New Ideas

Essay | Creating optimism, fighting pessimism: The mission of the YEAH program
Four people stand in front of blue walls with the UN Climate Change Conference 2021 logo.

From right to left: Moderator Shardul Tiwari and YEAH Fellows Alexis Pascaris, Jacob Genuise and Amanda Pastore. (Dr. Gillian Bowser/Colorado State University)

Amanda Pastore
University of Connecticut
Despite the power of big oil money, corrupt politicians, and current climate trends, there is something that gives me a surge of optimism and energy: younger generations.
So many nanoparticles, so much time
A large, circular, blue piece of industrial equipment used to experiment on subatomic particles.

The muon “g minus 2” magnet has a radius of 7m and operates at negative 450 degrees Fahrenheit. The rotational spin of muons is measured as they travel through the ring’s magnetic field. The ring was transported 3,200 miles from New York to Illinois over three days and travelled by barge and along toll roads to reach its destination. (Reidar Hahn/FERMILAB)

Medill News Service
Northwestern University
After 10 years of logistical planning, Fermilab recently confirmed that previous experimentation on subatomic particles called muons may suggest the existence of an undiscovered 18th particle, report Poonam Narotam and Fiona Skeggs.
University of Connecticut students reflect on COP26
A selfie of a group of young people

University of Connecticut's COP26 cohort pauses for a photo on the streets of Glasgow. (Scott Wallace/University of Connecticut)

Scott Wallace
University of Connecticut
In November, I traveled to Glasgow, Scotland for COP26 with four professors and 15 University of Connecticut students, representing 13 different majors. The students shared why they attended the conference and what they learned there.
Students lead in green advocacy with environmental education
Climate Action in K-12 Schools
Climate Action in K-12 Schools
Medill News Service
Northwestern University
As climate change adds more stress to children’s futures, teachers focus on environmental education while student advocacy efforts lead toward a green tomorrow. Mikayla Denault reports for Medill.
The edible alleyway: How a community garden transformed a Montreal neighborhood
A green sign reads "Ruelle verte" or green alley over a wooden pagado.

The sign on the wooden arch reads "Ruelle verte" or "green alley" (Clarice Knelly/SUNY-Plattsburgh).

Clarice Knelly
Planet Forward Correspondent | SUNY-Plattsburgh
William Borque said the alleyways that surrounded Rosemont-La Petite-Patrie's community garden in Montreal used to be a “wasteland.” Now, they’re brimming with fruit trees, mushroom gardens and local art.
Environmental experts say EPA needs to study human health and environmental impacts of PFAS
Water cascading over a rock waterfall.

Cascades at Shenandoah National Park in Virginia (Jeff DeWitt/Unsplash https://unsplash.com/license).

Medill News Service
Northwestern University
An EPA federal advisory committee met last week to discuss PFAS research and the EPA's new PFAS strategic plan. Delaney Nelson reports for Medill.
Melting ice caps and mental health: Ecoanxiety in youth climate activists
Two individuals perched contemplatively on a rocky pier.

Hammonasset Beach State Park, Madison, Connecticut (2021) (Zoey England/University of Connecticut).

Zoey England
University of Connecticut
Although ecoanxiety impacts all ages, its influences are disproportionately felt among young people. These feelings, compounded in many by COP26’s resolution, make prioritizing mental well-being as a climate activist paramount.
A phosphate spill spelled disaster for marine ecosystems. Can research mitigate future harm?
A person with short hair in a life jacket pulls a white plastic bucket out of a body of water while kneeling in a boat.

Eckerd student samples water near Skyway after the Piney Point spill that occurred earlier this year (Shannon Gowans/Eckerd College).

Kaitlyn Copland
Planet Forward Correspondent | Eckerd College
In March 2021, a leak was discovered at the Piney Point phosphate mine and fertilizer plant in Florida. Researcher Shannon Gowans said the following red tide was "one of the most severe" she has seen.
All eyes on Tucson: Grassroots efforts give rise to a water conservation committed city
A roundabout in the middle of a paved street.

This roundabout is a type of green stormwater infrastructure, that collects stormwater for plants and people (Halley Hughes/University of Arizona).

Halley Hughes
Planet Forward Correspondent | University of Arizona
As Arizona looks to options to redress a life-threatening change in water availability, Tucson may prove to be an oasis and an example to other cities.
Five things to know about Arizona’s only ocean
A green tinted body of water surrounded by foliage and rock wall under a roof that resembles that of a green house.

The 700,000-gallon model of the ocean sits inside Biosphere 2, a glass-enclosed research facility near Tucson, Arizona, where scientists carry out large-scale experiments (Photo by Hannah Johnson/El Inde).

El Inde
UA School of Journalism
You’re standing on a beach. Warm sunlight streams down, filtering through not just clouds but a geometric glass walls and ceiling. Welcome to the Biosphere 2 Ocean. Hannah Johnson reports for El Inde. 

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