Tracking Nature Inequity and COVID-19 Case Rates
Many people turned to nature to alleviate stress and participate in outdoor recreation during the COVID-19 pandemic. However, nature is less available in low-income and communities of color – the…
Human Health
The Disturbingly Long Tapeworms of Alaskan Bears
Last week, I posted a blog on the growing popularity of trail cameras and included a number of photos and videos of cool wildlife. I have received a number of…
Mammals, Wildlife Trade + the Next Global Pandemic
New publication presents some of the first empirical evidence showing a strong association between wildlife trade and zoonotic disease risk. In fact, scientists found that slightly more than 25 percent…
Deforestation Reduces Worker Productivity in the Tropics
New research from Indonesia finds that rural workers in deforested landscapes were less productive than those working in intact forest settings. Deforested locations experienced hotter temperatures, prompting workers to adapt…
Can Freshwater Reserves Protect Tropical Fish Diversity?
Marine reserves – basically, no-take reserves set aside to protect fisheries – have become an widely utilized conservation tactic. But this protected-area model is often overlooked in freshwater conservation. Could…
Heat Exposure From Deforestation Decreases Cognitive Performance of Rural Workers
Deforestation causes dramatic increases in local temperature. New research shows that the associated heat exposure is harming the cognitive performance of rural subsistence workers. The Gist The study, published in…
The Weird, Wondrous and Vulnerable American Horseshoe Crab
I really wanted to title this blog, “Sea-Going Scorpions on the Half-Shell,” because the first time I ever saw the underside of a horseshoe crab I thought it looked like…
Science for Evaluating Flood Risk + Improving Community Resilience
Using novel applications of satellite radar imagery and a specialized computer algorithm, a new study examining flooding caused by Hurricanes Matthew (2016) and Florence (2018) shows that current flood hazard…
How Trees Can Help Fight Rising Heat in Arid Cities
As the world grapples with increasingly common and devastating heat waves, new science shows that nature-based solutions—like tree planting and water conservation—are important and cost-effective ways to help protect vulnerable,…
Market-based Solutions Must Consider Gender
Published in Biological Conversation, a new paper argues that, to have any chance of being equitable, market-based climate mitigation and biodiversity conservation solutions must also consider gender at their core.…