By Ned MacKay, San Jose Mercury News
The Earth takes time out to chat about the last 4.5 billion years, the evolution of Homo sapiens, and the designation of its own holiday
In the days leading up to Earth Day 2012, we were able to obtain an exclusive interview with our home planet.
ESPM Faculty and Students Receive Notable Campus Awards
Each year, the Chancellor recognizes students, staff, faculty and community partnerships that embody UC Berkeley's proud tradition of public service and commitment to improving our local and global community.
Professors Peluso and Iles Honored for Mentoring
Professor Peluso and Professor Iles were recognized for their vital role in mentoring graduate students and training future faculty, and have shown an outstanding commitment to mentoring, advising, and generally supporting graduate students.
Towards a 21st Century Soil Science: The Hans Jenny Memorial Lecture, April 23, 2012
This year's Hans Jenny Memorial Lecture will be given by Dr. Pedro Sanchez, Director of the Tropical Agriculture and the the Rural Environment Program, Senior Research Scholar, and Director of the Millennium Villages Project at the Earth Institute at Columbia University.
Grassroots efforts: a farmer’s camel marketing cooperative in Inner Mongolia
Professors Lynn Huntsinger and Li Wenjun of Peking University have noted efforts to restore or maintain some aspects of traditional systems in China and the U.S. at multiple scales. These adaptations may be those needed to retain or develop resilience and sustain livelihoods in the face of rapid change.
Professor Huntsinger Wins Grant Promoting Chinese Collaboration
Professor Huntsinger will collaborate with Peking University professor Li Wenjun, researching how herders in northwest China experience and cope with climate and ecosystem change.
Pamela, activist and leader who tirelessly works to improve her community’s health in rural Kenya
Pamela’s background as a community health worker has been useful for graduate student Katie Fiorella, whose research focuses on the link between wildlife harvest and health outcomes.
Graduate student Thomas Azwell's research spurred by Gulf oil spill
Graduate student Thomas Azwell is deeply influenced by the Deepwater Horizon disaster, and is helping to restore the Gulf’s blackened marshes with a project that could also aid threatened ecosystems nationwide, including in Northern California.
Berkeley Initiative in Global Change receives $1.5M from Keck Foundation
The Berkeley Initiative in Global Change Biology (BiGCB) plans to develop a Predictive Biosystems Informatics Engine (PBIE), to access, visualize, and analyze rich data, and provide the foundation for building the next generation of models of the biotic response to global change.
Professor Carolyn Merchant elected a Fellow of the AAAS
Professor Merchant was named for her distinguished contributions to the field of history and philosophy of science, particularly for the history of the scientific revolution and gender and science.
The Salton Sea: an ecological disaster
Once one of the most productive ecosystems in North America, hosting 100 million fish, the Salton Sea is now impaired and Selenium (Se) is one of the constituents that threaten its health.
Diversified Farming Systems: finding solutions to pressing agriculture-related issues
The Berkeley Center for Diversified Farming Systems, which includes many of our department's faculty and students, brings together interdisciplinary researchers, writers, and practitioners to find solutions to launch the next generation of agricultural leaders.
Can 'Carbon Ranching' Offset Emissions In California?
Professors Whendee Silver and Dennis Baldocchi speak with NPR correspondent Christopher Joyce about 'carbon ranching'.
Scientists Propose Thinning Sierra Forests to Enhance Water Runoff
Runoff from the Sierra Nevada, a critical source of California’s water supply, could be enhanced by thinning forests, according to a report from University of California, Merced, UC Berkeley and Environmental Defense.
Taking bushmeat off the menu could increase child anemia
Hundreds of millions of people worldwide consume bushmeat a key source of bio-available iron, particularly for those living in rural communities. But when the menu includes endangered species, human nutritional needs must contend with efforts to manage wildlife resources.
Land Donation to Double UC Research Forestlands
The University of California will add 4,584 acres of Northern California mixed-conifer forest to its research lands; the transfer is the largest single acquisition of forestland in the University’s history.
