Sustainability Matters

Here's to another year enabling better lives through sustainability

Thank you for being part of the world's most innovative sustainability laboratory and supporting our effort to advance solutions, engagement, education, research and the U.N. Sustainability Development Goals – both around the world and beyond. All of us at the ASU Wrigley Institute and School of Sustainability wish you and yours a happy holiday season and prosperous 2018.

New ASU center to offer nation’s first degree in Sustainable Food Systems

With the aim of finding better solutions to today's food-related challenges, Kelly and Brian Swette have made a major gift to establish the Swette Center for Sustainable Food Systems in ASU's School of Sustainability, which will offer the nation's first degree on the subject.

Supporting science to sustain our planet

In a December 2017 interview with Juli Staiano – Chief Philanthropy Officer for the American Association for the Advancement of Science – ASU Wrigley Institute board member Robert Litterman gave his reasons for giving back to the field.

British diplomat examines US stance on climate change

On the heels of the One Planet summit, Distinguished Sustainability Fellow Sir Crispin Tickell tells ASU Now that political leadership and clear communication of consequences are key ingredients in the remedy to climate change denial in the United States.

Smithsonian exhibit to bring new understanding of water to Arizona

ASU's Walton Sustainability Solutions Initiatives is among the groups working to expand research and resources for Water/Ways, a Smithsonian exhibit traveling to 12 rural Arizona communities in 2018 to spark conversations about our relationship with water.

Meeting purchasing needs the sustainable way

To help organizations interested in eco-friendly purchasing, ASU's Sustainable Purchasing Research Initiative is partnering with the EPA on a website geared toward servicizing – an approach that charges customers for the function of a product rather than the product itself.

A savvy solution to Mekong River's hydropower dilemma

To help countries surrounding the Mekong enjoy the clean energy benefits of hydropower without disruption to their food supply or livelihoods, Senior Sustainability Scientist John Sabo and his collaborators developed an algorithm for proper dam management.

Sharing is not only caring, it's how we thrive

Small acts of kindness – something as simple as lending a neighbor a cup of sugar – not only bind us together, but are critical to our survival as a species, according to anthropologist and Senior Sustainability Scientist Amber Wutich in her November 2017 KEDtalk.

Shrinking ozone hole a beacon of hope for climate change reversal

Satellite measurements indicate that the ozone hole is about 1 million miles smaller than a year ago – a positive trend that "suggests that we can achieve the solution to a large global environmental problem," according to Senior Sustainability Scientist Kevin Gurney.

US still part of the Paris agreement, for now

"If the United States wants to pull out of the accord, it will have to file this in writing in November 2019,” explains School of Sustainability Professor Sonja Klinsky, who told ASU Now that our country's willingness to cooperate may affect its ability to promote its interests.