What is an Earthship? At the corner of 41st Street and Lancaster Avenue in West Philadelphia, Rashida Ali-Campbell is pioneering the world’s first urban Earthship. An Earthship is a type of sustainable housing structure first developed in Taos New Mexico by architect Michael Reynolds. The autonomous, off-grid house takes care of human’s six basic needs […]
Climate Solutions
Fossil fuel divestment around the world and in the heart of Texas
As global greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions threaten the world with irreversible climate collapse, activists around the United States and the world have turned to fossil fuel divestment as a major strategy to stop fossil fuel extraction. Experts agree that global warming is caused by humans burning fossil fuels and that it will continue to accelerate […]
‘Global village’: Indigenous nations’ fight to protect Amazon rainforest is pivotal to global public health
Last year, global attention briefly coalesced around fires ravaging the Amazon Rainforest. As the novel coronavirus, COVID-19, continues to affect the whole world, Branch Out reported in the past weeks that deforestation is the leading cause of new infectious diseases. In addition to threatening global public health, deforestation threatens the very existence of the Indigenous […]
Coronavirus and the Climate: A Singular Crisis
Introduction The ongoing pandemic of the novel coronavirus – COVID-19 – is already affecting all our lives. While the full extent of its spread and resultant mortality is yet to be seen, there is no doubt that in terms of media coverage, social dynamics, economic consequences and government reaction, something unprecedented is happening. Far from […]
Playing with fire: the vicious cycle of deforestation
Global Burning This past August, a significant segment of world leaders attended the G7 Summit in Biarritz, France. The United States skipped out on the climate change discussion, where leaders turned their attention to forest fires, an often overlooked aspect of the climate crisis. Wildfires in the Amazon rainforest increased by an estimated 84% from […]
Planting the Seeds of Hope
At the root of the climate crisis is the fundamental problem of humanity’s alienation from nature. Accordingly, one of the most radical, bold, and transformative actions we can take is both natural and straightforward: planting trees en masse in order to regenerate and strengthen our local ecosystems and sequester tremendous amounts of carbon dioxide […]
How you can fight climate change with carbon sequestration
In 2018, each of us has been told by now to lower our carbon footprint. Taking public transportation instead of driving, saving electricity by turning off lights and devices, and eating less meat are common ways to reduce the number of greenhouse gases we are responsible for. These are all good practices but we can […]
The human lessons to learn from redwood ecology
Traveling along the Pacific Coast of the United States, it is impossible not to marvel at the enormity of coastal redwoods, known scientifically as Sequoia sempervirens. Redwoods shoot up to more than 320 feet high, and some are estimated to have lived about 2,500 years. These skyscrapers from nature hold secrets in their biology and ecology […]
Planting Redwoods for Carbon Sequestration
Introduction Two hundred years ago, there were at least ten times as many redwoods living in the Bay Area as there are today. These trees play a vital role in their ecosystems, providing numerous benefits for local plants and animals while removing massive amounts of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere [1]. Greenhouse gas levels and […]