Research articles

International shipping is a major emitter of greenhouse gases, but quantifying responsibilities has been difficult. This study uses satellite-observed data on vessels to determine the emissions from and subsequent health impacts of US–China bilateral trade of goods.

Governance is one of the critical components for sustainability, but quantification within scenarios and projections of future socioeconomic development has been lacking. This analysis of various pathways looks at how best to overcome ‘weak’ governance and strengthen adaptive capacity.

Based on assessments of the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform for Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services, key research priorities are identified and contrasted with the SDGs and the Millennium Ecosystem Assessment.

Sustainable processes for the synthesis of new clinical candidates is a priority in pharmaceutical manufacturing. This study presents a web application to predict the likely efficiencies of proposed synthetic routes before their evaluation in the laboratory.

A study of over 250,000 pregnant women in Beijing, China, finds that missed abortion is associated with the concentration of four major air pollutants. The association is not linear but becomes stronger with higher concentrations.

Social responses to changes can trigger further crises. This study uses historical data and finds society’s failures to respond to climate change in China’s Hexi Corridor amplified problems.

Reducing agriculture’s impacts while increasing outputs is challenging. This study, of an Indian smallholder system, shows that microsatellite data can detect yield gains from a low-cost fertilizer intervention.

A global study of fishing near Exclusive Economic Zone boundaries shows that these property rights indeed deter unauthorized fishing.

Carbon taxes can increase the cost of basic goods. This modelling study finds that using one-third of carbon tax revenues for cash transfers to the poor can compensate such regressive impacts.

Wide adoption of electric vehicles can contribute to mitigate climate change and air pollution. Here the authors develop various fleet electrification scenarios in China to evaluate the associated air quality and health impacts to inform sound policies.

Diffusion of renewable energy technologies can be constrained by alternative land uses. Here the authors propose the idea of ‘aglectric’ farming and show with modelling how to use agricultural land sustainably for food and energy co-production.

Seafood farming in the ocean has developed over decades following innovation diffusion S-shaped curves. Some countries have underdeveloped potential and, in others, current overproduction can become more sustainable.

This study explores the patterns and speed of diffusion and adoption of 22 area-based conservation initiatives worldwide. Most have limited uptake, and some take a long time before they are widely adopted.

Updated forest inventories are critical for policymaking. This study presents an approach to map coordinated top-down European forest management strategies that spatially weighs the multifunctionality of European forests. Such an approach should help identify pathways to manage forests sustainably.

A scenario simulation to tackle hunger globally reveals that improving food availability for the under-nourished through better distribution has a better environmental performance than increasing overall food availability.

Renewable energy costs have declined in the past but things could change with increasing interest rates. This study shows that in Germany, if interest rates increased to pre-financial crisis levels in 5 years, the levelized cost of solar photovoltaics and onshore wind could rise by 11 and 25%, respectively.

Toxic heavy metal ions need to be removed from drinking water to protect public health. In this article, the authors demonstrated pressure-free removal of positively and negatively charged heavy metal ions from water using 2D MXene-based films.

Agrivoltaics can achieve synergistic benefits by growing agricultural plants under raised solar panels. In this article, the authors showed that growth under solar panels reduced tomato and pepper drought stress and increased production, while simultaneously reducing photovoltaic panel heat stress.

Public understandings of how economic, environmental and social aspects relate in the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) varies. A large-sample study finds how some emphasize the trade-offs between them, and others view that the SDGs address all aspects simultaneously.

While renewable energy has often included hydropower, dams present their own environmental harms. This Analysis not only projects how much land would be needed for solar power to replace US hydropower, but also provides a model for further analyses in other countries.