Institute at Brown for Environment and Society
Research without boundaries
From tracking wildlife in Yellowstone to studying solar justice worldwide, IBES researchers are breaking boundaries across a range of disciplines.
Research without boundaries
From tracking wildlife in Yellowstone to studying solar justice worldwide, IBES researchers are breaking boundaries across a range of disciplines.
IBES produces research that bridges disciplines and inspires action
Here's a sampling of recent research coverage:
Core faculty research highlights
Researchers found differences in how respiratory syncytial virus spreads among children in rural versus urban communities and concluded that year-round immunizations would minimize risks of large seasonal outbreaks.
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In Tyler Kartzinel’s Genomic Opportunities Lab, students and scientists work hand-in-hand with global partners to solve urgent conservation challenges, from restoring habitats to understanding what keeps wildlife healthy.
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News from IBES
Brown Climate Study Named Finalist for PNAS Cozzarelli Prize
Professor Dov Sax and fellow researchers received recognition for their IBES-supported study challenging traditional forecasting methods for the impacts of climate change on species.
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Affiliate faculty research highlights
IBES Fellow Baylor Fox-Kemper is the leading Brown faculty member involved in SIMCoast, an NSF initiative to track how microplastics move from land to sea and explore what this means for ecosystems, climate, and communities.
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A new study reveals how woodpeckers combine breathing and whole-body coordination to drill into trees with extraordinary force.
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The Sustainable Education Research Initiative will build collaborations between scholars, policymakers and practitioners to generate insights that inform Pre-K-12 education policy and practice.
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A research trip to a biodiversity hotspot in the Gulf of Maine underscores the importance of continued monitoring of marine ecosystems.
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Researchers showed that hydrogen sulfide, which is associated with numerous health conditions, is emitted from California’s largest lake at levels far higher and more frequently than previously reported.
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Published Works
IBES faculty produced dozens of peer-reviewed papers this year, advancing research in climate modeling, biodiversity conservation, environmental governance, and sustainability education.
Frontiers in Bird Science
Fire-crested alethes (Alethe castanea) follow humans and bushbuck in Uganda’s Budongo Forest
This report, authored by IBES Voss Postdoc Elodie Freymann, documents a novel foraging behavior in fire-crested alethes in the Budongo Forest Reserve of Western Uganda.
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Geneva Centre for Security Policy
Algorithmic North: Weather, Security and International Law
Professor Amanda Lynch co-authored this policy brief.
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This paper, co-authored by Assistant Professor Daniel Ibarra, supports the hypothesis of a negative feedback that limits atmospheric carbon dioxide decline during glacial periods.
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Trends in Ecology & Evolution
‘Earth system engineers’ and the cumulative impact of organisms in deep time
Assistant Professor Daniel Ibarra is co-author of this study, which provides a new framework for examining how organisms have fundamentally altered ecosystems on a global scale across hundreds, thousands, or millions of years.
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This study, co-authored by IBES and Biology Associate Professor Tyler Kartzinel, reveals that diamondback terrapins face heightened risks at the northern edge of their range in New England as their genetic diversity declines.
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Jennifer Hadden, an IBES affiliate at the Watson School for International and Public Affairs, co-penned this commentary, which notes that "the current U.S. housing policy regime creates tradeoffs between promoting equity and addressing climate risk."
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IBES core faculty member serves as lead editor of new open-access volume on climate obstruction
Edited by J. Timmons Roberts, Carlos R. S. Milani, Jennifer Jacquet, and Christian Downie, “Climate Obstruction: A Global Assessment” mobilizes nearly 100 scholars to document how organized interests—from fossil fuels and utilities to agribusiness and PR—impede climate policy. The book also analyzes the rise of regulation, litigation, and civil society movements worldwide to counter obstruction, offering pathways for more effective action.
IBES supports bold projects with meaningful community impact
IBES continues to lead transformative, solutions-focused climate research through major new initiatives, cross-disciplinary programs, and community-engaged projects.
News from IBES
IBES announces 2025 Catalyst Research Awardees
IBES awarded grants to six core and affiliate faculty members, allowing them to conduct research that crosses boundaries and benefits communities, both at Brown and around the world.
News from IBES
Research, Training, Travel: How IBES supports graduate scholars
For the past decade, IBES’ Research, Training, and Travel (RTT) Awards have empowered graduate students working in units across Brown University to advance environmental research while building skills beyond campus.
IBES expands Brown’s capacity for pursuing equitable climate research
IBES serves as the lead partner for Brown's Equitable Climate Futures (ECF) Initiative.
Equitable Climate Futures launched first four working groups
Through its four new working groups, Equitable Climate Futures (ECF) is bringing researchers, policymakers, and community leaders together to co-create just and practical responses to climate change in Rhode Island.
ECF also held its first conference, entitled “Seeding Collaborative Action,” on December 3. Scholars, researchers, students, and community partners gathered for a day of shared inquiry and networking, exploring how interdisciplinary and transdisciplinary research can drive meaningful, equitable climate solutions.
3CRS: Researchers collaborate with waterfront communities to build climate resilience
Through the multi-institutional New England Community-Driven Coastal Climate Research and Solutions Hub (3CRS) based at Brown, IBES researchers and partners support working waterfront communities in Rhode Island and Maine in understanding and responding to hyper-local coastal climate hazards.
In 2025, intercept interviews in with coastal residents and fishermen surfaced day-to-day experiences, values, and “sense of place” insights to inform place-based coastal management that aligns with local priorities.
IBES faculty provide mentorships in the Voss program
IBES’ Voss Fellowship programs for postdocs and undergraduates continue to fund independent, faculty-mentored research across disciplines. Voss Undergraduate Fellows pursue yearlong projects that build skills in communication, leadership, and collaboration, while Voss Postdoctoral Fellows bring fresh perspectives and advanced expertise that strengthen IBES’ interdisciplinary research community.
Gatesi, an Engineering Physics and ENVS concentrator, is researching “the most promising alternative” to standard lithium ion batteries by manipulating Lithium Lanthanum Zirconium Tantalum Oxide (LLZTO) to be more sustainable.
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News from IBES
IBES Voss Fellows bring climate research to the community
Members of the 2025-2026 Voss Undergraduate Fellowship cohort have shared their research with local audiences through the Conversations in Science series at Providence’s Hamilton House.
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Ten years of research projects, countless ideas, one shared mission: to build a sustainable future.
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Urban Studies and Mathematics concentrator Rafael Ash ’26 is investigating how communities in Jakarta, Indonesia, and Warren, Rhode Island, adapt to their rapidly changing environments through democratic planning, local partnerships, and managed retreat strategies.
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Yajima explores how farming and development are reshaping toad breeding patterns, uncovering key insights into the broader impact on natural habitats.
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Siddapureddy, a senior concentrating in ecology, explores the impact of invasive trees to understand climate change.
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