Incorporate more voices to loosen conservation gridlock, scientists urge

Forest canopy

Dean Lisa Graumlich and associate dean Julia Parrish are among several signatories from the College of the Environment and UW calling to increase the diversity of voices in how we practice conservation. Joining over 200 others, the authors of a new comment in Nature discuss how increasing diversity at the conservation table can help move us globally to a more “shared vision of a thriving planet.” 

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High definition comes to ocean floor

The Research Vessel Clifford A. Barnes

Oceanography students in the College of the Environment scoured the bottom of Lake Union on a research cruise, testing out new high-tech equipment that allows users to peer through the lake’s deep waters. Students set sail on the Clifford A. Barnes, one of several ships and boats operated by the University of Washington. King 5 reporters joined the students for the excursion, capturing video of what they were up to and what they saw on the lake bottom. 

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New study shows three abrupt pulses of CO2 during last deglaciation

Ice core

A new study led by Oregon State University, with significant contributions from the University of Washington, shows that the increase of atmospheric carbon dioxide that contributed to the end of the last ice age more than 10,000 years ago did not occur gradually but rather was characterized by three abrupt pulses. Scientists are not sure what caused these abrupt increases, during which carbon dioxide levels rose about 10 to 15 parts per million—or about 5 percent per episode—during a span of one to two centuries. 

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Fires and floods: North Cascades federal lands prepare for climate change

J Meyer

In a country that boasts an awe-inspiring system of national parks, the Pacific Northwest may be especially lucky. But even remote parks and forests can’t escape the problem of human-induced climate change. Future shifts could affect everything from how people access the parks to what activities are possible once they arrive—not to mention the plants and animals that call those places home. 

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Climate Impacts Group partners with Swinomish Tribe to reduce climate effects

Swinomish Indian Tribal land

The Swinomish Indian Tribal Community, located on the southeastern peninsula of Fidalgo Island in Washington State, was recognized at the 2014 National Congress of American Indians’ annual meeting in Atlanta for their remarkable efforts to address climate change impacts on tribal lands. The UW Climate Impacts Group was a key partner in helping secure the recognition, which was given by the Honoring Nations Program from Harvard University’s Project on American Indian Economic Development. 

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