The development of new solar farms demands a limited and precious resource – land – which is also critical to ranchers and graziers raising livestock. This week, we spoke to Stacie Peterson, Executive Director of the American Solar Grazing Association, about solar grazing, an approach to multi-purpose land use that supports clean energy, ecological health, economic growth, and happy sheep.
Partnering with California’s longstanding native tribes and restoring stewardship can bolster solutions to today’s climate challenges. We spoke to Geneva EB Thompson, Deputy Secretary for Tribal Affairs, who explained how traditional ecological knowledge can reduce risks of natural disasters while promoting biodiversity and carbon sequestration.
Seaweed has many environmental benefits, including providing ecosystems for marine biodiversity and carbon sequestration. This week, we spoke with Kaira Wallace about the benefits of farming this valuable resource through the sustainable practice of aquaculture.
Carbon dioxide is both a potent greenhouse gas and a necessary input into the natural process of photosynthesis in plants. This week, we spoke with UC Berkeley researcher Dr. Peidong Yang, whose artificial leaves replicate photosynthesis to generate products currently dependent on fossil fuels.
Chaos wheat, “climate blend,” is a new type of flour composed of a variety of extreme weather resistant varieties of wheat to be more resilient to climate change. Despite its deviation from traditional wheat, it is shown to uphold the same baking quality (in regards to taste, texture, and rise). It was developed because climate change has been endangering wheat crops and this is not only affecting the supply and demand of wheat, but also creating intense price fluctuations. We spoke to Robin Morgan, a researcher at Washington State University’s Breadlab, about why these climate resilient crops may be the future of bread.
As cities and communities around the world grapple with the need for affordable housing while also addressing climate change, sustainable wood provides a promising solution. Able to replace carbon-intensive traditional building materials, sequester carbon, and lower emissions, sustainable wood has the potential to redefine the future of low-carbon building. On this week’s Climate Break, UC Berkeley Professor Dr. Paul Mayencourt, explains how sustainable wood from mass timber could help mitigate the impact of climate change and transform the construction industry.
Over the past few centuries, the carbon levels in our soils have significantly decreased as a result of agricultural practices exacerbated by the effects of climate change. Despite this loss, stable carbon storage remains crucial for healthy soil and climate resilience. On this week’s Climate Break, Co-Founder and Chief Operating Officer of Loam Bio, Tegan Nock explains a new way to remove carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and store it underground.
The vast majority of plastics are currently made using fossil fuels in a production process that emits greenhouse gases into the atmosphere. Once produced, fossil fuel-based plastics take hundreds to thousands of years to decompose, and when they finally do, they release dangerous microplastics into the environment. We spoke to Dr. Srinivas Janaswamy, an associate professor at South Dakota State University, about transforming coffee grounds into a biodegradable and sustainable alternative to plastic packaging.
Dr. Erica Dodds heads the Foundation for Carbon Restoration, which advocates for using carbon removal – in addition to emissions reductions – to restore atmospheric carbon dioxide to pre-industrial revolution levels. One method of removal she says is promising? Storing carbon in concrete.
When grassland ecosystems are healthy, they can hold a lot of carbon. But these days, most are degraded. UC Berkeley ecologist Whendee Silver says that by using compost to restore grasslands, we can help local ecosystems and draw down more carbon from the atmosphere at the same time.