Special Report

Our Sustainable Future

A hub dedicated to the latest on how global change affects life on Earth today and on what solutions scientists, including those at the Smithsonian, are researching to build a more sustainable planet

Hiroshi Watanabe/Getty Images

Dairy farms like this one run by the Barstow family in Hadley, Massachusetts, make smart use of a substance cows produce in abundance.

How Dairy Farmers Are Turning Manure Into Money

Cacao growing on a tree at Zorzal Cacao, the first farm certified by Smithsonian's new Bird Friendly cocoa program.

AT THE SMITHSONIAN

Why Buying ‘Bird Friendly Cocoa’ Is a Sweet Deal

WATCH

What Does It Mean to Live on a Sustainable Planet?

Sustainability at the Smithsonian

Imama

Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute

Between Pasture and Forest: The Crusade to Protect the Jaguar in Panama

Head and shoulders photo of Denise Breitburg, a woman with glasses and shoulder-length gray hair, with forested mountains in the background.

Smithsonian Environmental Research Center

Wait, the Ocean Is Losing Oxygen? Q&A With Denise Breitburg

Mona Patterson

Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute

Centering Relationships Between People and Place: A Critical Step Towards Improving Science's Contributions to Society

National Museum of the American Indian

Connecting Community and Collections

Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute

Harnessing the Wisdom of Indigenous Communities for Marine Conservation

A swarm of yellow fish and silver fish with yellow tailfins swim around a coral reef

Smithsonian Environmental Research Center

Adult Fish Aren't Truly 'Protected' in Many Marine Protected Areas

Kristen Goodhue

American bison

Six Animals the Smithsonian Has Helped Save From Extinction

Ben Marcus

Sustainability News From Smithsonian Magazine

Crews even used purple glue while adhering the vulcanized rubber track to its asphalt base.

Why Is the Paris Olympics Running Track Purple?

Travelers can get rewarded for participating in sustainable activities.

Copenhagen Is Rewarding Tourists for Good Behavior

In order to build ships strong and technically savvy enough to traverse through some of the most remote and challenging landscapes on Earth, several cruise companies borrowed designs from other parts of the shipping industry.

How a New Line of Expedition Ships Is Turning the Tides on Polar Seas

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More Than 98 Percent of Costa Rica’s Energy Is Renewable—Here’s How

The Nesjavellir Geothermal Power Station. Geothermal power has long been popular in volcanic countries like Iceland, where hot water bubbles from the ground.

Is Geothermal Power Heating Up as an Energy Source?

Katarina Zimmer, Knowable Magazine

Climate Change News

A cyclist in Uttenweiler, Germany, rides toward the rising sun on July 21, 2024, which briefly held the title of the hottest day on record, until it was broken again one day later.

Earth Reached Its Hottest Day on Record Twice in a Row This Week

Established in 2019, Indiana Dunes National Park represents one of the most understated successes of 20th-century conservation—and the battle is far from over today.

Inside the Fight to Save the Indiana Dunes, One of America's Most Vulnerable National Parks

Locals and tourists gather in Venice on July 20, 2024.

Is Venice's Controversial Entry Fee Working?

The JOIDES Resolution in 2012 off the coast of Costa Rica, on an expedition to understand how earthquakes form

What Will Happen If This Iconic Research Vessel Stops Drilling in the Deep Sea?

A lesser flamingo feeds at Lake Bogoria, in Kenya.

How Will Climate Change Hurt Lesser Flamingos?

Joshua Rapp Learn

Firefighters work to contain the Lake Fire burning in Los Padres National Forest in California. More than 3,900 fires have spread across California this year.

California Faces a Brutal Wildfire Season, With More Land Burned to Date Than in Recent Years

Flaring, the burning of natural gas at an oil well, takes place on the Fort Berthold Indian Reservation. A large portion of Marathon Oil's emissions comes from flaring.

EPA Reaches $241 Million Settlement With Marathon Oil