Covid-19: Climate and Environment
Climate change is sapping Yosemite’s forests and waterfalls. A congressional delegation wants to do something about it
Land-use change and the livestock revolution increase the risk of zoonotic coronavirus transmission from rhinolophid bats
In an analysis published in the journal Nature Food, Environmental Science, Policy, and Management professor Paolo D'Odorico finds that global changes in land-use—including forest fragmentation, expansion of agriculture and concentrated livestock production—create “hot spots” favorable for bats that carry coronaviruses, and where conditions are ripe for zoonotic transfer to humans. The research has also been featured in articles by Vox Media and Berkeley News.
In a Nature study on real-time efforts to monitor greenhouse gases, Energy & Resources Group professor Dan Kammen finds an abrupt 8.8 percent decrease in global CO2 emissions in the first half of 2020 as compared to the same period in 2019. The study was featured in a Berkeley News article discussing the potential effects of a completely electric vehicle fleet. Earlier during the pandemic, climate policy expert and alumni Christopher Jones also conducted research into this effect, speaking about the subject in Scientific American, the New York Times, NBC, and La Prensa Latina Media.
In a recent article in the San Francisco Chronicle, professor of environmental science, policy, and management Scott Stephens discusses how coronavirus could seriously disrupt efforts to address California wildfires. Despite a dry and potentially dangerous fire season, many agencies are canceling or delaying programs to prevent catastrophic wildfire. Stephens also elaborates on the effects of COVID-19 on Cal Fire operations during the 2020 fire season in a later San Francisco Chronicle article. ESPM Cooperative Extension specialist Bill Stewart speaks about the same issue in a Sacramento Bee article.
During the heatwave in the Southwest, Americans may spend more energy on cooling buildings as they stay home to social distance. Energy & Resources Group alumnus Christopher Jones speaks about the increased demand for energy from cooling, as well as the stress it places on vulnerable communities and the economy.
Professor Kate O'Neill and PhD candidate Jessica Heiges in the Department of Environmental Science, Policy, and Management analyze how the pandemic has altered waste management strategies, particularly when it comes to single-use disposable plastics.
In an event organized by BioMonitor and the International Consortium on Applied and Bioeconomy Research (ICABR), agricultural and resource economics professor David Zilberman joins other policy and science experts to discuss the importance of the bioeconomy for economic recovery during the pandemic. The webinar also centers on promoting equal access and participation in the recovery.
In an article in California Magazine, professor Dan Kammen in the Energy and Resources Group joins a group of Berkeley experts, writing about the potential aftermath of the novel coronavirus pandemic. He argues that greed, social inequity, environmental distruction, and the sidelining of science have all made the outbreak much more devastating.
In a virtual discussion hosted by the Steinhardt Museum of Natural History, professor emeritus of environmental science, policy, and management Wayne Getz presents an overview of zoonotic diseases and the pandemics affecting humans over the past 2000 years. Getz discusses the theory behind zoonotic spillover while offering key insights into the current pandemic.
In a Haas Energy Institute blog post, agricultural and resource economics professor Meredith Fowlie writes about green stimulus investments. She argues that certain policies could help simultaneously address the economic downturn, climate change, and social inequities.
In a special issue of ARE Update, professor of agricultural and resource economics Michael Anderson explores the impacts of recent stay-at-home orders on mobility, economic activity, and pollution across the state. The data shows decreases in travel, with evidence of recovery before the relaxation of the order, but without compelling evidence for certain air particulate reductions.
In an article about California’s move to hire hundreds of new firefighters during the COVID-19 crisis, Cooperative Extension specialist William Stewart discusses the upcoming wildfire season.
Nina Ichikawa, the executive director of the Berkeley Food Institute, speaks about how the current vulnerability of the United States' meat industry during the pandemic could influence sustainable livestock production in the future.
Climate experts, including Energy and Resources Group alum and CoolClimate Network director Christopher Jones, urge government officials to implement a green economic stimulus package following COVID-19. Such measures could mitigate climate change and help to rebuild the economy.
In a live webcast, environmental science, policy, and management professor Kate O'Neill, energy and resources professor Dan Kammen, PhD candidate Valeri Vasquez, and Dean David Ackerly convened for a conversation on Covid-19, the science and policy behind CO2 emissions, and opportunities for a different path forward.
Join energy and resources professor Dan Kammen for a virtual panel at the 2020 International Conference on Learning Representations (ICLR), where he will discuss the role of machine learning in solving complex problems involving climate change.
Daniel Kammen, a professor in the Energy & Resources Group, writes about the actions we may take at every level of society to “flatten the curve” of climate change, comparing the policy responses to both the pandemic and the climate crisis. Kammen also speaks about this relationship between COVID-19 and climate change with KQED.
The California-China Climate Institute (CCCI) convened remotely with top American and Chinese officials, to discuss the Covid-19 pandemic and to identify opportunities for further bilateral collaboration and climate action. CCCI is a UC-wide joint initiative between UC Berkeley's Rausser College, the Berkeley Center for Law, Energy & the Environment, and the Institute of Climate Change and Sustainable Development at Tsinghua University.
In an opinion piece co-authored with Daniel Aldana Cohen, professor Dan Kammen in the Energy and Resources Group writes that the convergence of climate change and the global pandemic will be catastrophic. The authors argue for a green stimulus plan to address both problems simultaneously. Kammen's proposals are also discussed in Politico.
A recent commentary on food supply and Covid-19 references research by Agricultural and Resource Economics professors David Sunding and David Roland-Holst. Sunding and Roland-Holst analyze how certain policies can make food production in California less certain while increasing reliance on imported food.
Maggi Kelly, a Cooperative Extension specialist and professor-in-residence in the Department of Environmental Science, Policy, and Management, writes a summary of some of the mapping technology used in the past few weeks to understand the COVID-19 pandemic.
As citizen scientists in California prepare for the annual Sudden Oak Death (SOD) identification training, Cooperative Extension specialist and project lead Matteo Garbelotto releases new safety protocols for volunteers, in accordance with social distancing measures.
In a discussion of the relationship between ecology and disease, this article references the research of ESPM professor Robert Lane. While Lane’s study focused on fence lizard populations and the prevalence of Lyme Disease, its findings can be applied to the spread of COVID-1.
In his recent blog post, Agricultural and Resources Economics professor James Sallee writes about both the short-term and long-term effects of Covid-19 on the climate and economy. In particular, Sallee explains how the coronavirus could impact investment, politics, and other behaviors.
Two Rausser College faculty—Dan Kammen in the Energy and Resources Group and Dennis Baldocchi in the Department of Environmental Science, Policy, and Management—speak with SFGate about air pollution and the long and short-term environmental impacts of the coronavirus pandemic. Kammen was also featured in the San Francisco Chronicle and CNN on this topic.
Christopher Jones, a climate policy expert and alumni of the Energy and Resources Group, speaks with E&E News about how coronavirus stay-at-home measures could impact global emissions and energy usage. Jones also spoke with reporters at the New York Times, NBC, and La Prensa Latina Media on this topic.
In an Op-ed in the San Francisco Chronicle, professor emeritus of environmental science, policy, and management Wayne Getz outlines the need for government coordination to combat the coronavirus outbreak. Specifically, Getz explains how the governments of China and the United States could work together in investigating host-virus systems from an ecological perspective.