ASU joins global research cohort to launch new center focused on society’s relationship with oceans

ASU and Conservation International join more than 20 other institutions around the world that will provide research and expertise to support Ocean Nexus Center’s four areas of focus: human rights and human security, ocean economy, food safety and sovereignty, and regional fisheries policy.

Professor Wim Vermaas and associate professors James Abbas and Cody Friesen join fellow NAI colleagues in the senior membership ranks who, along with their research accomplishments, have been successful in earning patents, acquiring licensing and commercializing technology they have developed.

The researchers used state-of-the-art modeling tools to analyze how three key variables — climate change, urban development and population change — would affect human exposure to extreme temperatures from the beginning of this century to its end.

According to a new study from ASU’s Global Locust Initiative scientists, they do it for the same reason humans do. Read the abstract of this new paper published Aug. 2 in the Journal of Animal Ecology.

An international team of scientists from 13 institutions, including researchers from the Arizona State University Center for Global Discovery and Conservation Science, has provided the first long-term comparison of aboveground carbon recovery rates between naturally regenerating and actively restored forests in Southeast Asia. The researchers found that restoration practices improved carbon storage recovery by more than 50% compared to natural regeneration.

Sustainability scientist Deirdre Pfeiffer explains the history of the AFFH, what she views as its strengths, her concerns about its repeal, and how local municipalities can continue making progress toward creating inclusionary and equitable neighborhoods despite the repeal.

“We need to fundamentally reassess what our systems need to be able to deliver, and under what conditions,” said sustainability scientist Mikhail Chester in an August 8 article in the Washington Post.

Convergence Lab/ASU in Mexico is hosting an online event with sustainability scientist Craig Calhoun, University Professor of Social Sciences, and Alexandra Zapata, a researcher, activist, and former deputy director of the prestigious think tank Instituto Mexicano para la Competitividad.

Sustainability scientist Gary Moore studies the fundamental science of energy conversion processes, including those required to use solar energy for producing fuels and other value-added chemical products. The research aims to unleash sustainable-chemistry and renewable-energy technologies that address global-scale demands.

Researchers from ASU’s Center for Global Discovery and Conservation Science and Hawaii Division of Aquatic Resources observed an alarming 45% decrease in fish biomass over a decade of surveys. The scientists proposed actionable solutions to mitigate future losses.

The center, called Ultra Materials for a Resilient, Smart Electricity Grid, or Ultra EFRC, is headed by Regents Professor of physics Robert Nemanich and Professor of electrical engineering Stephen M. Goodnick.

The new Zimin Institute for Smart and Sustainable Cities will help support applied research projects to drive a people-centric vision for the future of cities.