Voss Fellow Marina Benson and Professor Daniel Ibarra evaluate how seagrasses and macroalgae can remove anthropogenic metal pollution from estuarine systems while limiting transfer to higher trophic levels.
Institute at Brown for Environment and Society
News Archive
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Driven by student curiosity and emerging areas of study, new offerings in Environmental Sciences and Studies invite Brown students to explore pressing environmental challenges through fresh perspectives and approaches.
Through his Kenya-based startup EarthAcre, Sikand is building digital tools that help communities get paid for protecting nature. He shares the inspiration behind his business, how his Brown education influenced his path, and advice for students exploring environmental careers.
This article on reactions to Rhode Island's odor regulations mentions the IBES-based Breathe Providence project and affiliate Kate Schapira.
November 6, 2026
From the Division of Research
2026 Research Innovation Awards: Phase II recipients announced
Seven research teams receive funding to scale high-impact interdisciplinary projects.
Yale Climate Connections
Oil companies spent over $2 million on Meta ads in the lead-up to the midterms
According to research by IBES Visiting Professor Robert Brulle, the world’s five biggest oil companies spent over $3.6 billion on advertisements alone between 1986 and 2015.
News from IBES
WATCH | Can film and TV inspire climate action?
In a recent IBES seminar, behavioral scientist Anirudh Tiwathia explored how film and television can influence social norms, shift attitudes, and inspire meaningful climate action.
From archival work in Brown’s John Hay Library to interviews at Camp John Hay in the Philippines, Theodoropoulos is tracing the University’s complicated impact on the cultural and environmental landscape of the Philippines’ Cordillera region.
Brown students, families, and faculty packed Carmichael Auditorium for a discussion of AI's environmental footprint, its potential to advance climate solutions, and the choices shaping its future.
A study coauthored by Voss postdoctoral fellow Elodie Freymann ’18 sheds light on how African elephants deliberately find and use medicinal plants.
Ocean State Media
Possibly Podcast: Why are there metals in our river water?
IBES and DEEPS Assistant Professor Daniel Ibarra, whose lab runs the Urban Water Pollution Project, discussed heavy metal pollution in waterways and soil.
Visiting Professor of Environment and Society Robert Brulle commented on fossil fuel dependence.
Adjunct IBES Professor Rebecca Altman offered commentary on the impacts of fossil fuel exposure.
The Brown Daily Herald
Climate@Brown engages faculty in climate strategy planning in town halls
IBES Director Kim Cobb, chair of the new Climate@Brown initiative, offered commentary for this article, alongside IBES professor Stephen Porder and affiliate faculty member Kyle Denison Martin.
The New York Times
Germophobe primates want to avoid getting sick, too
IBES Voss Postdoc Elodie Freymann offered commentary for this article about monkeys becoming significantly more cautious of food sources.
The Blue Book
Education in the age of climate change
IBES affiliate Matthew Kraft, a Professor of Education and Economics at Brown, penned this article about the importance of climate education.
Across seven projects, IBES faculty researchers are taking environmental research beyond campus and into the field, working alongside communities while opening new doors for undergraduates to participate.
October 8, 2026
Swearer Center
Meredith Hastings named Swearer Center Faculty Fellow
The Brown professor and community-engaged researcher will help advance university-wide efforts to strengthen support for community-engaged scholarship.
News from IBES
IBES joins the conversation at Climate Week NYC
IBES faculty, researchers and alumni played important roles at this year’s Climate Week NYC (September 19-26), offering their expertise on climate obstruction, extreme weather events and public health.
Jeff Colgan, an IBES affiliate, professor at the Watson School, and director of Brown's Climate Solutions Lab, offered commentary for this article, noting “the national security advantages of clean technologies like EVs, batteries, and renewable energy.”
Scientific American
2026 has been a record hot year for the U.S.—it can only get worse
IBES Director Kim Cobb offered commentary about record-breaking heat in 2026 and projections for 2027.
University of Washington Press Blog
Bathsheba Demuth Joins Weyerhaeuser Environmental Books at UW Press as Series Editor
Associate Professor of History & Environment and Society Bathsheba Demuth succeeds Paul S. Sutter, who led the Weyerhaeuser Environmental Books series since 2014.
The Brown Daily Herald
R.I. files two lawsuits challenging changes in Endangered Species Act implementation
IBES faculty members Tyler Kartzinel and Dov Sax offered insights into the greatest threats to endangered species.
This story features commentary from IBES affiliate Jeff Colgan, a professor at the Watson School, and cites data from his Climate Solutions Lab.
A recent study by IBES' Climate and Development Lab study provided new insights on the legal battle over climate superfund legislation. CDL researcher Trevor Culhane provided commentary.
Robert Brulle, a visiting professor of environment and society, offered commentary on the federal government’s strategy for bringing colleges into closer alignment with conservative principles.
Johnson’s research could guide the development of sustainable plastics—and a more sustainable future.
IBES affiliate Ankur Shah, an associate professor of medicine, provided commentary about how climate change is driving demand for kidney-related treatment, and how that treatment could in turn affect the environment.
This article covers research conducted by Voss Postdoc Elodie Freymann.
Nature Communications
Model-data synthesis of benthic isotopes suggests a warmer Miocene Climatic Optimum
IBES affiliate Timothy Herbert, a professor in the Department of Earth, Environmental, and Planetary Sciences, contributed to this research.
Nature Scientific Reports
African elephants putatively self-medicate with medicinal plants in the Mount Elgon region, Kenya
Voss Postdoc Elodie Freymann is among the lead researchers on a study that found African elephants use dozens of different medicinal plants to treat themselves and their families when they are sick.
Voss Postdoc Elodie Freymann is among the lead researchers of a new study, which found that African elephants use dozens of different medicinal plants to treat themselves and their families when they're sick.
Sierra Magazine
Corals Face an Existential Threat as the Super El Niño Heats Up
This article features the research of IBES affiliate Jon Witman, professor emeritus in ecology, evolution, and organismal biology.
This article features research and commentary from IBES affiliate Jeff Colgan, director of Brown's Climate Solutions Lab and a professor at the Watson School.
This article features the research and training conducted by Associate Professor Tyler Kartzinel's Genomic Opportunities Lab.
This episode of PNAS's Science Sessions Podcast features the research of IBES faculty affiliate Matthew Kraft, Professor of Education and Economics and Director of the Sustainable Education Research Initiative.
A record 36 Brown students spent the summer working with organizations across the U.S. and around the world, exploring diverse career paths in climate, sustainability, and the environment.
Knowable Magazine
NASA’s TEMPO satellite enables better monitoring of bad air days
Associate Professor Allan Just offered commentary about how new technology can inform accurate epidemiologic health models and recommendations for communities exposed to pollution.
The Wall Street Journal
Americans Have Spent $100 Billion More on Fuel During the Iran War
This article focuses on research from Brown's Climate Solutions Lab, led by faculty affiliate Jeff Colgan at the Watson School of International and Public Affairs.
Brown University
Using geology to predict climate change with Prof. Daniel Ibarra
In this video, Brown professor Daniel Ibarra collects and analyzes geologic materials from around the world to reconstruct past changes in the water cycle and make predictions about climate change.
Rhode Island Voices: A Podcast for the RI Life Index
Green Space & Climate Change
IBES and Epidemiology Associate Professor Allan Just explored how climate change and access to green space are shaping health and well-being across Rhode Island.
September 14, 2026
News from Brown
Study: Young military veterans have higher ‘forever chemical’ levels than non-veterans
A study led by Brown University researchers provides evidence that younger military veterans should consider getting screened for elevated PFAS levels and related health conditions.
This episode of NPR's science podcast, Short Wave, features insights from IBES Voss Postdoc Elodie Freymann, a primatologist who studies self-medication in chimpanzees.
IBES Director Kim Cobb offered commentary for this article, describing how El Niño functions and potential impacts.
September 8, 2026
News from Brown
At 263rd Convocation, Brown’s new students are encouraged to embrace humility, ask questions
As Brown officially commenced its 2026-27 academic year, University leaders urged nearly 3,300 new students to be curious, courageous and embrace the unique opportunities of a Brown education.
Brown Alumni Magazine
Politics of oil
Jeff Colgan is an IBES affiliate, professor at the Watson School, and director of Brown's Climate Solutions Lab. He discussed CSL's Iran War Energy Cost Tracker, which documents what the war is costing American consumers based on the extra expense of gasoline and diesel.
Brown Alumni Magazine
A sea star named pop tart
Jennifer Adler '11, who taught IBES' Science Journalism class last year, wrote this article about how sea stars can help reforest the ocean.
IBES Professor Stephen Porder penned this opinion piece, assessing the costs and benefits of clearing trees to make room for solar panels.
Brown Alumni Magazine
The Godfather of Surfonomics
Chad Nelsen ’92, CEO of the Surfrider Foundation, has spent more than a decade showing how protecting the ocean can also protect the economy.
Oregon Capital Chronicle
Oil lobby tanking climate Superfund bills in Oregon, 11 states despite public support, study finds
This story reports on research from IBES' Climate and Development Lab, led by Professor Timmons Roberts, that found activists and lobbyists used debunked claims to fight climate Superfund bills.