Pursuing Sustainability

It's one thing for a corporation, government agency, NGO or university to set sustainability as a goal. It's something entirely different to achieve that goal. Wisely managing the assets we depend on - natural and otherwise - requires understanding how those assets interact in highly complex social-environmental systems, how to intervene to move those systems toward sustainability goals and how to work collaboratively in governance processes to promote sustainability, according to a new book co-authored by Senior Fellow Pamela Matson, Chester Naramore Dean of the School of Earth, Energy & Environmental Sciences. Crucial to the effort: linking useful knowledge with decision-making. The book frames this systems approach through narrative and case studies.

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"Pursuing Sustainability: A Guide to the Science and Practice," Princeton University Press, March 29, 2016

Read on to explore other insights and discoveries on environmental challenges and solutions published by Stanford Woods Institute fellows and affiliated researchers.

Rise of the 'Ridiculously Resilient Ridge'

Atmospheric patterns resembling those that appeared during the latter half of California's ongoing multi-year drought are becoming more common, according to a study co-authored by School of Earth, Energy, & Environmental Sciences scholars Daniel Swain (RELP), Daniel Horton and Senior Fellow Noah Diffenbaugh (Earth System Science)

Photo credit: Bartshé Miller

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"Trends in Atmospheric Patterns Conducive to Seasonal Precipitation and Temperature Extremes in California," Science Advances, April 1, 2016

Other Climate Research

"Observed and Projected Climate Trends and Hotspots Across the National Ecological Observatory Network (NEON) Regions," Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment, Dec. 1, 2015 co-authored by Senior Fellow Noah Diffenbaugh (Earth System Science)

Deforestation Solution

Collaborative efforts between companies and environmentalists to reduce deforestation are more than twice as effective as "confrontational" programs developed by either industry or nongovernmental organizations, according to first-of-its kind study co-authored by Senior Fellow Eric Lambin (Earth System Science).

Photo credit: Robert Heilmayr

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"Impacts of Nonstate, Market-Driven Governance on Chilean Forests," Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, March 15, 2016

Other Ecosystem Services and Conservation Research

"Socio-Environmental Sustainability of Indigenous Lands: Simulating Coupled Human–Natural Systems in the Amazon," Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment, March 1, 2016, co-authored by Senior Fellow Eric Lambin (Earth System Science)

"Livestock vs. Wild Ungulate Management in the Conservation of Mediterranean Dehesas: Implications for Oak Regeneration," Forest Ecology and Management, Feb. 15, 2016, co-authored by Senior Fellow Rodolfo Dirzo (Biology)

"Does Tropical Forest Fragmentation Affect Plant Anti-Herbivore Defensive and Nutritional Traits?," Journal of Tropical Ecology, February 2016, co-authored by Senior Fellow Rodolfo Dirzo (Biology)

"Are Oxygen Limitations Under Recognized Regulators of Organic Carbon Turnover in Upland Soils?," Biogeochemistry, February 2016, co-authored by Senior Fellow Scott Fendorf (Earth System Science)

"Hemiparasite-Host Plant Interactions in a Fragmented Landscape Assessed Via High-Resolution Imaging and LiDAR," Ecological Applications, January 2016, co-authored by Senior Fellow Rodolfo Dirzo (Biology)

"Physico-Chemical Heterogeneity of Organic-Rich Sediments in the Rifle Aquifer, CO: Impact on Uranium Biogeochemistry," Environmental Science Technology, January 2016, co-authored by Senior Fellow Scott Fendorf (Earth System Science)

"Degradation in Carbon Stocks Near Tropical Forest Edges," Nature Communications, Dec. 18, 2016, co-authored by Research Associates Rebecca Chaplin-Kramer (Natural Capital Project), Richard Sharp and Lisa Mandle, all of the Natural Capital Project

"Arsenic Release Metabolically Limited to Permanently Water-Saturated Soil in Mekong Delta," Nature Geoscience, Nov. 30, 2016, co-authored by Senior Fellow Scott Fendorf (Earth System Science)

Solar Energy as a Cash Crop

An analysis co-authored by Senior Fellows David Lobell (Earth System Science) and Chris Field (Biology, Earth System Science) shows that solar infrastructure can be located in agricultural areas in a way that maximizes land and water-use efficiency, while providing opportunities for rural electrification and economic growth.

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"Co-Location Opportunities for Large Solar Infrastructures and Agriculture in Drylands," Applied Energy, March 1, 2016

Other Food Security Research

"Higher Flexibility in Input N:P Ratios Results in More Balanced Phosphorus Budgets in Two Long-Term Experimental Agroecosystems," Agriculture, Ecosystems & Environment, May 2016, co-authored by Senior Fellow Peter Vitousek (Biology)

"Avoiding Collapse: Grand Challenges for Science and Society to Solve by 2050," Elementa, March 15, 2016, co-authored by Seniors Fellow Paul Ehrlich (Biology) and Elizabeth Hadly (Biology)

"Contribution of Persistent Factors to Yield Gaps in High-Yield Irrigated Maize," Field Crops Research, Feb. 1, 2016, co-authored by William Wrigley Senior Fellow David Lobell (Earth System Science)

"Strengthening Agronomy Research for Food Security and Environmental Quality," Environmental Science and Technology, Feb. 1, 2016, co-authored by Senior Fellow Peter Vitousek (Biology)

"Growing Sensitivity of Maize to Water Scarcity Under Climate Change," Scientific Reports, Jan. 25, 2016, co-authored by William Wrigley Senior Fellow David Lobell (Earth System Science)

"Early Holocene Turnover, Followed by Stability, in a Caribbean Lizard Assemblage," Quaternary Research, Jan. 13, 2016, co-authored by Senior Fellow Elizabeth Hadly (Biology)

"Pharaoh's Dream Revisited: An Integrated U.S. Midwest Field Research Network for Climate Adaptation," BioScience, Jan. 1, 2016, co-authored by William Wrigley Senior Fellow David Lobell (Earth System Science)

"Evidence for a Historic Change Occurring in China," Environmental Science and Technology, Dec. 28, 2015, co-authored by Senior Fellows Pam Matson (Earth, Energy & Environmental Sciences) and Peter Vitousek (Biology)

A Framework for Freshwater Financing

Using lessons from the energy sector, Senior Research Scientist Newsha Ajami (Water in the West) and others outline strategies to bring the nation's water infrastructure into the 21st century.

Photo credit: Mishkabear / Flickr

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"Tapping Into Alternative Ways to Fund Innovative and Multi-Purpose Water Projects: A Financing Framework from the Electricity Sector," (REPORT) Feb. 2, 2016

Other Freshwater Research

"Chromium Fluxes and Speciation in Ultramafic Catchments and Global Rivers," Chemical Geology, May 15, 2016, co-authored by Woods-affiliated Assistant Professor of Geological Sciences Kate Maher

"Decision-Making Framework for the Application of In-Situ Activated Carbon Amendment to Sediment," Journal of Hazardous Materials, April 5, 2016, co-authored by Senior Fellow Richard Luthy (Civil and Environmental Engineering)

"Closing the Irrigation Deficit in Cambodia: Implications for Transboundary Impacts on Groundwater and Mekong River Flow," Journal of Hydrology, April 2016, co-authored by Woods-affiliated postdoctoral scholar Laura Erban (Global Freshwater Initiative) and Senior Fellow Steven Gorelick (Earth System Science)

"Secondary Environmental Impacts of Remedial Alternatives for Sediment Contaminated with Hydrophobic Organic Contaminants," Journal of Hazardous Materials, March 5, 2016, co-authored by Senior Fellow Richard Luthy (Civil and Environmental Engineering)

"Competing Mechanisms for Perfluoroalkyl‐Acid Accumulation in Plants Revealed Using an Arabidopsis Model System," Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry, March 4, 2016, co-authored by Woods-affiliated postdoctoral scholar Greg LeFevre and Senior Fellow Richard Luthy (Civil and Environmental Engineering)

"Marine Anoxia and Delayed Earth System Recovery After End-Permian Extinction," Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, March 1, 2016, co-authored by Woods-affiliated Assistant Professor of Geological Sciences Kate Maher

"Barriers to Innovation in Urban Wastewater Utilities: Attitudes of Managers in California," Environmental Management, March 18, 2016, co-authored by Woods Co-Director and Senior Fellow Buzz Thompson (Law)

"The Imprint of Climate and Geology on the Residence Rimes of Groundwater," Geophysical Research Letters, Jan. 28, 2016, co-authored by Woods-affiliated Assistant Professor of Geological Sciences Kate Maher

"Frontiers of the Food-Energy-Water Trilemma: Sri Lanka as a Microcosm of Tradeoffs," Environmental Research Letters, Jan. 14, 2016, co-authored by Woods-affiliated postdoctoral scholar Debra Perrone (Water in the West) (story)

"Plant Assimilation Kinetics and Metabolism of 2-Mercaptobenzothiazole Tire Rubber Vulcanizers by Arabidopsis," Environmental Science & Technology, Dec. 23, 2015, co-authored by Woods-affiliated postdoctoral scholar Greg LeFevre and Senior Fellow Richard Luthy (Civil and Environmental Engineering)

Sizing up 21st Century Ocean Pollution Challenges

Research co-authored by Senior Fellow Alexandria Boehm (Civil and Environmental Engineering) describes microbial, nutrient, chemical and plastic pollution threats to oceans, and outlines research needed to mitigate these threats.

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"Oceans in Peril: Grand Challenges in Applied Water Quality Research for the 21st Century," Environmental Engineering Science, Dec. 18, 2015

Other Oceans Research

"The Effect of Temperature on Postprandial Metabolism of Yellowfin Tuna (Thunnus albacares)," Comparative Biochemistry and Physiology Part A: Molecular & Integrative Physiology, May 2016, co-authored by Senior Fellow Barbara Block (Biology)

"Large Marine Protected Areas (LMPAs) in the Mediterranean Sea: the Opportunity of the Adriatic Sea," Marine Policy, June 2016, co-authored by Senior Fellow Fiorenza Micheli (Biology)

"Bivalve Grazing Can Shape Phytoplankton Communities," Frontiers in Marine Science, Feb. 18, 2016, co-authored by Senior Fellow Jeffrey Koseff (Civil and Environmental Engineering)

"Evidence for Seafloor-Intensified Mixing by Surface-Generated Equatorial Waves," Geophysical Research Letters, Feb. 4, 2016, co-authored by Woods-affiliated Associate Professor of Earth System Science Leif Thomas (story)

"Toward a National Animal Telemetry Network for Aquatic Observations in the United States," Animal Biotelemtry, Feb. 3, 2016, co-authored by Senior Fellow Barbara Block (Biology)

"Quantifying Mercury Isotope Dynamics in Captive Pacific Bluefin Tuna (Thunnus orientalis)," Elementa, Feb. 2, 2016, co-authored by Senior Fellow Barbara Block (Biology)

"Characteristics of Bolus Formation and Propagation from Breaking Internal Waves on Shelf Slopes," Journal of Fluid Mechanics, February 2016, co-authored by Senior Fellow Jeffrey Koseff (Civil and Environmental Engineering)

"Wave Dynamics of a Pacific Atoll with High Frictional Effects," Journal of Geophysical Research, Jan. 11, 2016, co-authored by Senior Fellows Stephen Monismith (Civil and Environmental Engineering) and Rob Dunbar (Earth System Science)

New Option for Point-of-Collection Water Treatment

Research co-authored by Senior Fellows Jenna Davis (Civil and Environmental Engineering) and Stephen Luby (Medicine) and Research Associate Amy Pickering (Water, Health and Development) shows that a chlorinator that operates without electricity or moving parts kept chlorine and E. coli concentrations low in household stored drinking water.

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"Field Trial of an Automated Batch Chlorinator System at Shared Water Points in an Urban Community of Dhaka, Bangladesh," Journal of Water, Sanitation and Hygiene for Development, Feb. 6, 2016

Other Public Health Research

"Are Studies Underestimating the Effects of Sanitation on Child Nutrition? - Authors' Reply," The Lancet Global Health, Feb. 1, 2016, co-authored by Research Associate Amy Pickering (Water, Health and Development)

"Hand-to-Mouth Contacts Result in Greater Ingestion of Feces than Dietary Water Consumption in Tanzania: A Quantitative Fecal Exposure Assessment Model," Environmental Science & Technology, Jan. 5, 2016, co-authored by Senior Fellows Jenna Davis (Civil and Environmental Engineering) and Alexandria Boehm (Civil and Environmental Engineering)

The Power of Nature-Based Tourism

A visit to the Galapagos can foster a range of feelings, knowledge and sense of connection that relate to support for environmental conservation, according to a study co-authored by Center Fellow Nicole Ardoin (Education) and Senior Fellow William Durham (Anthropology). The research contributes to growing data on travel-related conservation and travel philanthropy.

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"Post-Trip Philanthropic Intentions of Nature-Based Tourists in Galapagos," Journal of Ecotourism, Feb. 15, 2016

Other Sustainable Development Research

"Looking Toward the Blue Sky: Environmental Education Researchers' Experience, Influences, and Aspirations," Applied Environmental Education and Communication, March 16, 2016, co-authored by Center Fellow Nicole Ardoin (Education)

"The Development of Trust in Residential Environmental Education Programs," Environmental Education Research, Feb. 17, 2016, co-authored by Center Fellow Nicole Ardoin (Education)

"Economic Value of Flexible Hydrogen-Based Polygeneration Energy Systems," Applied Energy, February 2016, co-authored by Woods-affiliated professor of accounting Stefan Reichelstein

"The U.S. Investment Tax Credit for Solar Energy: Alternatives to the Anticipated 2017 Step-Down," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, March 2016, co-authored by Woods-affiliated professor of accounting Stefan Reichelstein

The Stanford Woods Institute Research Digest is a quarterly report of findings by Woods fellows and affiliated faculty. Current and past issues are online.

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