On February 8, 1965, President Lyndon B. Johnson inadvertently made history—but not the kind that would be noted in textbooks. “Air pollution is no longer confined to isolated places,” President Johnson said in a Special Message to Congress on Conservation and Restoration of Natural...

Microplastics, plastic particles smaller than 5 millimeters, can be found in land, air, and water, and have infiltrated our food chain, resulting in far-reaching health consequences for humans and nonhumans alike. In 2020, scientists discovered the “highest level of microplastic ever recorded on the...

The need to protect populations from environmental harm or contamination is not new. Whenever human welfare was imperiled, those in power within most ancient civilizations passed laws to address these issues. ...

Consciousness, at its basic level, is an individual’s self-awareness, comprising both external and internal phenomena; it may constitute any kind of cognition, experience, feeling, or perception. Awareness can be a continuously changing continuum, or it may shut down or be...

For millennia, horses have shaped human civilization. From the chariots of Ancient Egypt and Rome to the gilded ceremonial carriages of India and Japan, these gentle, easily trained animals symbolized power, artistry, and ingenuity. In cities from the grand boulevards of Paris to the bustling...

The night sky—the silent dark between stars—is a living commons bridging Earth, life, and spirit. As the 13th‑century Zen master Eihei Dōgen taught in Keisei Sanshoku or “The Sound of the Streams, the Shape of the Mountains,” rivers, forests, mountains, and night are not...

The “polluter pays” principle is a cornerstone of environmental regulation. It raises billions of dollars each year and has been fundamental in pushing energy companies to pursue cleaner, more cost-effective energy sources. But when it was first formalized in 1972 by the Organization for...

In the spring of 2023, we returned to Península Valdés, a rugged coastal region in Argentine Patagonia, expecting to witness the familiar sights and sounds of southern elephant seals during their breeding season. These massive marine mammals, with males weighing up to 4,000 kilograms, gather...

In July 2025, the International Court of Justice held its first hearings on states’ climate responsibilities in decades. A lead judge described climate change as an “urgent and existential threat,” acknowledging that future generations are central to the crisis. Yet the hearings failed...

On February 26, 1852, the HMS Birkenhead struck a cluster of rocks off the coast of South Africa. With only a few lifeboats for the 638 people aboard, Captain Robert Salmond ordered the women and children to board first while the men stayed behind,...