IoES in the News

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Daniel Swain for LA Times — Is El Niño’s reputation as a legendary rainmaker overblown?

UCLA climate scientist Daniel Swain highlights El Niño’s acknowledges El Niño’s significance in forecasting while highlighting its unpredictability for LA Times. “El Niño is never going to be a slam…

Waves crash into a seawall at Mondo’s Beach in Ventura County in January 2016 during an El Niño storm. (LA Times)

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Connect with us on social media!

Connect with us on social media for key sustainability updates and to stay in the know about UCLA’s ongoing environmental research. Instagram @UCLAIoES Twitter/X @UCLAIoES Facebook @UCLAIoES Bluesky @UCLAIoES Threads…

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Liz Koslov for Bloomberg — Who Will Manage the US Climate Retreat?

As climate change intensifies, communities like Oyster, Virginia, grapple with the complexities of relocation amid rising sea levels and frequent extreme weather events. Many wonder whether relocation—or managed retreat—is a sustainable response…

A home on Staten Island’s Oakwood Beach is demolished in 2014.Photographer: Andrew Burton/Getty Images

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Deepak Rajagopal for The Hindu Business Line: The benefits and challenges of transitioning away from oil

Electric transportation, despite its high upfront cost, tax revenues foregone and jobs lost, seems to be the best option. The issue here is to make policy to meet multiple goals

Deepak-Rajagopal

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Daniel Swain for Nature — Daily briefing: How to stave off climate tipping points with self-perpetuating solutions

UCLA climate expert Daniel Swain discusses science communications and climate change for Nature Journal. “Climate scientists are ready & waiting to meet the communication & engagement challenges that the coming…

Brown sediment marks rapidly melting ice on the Greenland ice sheet.Credit: Martin Zwick/Reda&Co/Universal Images Group via Getty

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Daniel Swain for National Geographic — What’s the big deal about Earth getting 2°C hotter?

UCLA climate scientist Daniel Swain discusses California’s winter precipitation levels for National Geographic “If we could wave a magic wand and [eliminate] carbon emissions tomorrow, we probably could keep [the increase] under 1.5°C…

earth

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Alex Hall for KCRW podcast — COP28 goes local: LA scientists are racing to reverse climate effects

UCLA professor Alex Hall discusses COP28 and its impact on Southern California’s climate for new KCRW podcast. “We’re seeing already impacts on water resources… intensity of wildfires… increases in heat extremes.”

The Woolsey Fire is seen from Hollywood Hills, California, 2018. Photo by Shutterstock.

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Daniel Swain for LA Times — December in California kicks off with 80-degree heat for L.A., rain for the Bay Area

UCLA climate expert Daniel Swain discusses California’s winter precipitation levels for the Los Angeles Times. “From late December through about March, I would expect the odds to be tilted greatly…

A young person rides their bike at Shoreline Aquatic Park in Long Beach. (Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)

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Jon Christensen for ABC7 — Report: Dodger Stadium gondolas would remove thousands of cars on game day

UCLA adjunct assistant professor Jon Christensen discusses the proposed Dodger Stadium gondolas for ABC7. “It would really destroy the value of that park.” Expanding and electrifying the existing bus service…

Dodger Stadium gondolas

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Morgan Tingley and Olivia Sanderfoot for Scientific American —Wildfire Brought Wolves Back to Southern California after 150 Years

Gray wolves make a historic return to Southern California after 150 years, claiming scorched territories. UCLA ecologists Morgan Tingley and Olivia Sanderfoot discuss the ecological impacts and challenges for Scientific American.

A Gray Wolf looking straight in the camera.A gray wolf in the Yellowstone area of Wyoming. The same species has recently appeared in Southern California for the first time in about 150 years. Credit: Design 14/Alamy Stock Photo

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Daniel Swain and Alex Hall for NY Times — What an El Niño Winter Could Mean for California

UCLA climate scientists Daniel Swain and Alex Hall were both quoted in a recent article by The New York Times. They discuss what an El Niño winter could mean for California. “This is likely to…

Passing rain clouds at Vasquez Rocks Natural Area in Agua Dulce, California. | Myung J. Chun, LA Times

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From Betrayal to Revolution: Challenging the Global Leadership Void

by 2023 Pritzker Award Finalist Juan Carlos Monterrey Gómez As the lead climate negotiator for Panama at COP26, I entered the fray determined to counter the apathy of decision makers and…

Narrative picture 002 JMonterrey Essay Picture

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Fireproofing Nigeria’s Last Primary Forest and Solving Planetary Crises

by 2023 Pritzker Award Finalist Iroro Tanshi Our world is on fire. Australia, Europe, Canada, California, and even my homeland, Nigeria and West Africa — all are witnessing climate-enabled wildfires…

Tanshi examines a bat's wing to determine its age after capture in the Afi Mountain Wildlife Sanctuary

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My Journey from Conflict to Conservation

by 2023 Pritzker Award Finalist Hana Raza I was born in the rugged mountains of Iraqi Kurdistan, where history has been a tale of persecution and resilience. The richness of…

Female Persian leopard. 2023 Pritzker Award Finalist Hana Raza rediscovered the Persian Leopard in Iraq in 2011. | Photo by Hana Raza

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Travis Longcore for LA Times — “How L.A.’s bird population is shaped by historic redlining and racist loan practices”

UCLA ecologist Travis Longcore discusses new study showing how LA’s bird population is shaped by historic redlining, with wealthier areas attracting more biodiversity for the Los Angeles Times. “The legacy…

Christian Benitez and Eric M Wood stood outside a corner liquor store searching for birds. Genaro Melina, LA Times

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Greg Pierce for LAist — It’s A New Water Year. What Can We Expect Ahead?

Director of UCLA’s Human Right to Water Solutions Lab, Greg Pierce discusses California’s water supply for LAist. The anticipated wet year “should set us up again to avoid desperation,” but…

Hansen spreading grounds in Sun Valley is one of L.A. County's largest stormwater capture and flood control basins. (Erin Stone / LAist)

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Urban planning professor V. Kelly Turner and ecology professor Travis Longcore for LA Times—SoCal cities desperately need more shade. Is it time to finally ditch palm trees?

UCLA urban planning professor V. Kelly Turner and ecology professor Travis Longcore discuss the role of trees in mitigating urban heat islands for Los Angeles Times. “As a heat scholar,…

Urban heat mitigation. Heat islands. Lorena Elebee /LOS ANGELES TIMES

Awards

Environmental science and engineering alumni Bart B. Sokolow publishes the 2nd edition of his book: “How to Avoid Environmental Litigation”

Environmental science and engineering alumni Bart B. Sokolow and Murray Sinclair, an environmental attorney, combine their expertise for a user-friendly journey through the environmental legal landscape. “This book is a…

Environmental science and engineering Bart B. Sokolow 2nd edition of book: "How to Avoid Environmental Litigation”

Awards

Tanner Waters selected for the John A. Knauss Marine Policy Fellowship program

Tanner Waters, a Ph.D. candidate at UCLA’s Institute of the Environment and Sustainability, has been selected for the John A. Knauss Marine Policy Fellowship program. This highly esteemed fellowship offers…

Tanner Waters

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Glen MacDonald for Spectrum News ‘Just In SoCal’ — California’s wildfire crisis

UCLA geography professor and director of the White Mountain Research Center Glen MacDonald sits down with Tanya McRae for Spectrum News to discuss why we’re facing fewer but larger wildfires—and…

A firefighter works against the Lake Hughes Fire in Angeles National Forest north of Santa Clarita in August. (Associated Press) \ wildfire

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Daniel Swain for CNN— Hurricane Hilary intensifies to Category 3 strength, threatening significant flooding in Southern California, Southwest

UCLA climate scientist Daniel Swain discusses Hurricane Hilary for CNN, stating that “multiple years’ worth of precipitation” could potentially fall in some of California’s driest areas.

Hurricane Hilary Rain Forecast | John Keefe, CNN

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Emily Lindsey for New York Times — Ancient Fires Drove Large Mammals Extinct, Study Suggests

UCLA adjunct professor Emily Lindsey discusses the new study she authored for New York Times. The study reveals Southern California’s large mammals did not go extinct due to overhunting —…

Illustration of bison entrapped in asphalt as wildfires rage - illustration by Cullen Townsend

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Daniel Swain for Forbes — Startups Think They Can Beat Wildfires, But Insurance Companies Aren’t Buying It Yet

UCLA climate scientist Daniel Swain discusses the Maui wildfire and conventional firefighting tactics for Forbes.

Kihei- Hawaii wildfire burns | Ty O'neil, Associated Press

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Daniel Swain for ABC News — Why climate change can’t be blamed entirely for the Maui wildfires

UCLA climate scientist Daniel Swain discusses the complex weather and environmental causes behind the deadly Maui wildfires for ABC News. “We should not look to the Maui wildfires as a…

Kihei- Hawaii wildfire burns | Ty O'neil, Associated Press

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Daniel Swain for the Hill — Maui fires suggest dangerous new phase for disasters

UCLA climate scientist Daniel Swain discusses the conditions that led to the devastating wildfire in Maui — the deadliest US wildfire in more than a century — for the Hill.…

Wildfire wreckage in Maui, Lahaina. Hawaii wildfire