April 11, 2012

New research suggests that allowing more Pacific salmon to spawn in coastal streams will not only benefit the natural environment, including grizzly bears, but could also lead to more salmon in the ocean and thus larger salmon harvests in the long term -- a win-win for ecosystems and humans.

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April 9, 2012

When most people look at a forest, they see walking trails, deer yards, or firewood for next winter. But CHANS-Net scientists at the Harvard Forest and Smithsonian Institution take note of changes imperceptible to the naked eye -- the uptake and storage of carbon. What they've learned in a recent study is that an immense amount of carbon is stored in growing trees, but if current trends in Massachusetts continue, development would reduce that storage by 18 percent over the next half century. Forest harvesting would have a much smaller impact.

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April 5, 2012

With coupling comes tangles.

Reaching across research boundaries to study coupled human and natural systems has been documented to put genuine sustainability in reach. But the design also is more challenging as a researcher ventures into unfamiliar disciplines.

That means more questions – especially about methodology to best tackle those tantalizing new questions.

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March 29, 2012

The land around Yellowstone and Glacier national parks might look like it's filling up with people and houses, but it's nothing compared to the rate of development around some other U.S. national parks, according to a new study.

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March 27, 2012

The plenary sessions from the Planet Under Pressure 2012 conference, being held March 26-29 in London, as well as two live daily news shows ‘The Daily Planet’ are being streamed live on the web on each day of the event.

Access is free; for those who cannot attend live, the video will be available on demand after the event.

For more information, visit: http://www.planetunderpressure2012.net/webstreaming.asp.

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March 23, 2012

By analyzing vegetation information collected by satellites over time instead of for just one day, scientists in the Michigan State University Center for Systems Integration and Sustainability (CSIS) have developed a novel procedure to assess the composition of plant species in an area.

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March 16, 2012

Reducing the risk of potential global environmental disaster requires a "constitutional moment" comparable in scale and importance to the reform of international governance that followed World War II, say 32 leading experts in an article in the journal Science, published on March 16, 2012.

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March 15, 2012

CHANS-Net researchers from the University of New Hampshire have found that many African farmers inaccurately perceive changes in climate and rainfall when compared with scientific data, highlighting the need for better climate information to assist them to improve farming practices.

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March 9, 2012

The term "bush meat" conjures up images of exotic animals hunted by men in traditional dress using handmade weapons. But in reality, bush meat is a lot closer to our North American venison, quail, and pheasant -- game hunted legally using modern weapons.

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March 8, 2012

Fifteen years of studying two experimental wetlands has convinced CHANS-Net member Bill Mitsch that turning the reins over to Mother Nature makes the most sense when it comes to this area of ecological restoration.

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