The most recent report from the UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change released earlier this year issued a dire warning about the growing threats posed to people and ecosystems if urgent — if not immediate — action is not taken on climate change. But the report also outlined where mitigation — particularly in urban areas — could provide hope for meaningful climate action.
As heat waves turn cities into sweltering ovens, tree shade has become a critical tool to mitigate climate change—and Yale is working to promote a healthy tree canopy on campus and around New Haven.
Urban trees provide a host of benefits that blunt the effects of climate change, and they are increasingly being treated as important infrastructure for cities. Trees sequester carbon dioxide, produce oxygen, reduce stormwater runoff by utilizing water before it’s channeled into a drainage system, and capture pollution particulates—especially ozone—through their leaves or needles.
Note: Yale School of the Environment (YSE) was formerly known as the Yale School of Forestry & Environmental Studies (F&ES). News articles and events posted prior to July 1, 2020 refer to the School’s name at that time.
A new Yale-led study published in the journal Nature Communications sheds light on the surprising role that haze in China plays in promoting the urban heat island effect [UHI], a process whereby city centers tend to be significantly warmer than surrounding rural areas.
