Rutgers Climate and Energy Institute

06/09/2026

“How many times do you have to be told that this year is the hottest year on record for it just to become background noise?”

An article from E&E News examines the growing disconnect between worsening climate change impacts and the lack of political attention in Washington. The piece explains that while scientists are raising increasingly urgent warnings—such as accelerating global warming, shrinking Arctic ice, intensifying El Niño effects, and the potential collapse of major ocean currents—U.S. policymakers are largely focused elsewhere, particularly on energy costs and election strategy.

The article highlights how both political parties and environmental advocates have shifted away from emphasizing climate change. The Trump administration has rolled back climate regulations, cut funding for scientific research, and weakened federal climate institutions, while Democrats have reframed their messaging around affordability and energy prices rather than climate urgency. This shift, experts warn, comes at a time when the physical impacts of climate change are accelerating and becoming more costly and irreversible.

Read and learn more at https://rcei.rutgers.edu/climate-change-alarms-are-flashing-washington-isnt-paying-attention/

06/08/2026

The world is losing plants, animals, and ecosystems at an alarming rate, with several causes of this biodiversity decline including habitat loss, climate change, and overexploitation. However, reversing these trends will likely require substantial amounts of funding. Experts estimate the gap between what’s currently being spent on biodiversity protection and what’s actually needed is at least $700 billion per year.

One popular idea for closing that gap is to use market-based tools to mitigate damage to biodiversity, including new ideas like ‘biodiversity credits’ that provide funding from private entities directly to areas where biodiversity is being conserved. But do these tools actually work?

A new review published in the journal Current Opinion in Environmental Sustainability takes a hard look at the evidence of how well market-based tools work to protect biodiversity. Pamela McElwee, RCEI Affiliate and Professor in the Department of Human Ecology at Rutgers University and author of the review, finds that the track record is mixed at best.

Read and learn more at https://rcei.rutgers.edu/can-financial-tools-save-biodiversity-a-new-review-says-not-so-fast/

06/07/2026

Rutgers Global Grants provide seed grants to support faculty engaging in collaborative international research, partnerships, and new educational initiatives. According to Vice President for Global Affairs Eric Garfunkel, the grants reflect Rutgers’ commitment to expanding global engagement, and belief in the ability of research and education to help transform lives the world over.

This year, three Rutgers University School of Engineering professors received Global Grants. Professor of materials science and engineering Ashutosh Goel was awarded a grant for international collaborative research, while Department of Industrial and Systems Engineering Associate Professor and RCEI affiliate Aziz Ezzat and Professor of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering Jingang Yi were each awarded 고려대학교 Korea University-Rutgers University co-funded collaborative research support.

Read and learn more at https://rcei.rutgers.edu/soe-professors-awarded-2026-rutgers-global-grants/

06/05/2026

RCEI affiliate Fiorella Prada, assistant professor in the Department of Marine and Coastal Sciences - DMCS, was named the 2026 Alpha Zeta Professor of the Year at the Rutgers School of Environmental and Biological Sciences (SEBS). Prada was first recognized at the school’s Baccalaureate where she was presented with a certificate by Alpha Zeta Cook Chapter.

Prada joined Rutgers University in November 2021 as a postdoctoral researcher in the Department of Marine and Coastal Sciences and was promoted to assistant professor in September 2023. Her passion for ocean science began early while growing up in Mozambique, where she moved with her parents at the age of three, and where the Indian Ocean served as both her backyard and her first “natural laboratory.”

Today, her research broadly focuses on the impacts of ocean warming and acidification on marine environments. Her teaching inspires students to actively engage with scientific discovery.

Read and learn more at https://rcei.rutgers.edu/assistant-professor-fiorella-prada-is-the-2026-alpha-zeta-teacher-of-the-year/

06/02/2026

For eight Rutgers University students, The George Washington University Planet Forward Environmental Storyfest in April was more than a conference. It was an opportunity to show how science storytelling can transform complex research into deeply human stories that connect with audiences far beyond the laboratory.

Representing the university at one of the nation’s leading gatherings for environmental communicators, the students presented Research to Reel: Science Stories in Action, a dynamic showcase of documentary filmmaking, immersive learning and collaborative science communication.

The presentation highlighted work emerging from the Immersive Learning through Science Storytelling Lab at Rutgers School of Environmental and Biological Sciences where students partner with scientists to document research as it unfolds in real time.

Read and learn more at https://rcei.rutgers.edu/rutgers-students-bring-science-stories-to-the-national-stage-at-planet-forward-storyfest/

06/01/2026

An article from The New York Times examines a major shift in climate science: researchers have decided to retire one of the most widely used and alarming emissions scenarios, known as RCP8.5, and replace it with updated projections. This change has sparked debate among scientists, policymakers, and the public about whether climate risks have been overstated—and how to better communicate future dangers.

For more than a decade, RCP8.5 represented a “worst-case” scenario in which greenhouse gas emissions would rise dramatically, leading to extreme warming of about 4.4°C (8°F) by 2100. While it was never intended to be the most likely outcome, it became widely used in studies and media coverage as a benchmark for potential catastrophic impacts.

The article explains that climate scenarios are tools for exploring possibilities rather than making precise predictions, and, despite retiring RCP8.5, that climate change remains a serious threat.

Read and learn more at https://rcei.rutgers.edu/why-scientists-retired-the-dire-climate-scenario-used-for-over-a-decade/

05/31/2026

When fire tore through Los Angeles County in January 2025, westerly winds blew most of the smoke and ash over the Pacific, keeping the main measure of air quality, total mass of particles smaller than 2.5 microns, at or near normal levels.

But a study published in the Journal of Hazardous Materials found the particles floating while the fires burned differed sharply from ordinary urban pollution and from smoke generated mainly by burning vegetation. The samples contained enriched levels of chemicals in manufactured products: toxic metals, polycyclic aromatic compounds, volatile organic compounds and polyfluoroalkyl substances – also known as PFAS or “forever chemicals” – in the ash.

The findings suggest that mass-based smoke readings can understate the potential hazard of fires that burn through densely built communities. “I do not want the message to be simply scary,” said the lead study author and RCEI affiliate José Guillermo Cedeño Laurent, an assistant professor at Rutgers School of Public Health. “The point is that if we want to understand the risks, we need to know the composition of the particles, not just the amount.”

Read and learn more at https://rcei.rutgers.edu/when-neighborhoods-burn-the-smoke-carries-more-than-soot/

05/30/2026

To understand how Earth’s climate is changing, we first need to understand how it has changed before. One of the best tools for doing that sits at the bottom of the ocean — tiny, fossilized shells of microscopic, single celled creatures called foraminifera. A new study published in the journal Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology takes a closer look at how reliably these shells can tell us about ancient ocean temperatures, specifically in the Indian Ocean.

Elisabeth Sikes, RCEI Affiliate, Professor in the Department of Marine and Coastal Sciences - DMCS at Rutgers University, is a co-author on the study alongside lead author Ryan Glaubke, a PhD student in the Department of Marine and Coastal Sciences, and colleagues from the University of Maine and Old Dominion University.

“If we can more precisely portray how the Indian Ocean has warmed and cooled over thousands of years, we can better test and refine the climate models that inform today’s policy decisions.”, said Sikes.

Read and learn more at https://rcei.rutgers.edu/reading-the-oceans-past-to-understand-our-climate-future/

05/19/2026

05/18/2026

Congratulations to RCEI affiliate Angela Oberg for receiving the Moves DuMonde Sustainability Award for her transformative and impactful work at Rutgers University! Starting off as an undergraduate premed, philosophy, and biology major, her winding path to eventually becoming a sustainability professional in higher education included a Master’s in Landscape Architecture and 10 years of working in the environmental planning industry.

After she obtained her Ph.D. and as she eventually moved to her current position as Senior Director of Climate Action & Sustainability at Rutgers, Oberg helped form the university’s climate action plan and now works in the Rutgers Office of Climate Action to make sustainability a household name throughout the community and beyond.

Read and learn more about Oberg’s story and accomplishments at https://rcei.rutgers.edu/angela-oberg-receives-moves-dumonde-sustainability-award/