Tidal wetlands, the green lungs along coastlines, play a huge role in keeping ecosystems balanced. They give homes to many species, shield shorelines from floods, lock away carbon, and clean the water that flows through them. But people’s activities and a warming planet are shrinking these vital
The ceremony at Arizona State University on May 11 was marked by a surprise guest who is better known for leading heroes in film than delivering speeches. The actor, who earned an honorary Doctor of Arts and Humane Letters for his conservation work, used the moment to urge new graduates to take resp
City living used to mean better hospitals and faster ambulances. Now it often means breathing air that quietly damages lungs over years. Poor air quality isn’t just annoying—it rearranges how infections spread inside our chests. Warm air holds more water, which helps viruses and bacteria travel far
Many governments push for drastic cuts in meat production, claiming livestock methane is a major climate threat. But science shows this fear is overblown. Even wiping out all 1. 6 billion cows wouldn’t cool the planet by much—just 0. 04°C. Sheep? Their removal would barely make a dent. New Zealand’s
Scientists have been warning for years that a warming planet brings more than heat waves. It also spreads diseases once locked in one place. The recent hantavirus scare on a cruise ship off South America shows how quickly tiny changes in temperature can shift danger zones. Argentina has seen a shar
Around the world, rising temperatures might be silently pushing more babies into early arrivals. A wide study covering 13 countries found links between extreme heat and premature births. But most past research only looks at one place at a time or mixes many small studies together. That leaves big qu
The Pacific Ocean is quietly undergoing a major shift that could reshape weather patterns across America. Deep beneath the surface, a growing mass of unusually warm water is making its way eastward, pushed by shifting winds. When it reaches the central Pacific later this year, it could trigger one o
A recent cruise ship disaster shows how diseases can travel in surprising ways. Three people died and others got sick from hantavirus during a trip from Argentina to the Cape Verde islands. The outbreak started on a ship sailing through one of the most extreme environments on Earth. Antarctica isn’t
For years, a scary climate change prediction called RCP 8. 5 shaped headlines, school lessons, and even government policies. It painted a picture of extreme warming, dying coastlines, and global collapse—all by the end of the century. But now, the scientists who created these worst-case scenarios ha
Scientists studied 15 long‑term forest sites around the world, from tropical jungles to Arctic woodlands. They measured how many different tree species were present and how much organic carbon was stored in the soil, a key factor that helps slow climate change. The overall trend showed that forests
