The mountain pine beetle has destroyed more than 40 million acres of forest in the western United States — an area roughly the size of Washington state. The beetles introduce a fungus that prevents water and critical nutrients from traveling within a tree. They also lay eggs under the conifers’ bark, and their feeding larvae help kill trees — sometimes just weeks after the initial attack.
Read more at UW Today »Mislabeled seafood may be more sustainable, new study finds
With seafood, what you see isn’t always what you get. It’s no secret that mislabeling is rampant around the world. Recent studies estimate up to 30 percent of seafood served in restaurants and sold in supermarkets is actually something other than what is listed on the menu or label. Why mislabeling happens is a little squishier. Fraud, human error or marketing ploys — combined with an often multicountry traverse from boat to restaurant — make it possible you are eating a different fish than what’s on the menu.
Read more at UW Today »Environmental Studies alum co-founds responsible tourism business
Anna Mines graduated from the University of Washington’s Environmental Studies and ethnomusicology programs in 2014. After earning her diploma, she left for a six-week backpacking trip on the beautiful southern Italian coast and then settled in Rome. Today, she’s in studying Italian on a student visa and working to launch a responsible tourism business called Put Your Money Where Your Mouth Is (PYMWYMI).
Read more from Environmental Studies »From White House to Tacoma, WA, urban agriculture is growing
For University of Washington professor Sally Brown, it’s always been about food in cities. She got her start as a chef in New York City, then ran a wholesale vegetable business selling only locally grown vegetables in the New York area. Brown then went to graduate school to learn how city waste could be used to enrich soils on nearby farms.
Read more at UW Today »College contributes to Campus Sustainability Fund projects in honor of 2016 graduates
In honor of the UW Class of 2016, the College of the Environment will donate to two Campus Sustainability Fund projects.
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