Analyses

A global analysis of income inequality and flood disasters in middle- and high-income countries between 1990 and 2018 shows that unequal countries tend to suffer higher flood fatalities.

School buses provide crucial transport for millions of children across the United States, but this analysis finds that the diesel exhaust from older buses is impacting their health and that updating the bus fleet nationwide could lead to 1.3 million additional student days of attendance.

Global initiatives to expand protected areas focus on controlling ‘above ground’ impacts such as land use, overlooking the potential human impacts on protected areas through groundwater flow. This study analyses the potential extent of these impacts by mapping groundwatersheds.

Despite the increasing importance of local and regional research for conservation efforts worldwide, research published in languages other than English is routinely ignored by global assessments. This study examines how such research is used and cited at national levels even though it is overlooked internationally

Solutions that can support multiple sustainability goals related to clean energy, and resource use efficiency, will be crucial in the near future. The study estimates the potential of floating solar panels on reservoirs globally to generate renewable energy, reduce water losses and conserve land.

The sustainability of the net-zero circular strategies of plastics has not been previously examined on a planetary scale. Linking a bottom-up model for the production and end-of-life treatment of plastics to the planetary boundaries framework, this study shows the need to scale up recycling and reconsider how we produce and use plastics.

The military actions in the conflict between Ukraine and Russia have far-reaching environmental consequences, especially with regard to water management. A study presents data showing the severe impacts on water resources, sanitation and infrastructure during the first three months of the war.

Biodiversity conservation is critical for promoting ecosystem services and human well-being, but current conservation efforts fail to protect most high priority zones. A mix of land-sparing and land-sharing is needed to safeguard critical ecosystems in India and across the Global South.

Nature-based solutions for climate adaptation are not comprehensively addressing the climate–biodiversity–society nexus, limiting their capacity to promote urban transformation. However, notable transformative examples of urban nature-based solutions do exist, especially in the Global South.

The global economy delivers benefits but affects the environment. A study finds that over the period 1995–2019 the environmental pressures and impacts of EU consumption of goods and services were outsourced to non-EU countries, while the benefits stayed within the EU but were not evenly distributed.

The impacts of air pollution on mental health have been previously documented but rarely using nationwide large-scale data. This study investigates the short-term and long-term impacts of air pollution on urbanites’ mental health by leveraging national real-time internet search data in China.

Access to clean cooking is a critical issue in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). An open-source spatial tool comparing the relative potential of different cookstoves on the basis of their costs and benefits is developed and applied to SSA and shows the potential to increase the effectiveness of targeted interventions.

Dairy manure spread on crop fields leads to air and water pollution that could be mitigated through manure processing systems that capture methane to produce electricity. A recent US policy opening wholesale electricity markets to distributed energy resource systems, creates incentives to deploy manure processing systems.

Ensuring a net-zero emissions future requires decarbonizing the steel sector. This study shows that net-zero-emission production of steel is possible, but this would only be possible in limited quantities for steels of certain quality if current downcycling practices continue.

Human diets exert a range of pressures on the environment. This study, using a sample of French adults, finds that the processing and packaging behind diets rich in ultra-processed foods create pressures involving energy use in particular.

Transitioning the global energy system to renewables will likely expand energy transition minerals and metals (ETMs) projects to sensitive territories. Across 5,097 projects globally, greater than half of the ETM resource base appears to be located on or near the lands of Indigenous and peasant peoples whose rights to consultation are embedded in United Nations declarations.

Progress towards global targets for clean water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) is advanced through evidence-informed decision-making. This study finds that the data from the only global school WASH database published by the Joint Monitoring Programme are amenable to statistical analysis but cannot yet support rigorous quantitative research.

The environmental implications of meeting the needs of the poorest are under debate. By showing substantial inequalities in natural resource claims and responsibility for ecological damage globally, this study estimates and discusses the impacts of achieving just access on the Earth system.

Electronic waste can harm the environment when not properly disposed of, but as a source of valuable materials, it could benefit the economy with adequate end-of-life management. This study shows the scale of the problem and assesses the potential of diverse management solutions across the United States.

Soil erosion is driven by multiple natural processes, which may occur concurrently and exacerbate the threat to soil functioning of arable land. Accurate accounting of the drivers and location of soil erosion is needed to guide monitoring and mitigation efforts across the European Union.