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Anthropocene

Dubai in the United Arab Emirates is one of the cities that could pass a heat and humidity threshold that would make outdoor conditions unlivable for humans.

Age of Humans

Killer Heat Is Expected in the Persian Gulf by the End of This Century

If no efforts are made to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, the Middle East may experience heat that is intolerable to humans

Eco-tourists snorkeling with fish in a Brazilian river

New Research

Does Ecotourism Hurt or Help?

When critters get used to tourists, they may be less aware of both predators and poachers

The black-footed ferret's tale of near-extinction is just one of many stories of endangered animals.

Age of Humans

How We Decide Which Animals Become Endangered

It wasn’t too long ago that the idea of “endangered animals” didn’t even exist.

By the time the Salt River reaches downtown Phoenix, it is a river in name only. Some scientists think that is why a non-native plant, the salt cedar, is thriving while native flora are suffering.

Age of Humans

How We Created a Monster In the American Southwest

The salt cedar is often seen as an un-killable invader. But are humans the real reason this unwanted plant is thriving?

Soldiers pose with bison heads captured from poacher Ed Howell. In the early days of Yellowstone, poaching, setting the park on fire and defacing its hot springs were rampant.

Age of Humans

How the U.S. Army Saved Our National Parks

Before the National Park Service, Yellowstone was guarded by the cavalry. Without them, we might not have national parks today

Age of Humans

See the Two Ship Graveyards That May Become New Marine Sanctuaries

The first marine sanctuaries approved by NOAA in 15 years are home to a plethora of shipwrecks

The wings of the Arctic fritillary butterfly have decreased in size since 1996.

Age of Humans

Greenland’s Butterflies Are Shrinking as Temperatures Rise

In the high Arctic, hotter summer weather may be taxing insect metabolism

Baby tree saplings, cloned from giant redwoods in California, chill out in the Archangel Ancient Tree Archive's propagation area.

Age of Humans

The Race to Save the World’s Great Trees By Cloning Them

A nonprofit dedicated to preserving old, iconic trees is cloning them in hopes of preserving them for the future

The Kirtland's warbler needs humans to cut and replant the trees it nests in. Without this work, the species' painstaking recovery from less than 1,000 males to over 2,000 could be erased.

Age of Humans

This Bird Didn’t Start the Fires, But It May Need Them to Survive

An endangered bird once threatened by humans now relies on us for its survival

The flat-tail horned lizard's desert habitats in the American West are changing rapidly, thanks to us humans.

Age of Humans

Even Desert Lizards Are Feeling the Heat Due to Climate Change

But Smithsonian scientists are probing the flat-tail horned lizard’s DNA to save the rare species

Edward Burtynsky, Oil Spill #10 Oil Slick at Rip Tide, Gulf of Mexico, June 24, 2010, chromogenic print

Age of Humans

This Stunning Contemporary Art Captures Terror, Wonder and Wit in the Anthropocene

Smithsonian art historian Joanna Marsh selects nine works that tell stories about life in the age of humans

Age of Humans

The Age of Humans: Living in the Anthropocene

A special look at the ways humans are transforming the planet and the projects that may shape a more sustainable future

Pope Francis addresses a joint session of Congress, the first leader of the Catholic Church ever to do so, in Washington, D.C. on September 24, 2015.

Age of Humans

Pope Francis Is Just the Latest to Bridge the Gap Between Religion and Culture

A Smithsonian curator offers a primer to the complex role of the world’s religions in meeting the challenges of global climate change

Queen bumblebee, Bombus balteatus, foraging for nectar on the alpine wildflower Polemonium viscosum.

New Research

Bee Tongues Are Getting Shorter as Temperatures Warm

In Colorado, alpine bumblebee tongues are shrinking in response to shifting wildflower populations

So far, nine states have tried to pass laws that encourage a "teach the controversy" approach to climate change.

Age of Humans

See Where Climate Science Conflict Has Invaded U.S. Classrooms

Conservative politicians are introducing bills that promote teaching climate science as controversial

Cities can be problems and solutions for environmental sustainability.

Age of Humans

Creating an Equation for Cities May Solve Ecological Conundrums

In this Generation Anthropocene podcast, scientists explore the ways urbanization might lead to a greener future

Age of Humans

Electric Fishing Puts a Rare Dolphin-Human Partnership at Risk

Illegal fishing practices are threatening traditional cooperation between humans and river dolphins in Burma

Reproduction of early English vessels at Jamestown, Virginia.

Age of Humans

Rising Seas Threaten to Swallow These Ten Global Wonders

Climate change-induced increases in sea level are forcing archaeologists and communities to get creative and make tough calls

Twins Ida and Irene practice swimming in a learn-to-swim program on Eydhafushi, an island in the Maldives.

Age of Humans

Third-Graders in the Maldives Discover the Beauty Beneath Their Seas

Many tourists have experienced the Maldives’ beauty. Most Maldivians haven’t, because they don’t know how to swim

Children at the Free School Under the Bridge, an outdoor, donation-supported school under a highway overpass, learn about not just reading and math, but climate change and the ozone layer.

Age of Humans

How India Is Teaching 300 Million Kids to Be Environmentalists

In an enormous undertaking, schoolchildren nationwide are learning about climate change and the environment

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