Insights and Innovations is a column featuring brief essays, Q&As, op-eds, and expert commentary on energy and environmental topics. Contributors include faculty, graduate students, and researchers from across Penn State.
Are lawsuits effective ways to protect the climate and environment?
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Lawsuits are a method used by numerous groups to try to protect the climate and environment, from suing governments to accusing companies of misleading marketing. We spoke with Hannah Wiseman, an IEE faculty member and professor of law at Penn State Law, about these lawsuits and their impact on the environment and climate.
Climate change, cities, and net-zero emission buildings
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Despite their small geographical footprints, cities incorporate a high density of buildings and great concentration of urban residents, making them the hotspots of resource and energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions.
Using outer space for cooling and energy on Earth
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A Penn State research group is developing a new way to cool buildings and devices by using a special material that lets sunlight pass through to generate electricity while also releasing heat into space, providing cooling without using electricity.
Climate-smart forestry: Mitigating climate change and enhancing resilience in Pennsylvania
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The climate crisis has put carbon sequestration and carbon offset projects on the international agenda. But what role can forests play in removing carbon emissions? Can healthy forests help Pennsylvania achieve state-wide climate mitigation goals?
Transitioning to renewable energy: Challenges and opportunities
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Countries around the world are exploring ways to transition away from fossil fuels. The transition, prompted by carbon emissions that exacerbate climate change, is vast and includes renewables such as solar, wind, and hydro. But is transitioning as simple as choosing renewables for energy?
Unlocking the true potential of wind energy
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Wind energy is a powerful and abundant renewable resource. It could hold the key to a cleaner and more sustainable future. But harnessing its full potential requires overcoming a crucial hurdle: efficiently transmitting electricity generated by wind farms to the power grid.
Glacier lake outburst floods: Loss of life and infrastructure
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A massive glacial lake outburst flood (GLOF) devastated Sikkim, India in October 2023. The disaster, triggered by a landslide and heavy rainfall, highlights the need for improved disaster planning that considers scientific knowledge, local community concerns, and the impact of climate change.
Engaging locally in water quality planning
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To address pollution concerns in the Chesapeake Bay, communities throughout the watershed have been engaging stakeholders in an effort to reduce nitrogen, phosphorus, and sediment loads, which are responsible for harmful algal blooms and turbid waters.
Carbon sequestration and mineralization
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Addressing the incontrovertible risks of climate change requires deep decarbonization. In addition to green measures like upscaling renewables and improving energy efficiency, there is broad scientific consensus that large-scale carbon capture and sequestration (CCS) remains critical to limiting global temperature rise below 2°C.
Learning from and working with local communities to save the baobab tree
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An ecological survey of Madagascar's baobab trees initially aimed to learn more about the history of the tree and how it was dispersed, but pivoted after meeting people from the local community who wanted to save their dying trees.