Climate change

Moraine is left behind by the retreating Reindeer Glacier on September 8, 2021 near Kangerlussuaq, Greenland. 2021 marked one of the biggest ice melt years for Greenland in recorded history. Researchers from Denmark estimated that in July of that year enough ice melted on the Greenland Ice Sheet to cover the entire state of Florida with two inches of water. According to NASA, 5 trillion tons of ice have melted in Greenland over approximately the past 15 years, enough to increase global sea level by nearly an inch. The observations come on the heels of the recent United Nations report on global warming which stated that accelerating climate change is driving an increase in extreme weather events. (Photo by Mario Tama/Getty Images).

Ice Sheet Retreat and Forest Expansion Turned Ancient Subtropical Drylands into Oases

Studying the climate of the distant past to get a sense of what the future holds

March 14, 2022 | Elaina Hancock

Research & Discovery
Liam Enea '24 (CAHNR), founder and president of the Clean Energy Society stands next to solar panels at the Depot campus on Feb. 16, 2022. (Peter Morenus/UConn Photo)

UConn Student Group Stepping Up to Help Push for Clean Energy

Harnessing student enthusiasm and talent to advocate for new solutions

February 28, 2022 | Elaina Hancock

Drone photo of the Student Union Mall , Wilbur Cross, and sunset.

From Policy to Practical: UConn Students, Alumni Use Personal Strengths to Address Climate Change

Marshaling the University's resources to tackle the pressing issue of climate change through research, policy advocacy, and more

February 18, 2022 | Kimberly Phillips

Alumni Research & Discovery UConn Voices
Flooding in coastal Connecticut as the climate changes is one of several concerns for local leaders addressed in fact sheets provided by Adapt CT (Getty Images).

Fact Sheets Help Local Leaders in CT Navigate Climate Change Questions

Adapt CT offers guidance on matters ranging from beach erosion to the flooding of coastal highways

February 11, 2022 | Judy Benson, Connecticut Sea Grant

Community Impact
The new collaborative effort will see part of CIRCA housed in SGCI offices at UConn Hartford.

Closer Collaboration and Community Outreach for Urban Sustainability, Together at Hartford Campus

The partnership between CIRCA and SCGI aims to help build more environmentally sustainable and resilient cities

December 9, 2021 | Elaina Hancock

Community Impact
Faces of children appear during the projection of #ProjectingChange onto the exterior of SEC Armadillo on November 5, 2021 in Glasgow, Scotland. #ProjectingChange was an art activation created by world-renowned artists intended to inspire hope around the climate crisis during the 26th United Nations Climate Conference.

The Power of the Green Zone at COP26

'It re-framed climate change, and gave me the chance to reflect instead of continuously looking forward with anxiousness'

December 3, 2021 | Carol Atkinson-Palombo, Professor of Geography and Director of Environmental Studies 

Increased flood risk is not confined to coastal development. Inland towns and cities also faced increased flooding risks.

CIRCA Awarded $5 million in New Funding to Strengthen CT’s Climate Change Resilience

CIRCA is creating a 'project pipeline' to move resilience planning and adaptation forward

November 16, 2021 | Elaina Hancock

Community Impact
The UConn students and faculty members who traveled to the COP26 summit in Glasgow.

Reflections on COP26: Uncertainty and Hope

Many countries have committed to further reductions, but still not enough to reduce warming to the critical 1.5C threshold

November 15, 2021 | Mark Urban, Arden Chair of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology

A television camera operator works in front of a COP26 logo displayed on a screen ahead of an event on the sidelines of the COP26 UN Climate Change Conference in Glasgow on November 9, 2021.

COP26: A UConn Perspective on the Climate Change Summit

CIRCA's Jim O'Donnell shares his on-the-ground perspective from the momentous conference in Scotland

November 12, 2021 | Jim O'Donnell, CIRCA Executive Director

An image of the Avery Point campus captured via drone camera.

UConn Researchers to Explore Marine Life, Human-Sea Interaction

The projects touch on everything from the effects of climate change on marine animals to how coastal communities respond to flood risk

November 5, 2021 | Judy Benson, Connecticut Sea Grant

Research & Discovery