Energy & Environment

UC Merced Aerial Picture
New Climate-focused Agriculture Program Aims to Train Students, Professionals and Farmers
January 18, 2022
California is the largest and the most diverse agricultural economy in the nation with revenue exceeding $50 billion — larger than the combined agricultural economies of the other 10 western states.   But the state and its residents,... Read More
Faculty Report IDs Top Climate Challenges Facing Valley
January 11, 2022
California’s Central Valley is on the front lines of climate change. The Fourth Regional Climate Change Assessment, by a team of UC Merced and affiliated researchers, illustrates the biggest problems — and possible solutions — facing... Read More
New NSF Grant to support Asian American and Pacific Islander students in Geoscience
December 13, 2021
A team of eight scientists from around the country is organizing a new project to foster belonging and participation among Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) students in the geosciences, supported by the National Science Foundation... Read More
Microorganisms Consume Last Bits of Oxygen from Low-oxygen Ocean Zones, Study Shows
December 6, 2021
Even the tiniest organisms have a surprisingly huge effect on life in the oceans, eating up the last bits of oxygen in certain areas, preventing larger marine life from surviving there, a new study shows. Department of Life and... Read More
Kurtz’s Latest Publication Examines Renewable Energy Expansion
December 6, 2021
Finding creative solutions to lessen humans’ impact on the environment and reduce reliance on fossil fuels is a core tenet of the renewable energy field, something engineering Professor Sarah Kurtz specializes in. In her most recent paper... Read More
Winston Cone Optics' Innovative Technology Garners State, National Attention
November 22, 2021
When people hear the word “solar,” many think of solar panels on a house, which generate electricity. But there is another way to use energy harnessed by the sun: heat. Founding faculty member and Director of the University of California... Read More
Study Shows Climate-Driven Forest Fires on the Rise
November 17, 2021
An upside of the increase in forest fires in the West is that they reduce the amount of fuel available for other burns. That might provide a buffering effect on western fires for the next few decades, but the threat of climate-driven... Read More
Researchers to Study, Report on Impacts of Drought on Agriculture and Communities
November 16, 2021
Just because there has been rain lately doesn’t mean California is drought-free. A new $1.5 million research grant from the California Department of Food and Agriculture is supporting School of Engineering Professor Josué Medellín-Azuara... Read More
Researchers to Study, Report on Impacts of Drought on Agricultural Communities
November 16, 2021
Just because there has been rain lately doesn’t mean California is drought-free. A new $1.5 million research grant from the California Department of Food and Agriculture is supporting School of Engineering Professor Josué Medellín-Azuara... Read More
Keske Publication Shows Central Valley Ripe for Biochar Studies
November 10, 2021
Central Valley natives are accustomed to seeing plumes of smoke from burning tree piles after harvest. This is the traditional way farmers dispose of crop waste, such as trees, nut shells and pruned vines. But there may be a better way to... Read More