states of the Federated States of Micronesia (FSM) during April and May 2026, marking the completion of the first full cycle of community-led food security policy co-development across all four FSM states. This milestone …

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How Ancient Red Algae Power Extreme Ecosystems – and Offer Clues to Life’s Evolution

Edith Zhao2026, Affiliate Research

Rutgers researchers reveal how ancient organisms drive microbial communities and may yield tools for biotechnology Ancient single-celled red algae that thrive in scalding, acidic waters are emerging as far more than specialized survivors. Research by Rutgers evolutionary biologist and RCEI affiliate Debashish Bhattacharya and his collaborators show that the organisms, known as Cyanidiophyceae, form the foundation of entire microbial ecosystems, providing new …

Inside a 25-Day Ocean Science Mission

Edith Zhao2026, Affiliate News

Rutgers researchers will study small ocean processes with big consequences  At sea, their days will begin in darkness. Before dawn, Rutgers oceanographers and RCEI affiliates Joe Gradone and Corday Selden expect to be on deck aboard the research vessel Falkor (too), preparing instruments, reviewing data and directing the first collection of water samples of the day. Related: Read more about the …

Announcement: Introducing New Faculty Leadership of Our Core Facilities

Edith Zhao2026, Affiliate News

Announcement by RCEI affiliate Dr. Josh Kohut, SEBS Dean of Research and NJAES Director of Research. I am pleased to announce that RCEI affiliate Dr. Jim Simon, Distinguished Professor in the Department of Plant Biology, has been appointed Faculty Director of SEBS/NJAES Core Facilities, effective July 1. In this role, Dr. Simon will provide strategic oversight and coordination across our …

Tiny Soil Microbes May Hold Big Clues About a Warming Arctic

Edith Zhao2026, Affiliate Research

Beneath the frozen ground of Finland’s Arctic tundra and forests live bacteria that scientists are only now getting to know. A new study, published in MicrobiologyOpen, present two new species of bacteria, that seem perfectly built to survive in one of the coldest, harshest, and fastest changing places on Earth. Lee J. Kerkhof and Max M. Häggblom, RCEI Affiliates, are …

Willful Ignorance of the Global Impact of Nuclear War

Edith Zhao2026, Affiliate Research

An article from Physics Today, co-authored by RCEI affiliates Alan Robock and Lili Xia, examines the often-overlooked global consequences of nuclear war, arguing that current military strategies and policy discussions dangerously underestimate its full environmental and societal impacts. Drawing on decades of scientific research and recent reports, the authors emphasize that even a limited nuclear conflict could trigger catastrophic changes …

New Climatologist Tracks Heat Wave, Rainstorms

Edith Zhao2026, Affiliate News

An article from The SandPaper reports on the appointment of a new New Jersey state climatologist and the climate challenges currently affecting the region, including extreme heat, heavy rainstorms, and ongoing drought conditions. The piece introduces RCEI Affiliate John Krasting, who recently assumed the role after a long-serving predecessor, and explains why his work is important as the state faces …

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RCEI Groundwork Grants to Address Climate, Energy, and Sustainability Governance

Oliver Stringham2026, RCEI News

RCEI has awarded six Groundwork Grants to faculty affiliates to support development of research proposals that advance scholarship at the intersection of climate, energy, and sustainability governance.  Today’s sustainability challenges are defined by intertwined ecological and socio-economic systems, uncertainty, and the possibility of irreversible tipping points. Existing institutional frameworks, policy responses, and research agendas often struggle to keep pace with …