Climate change touches every part of the world and increasingly affects daily lives in profound and challenging ways. We’re exploring numerous aspects of this existential threat, including projecting future realities, public policy and adaptation.
Magazine
Story
UCLA’s Congo Basin Institute is out to definitively map the African rainforests, a mission that could revolutionize climate science — and just maybe save the planet.
Story
It’s the year 2050, and the Los Angeles River runs lazily along, sparkling in the sunlight, as the hum of freeway traffic weaves through the idyllic setting.
Story
Students traveled to Tobago to test their flood-risk model and gather local perspectives
Projects
In the News
Headline
The Post Fire in Los Angeles County burns over 15,000 acres, raising alarm for dangerous fire season in the West. Experts warn of overgrown vegetation after wet winters. “This is…
Announcements
UCLA Center for Tropical Research and Congo Basin Institute co-director Dr. Elsa Ordway is leading PANGEA, a NASA-funded effort to design a large-scale field campaign studying tropical forests worldwide. This…
Headline
WalletHub compared America’s 50 states to identify the most environmentally friendly ones, ranking them based on three categories: environmental quality, eco-friendly behaviors and climate-change contributions. California took the top spot,…
Headline
Building experts say it’s no surprise that empty offices are burning so much energy. Electrical infrastructure like elevators consumes energy even when not in use, as do the pumps that maintain water pressure for faucets and toilets, said Eric Fournier, research director at UCLA’s California Center for Sustainable Communities. Turning these off would make it hard for buildings to “maintain a posture of openness.” A building is “kind of a living thing,” he said. “You can’t just cut the cord on it and expect it to carry on in good health for a long period of time.” Air conditioning systems are also kept on in empty buildings to avoid structural problems, mold and water-borne illnesses. The design of these large offices, many of which were built over a century ago, typically assumes a certain range of temperatures, Fournier explained. “If you deviate from that for a prolonged period, weird things happen that could be very expensive to fix.”
Videos
UCLA has a long history of sustainability leadership — from early energy efficiency efforts and the formation of the Institute of the Environment and Sustainability in the 1990s, to the establishment of…
The Governors’ Climate and Forests Task Force (GCF Task Force) held its first Remote Sensing Workshop at the University of California Los Angeles in June, 2023. The workshop was designed…
The California Climate Expedition was created to show what is happening to our environment firsthand and to fund much-needed research that will educate policymakers, corporations, and the general public about the ever-changing climate. The ride begins in Oakland, CA and ends in Los Angeles, CA. Throughout the journey, riders can expect to learn about the environment and the impacts of climate change by expert climate scientists from UCLA.
Publications
Published Work | 2024 | ACS EST Water
download pdf permalinkWorking Paper | 2023
download pdf permalinkPublished Work | 2023 | The Journal of Climate Change and Health
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