Prescribed burns are important for land management and preventing wildfires, but a new study finds these managed fires are also significant contributors to air pollution in the southeastern United States – particularly in areas with large minority and low-income populations. The study also finds these air quality impacts could become more pronounced in the decades ahead as the effects of climate change become more pronounced.

Can artificial delegates—autonomous agents that make decisions on our behalf—help us reach better outcomes in situations where collective failure looms, such as climate change policymaking or the urgent response required during pandemics? A new behavioural experiment led by Professor Tom Lenaerts (VUB/ULB) sheds light on this pressing question. The findings are surprising: individuals who entrust their decisions to digital representatives tend to behave more generically pro-socially, but this does not automatically lead to better outcomes.

Wildfires pollute waterways and could affect their ability to sequester carbon, recent University of British Columbia research shows.

UBC researchers discuss how wildfires affect our waters, including increasing compounds like arsenic and lead  as well as nutrients such as nitrogen and phosphorus in the Fraser River, and what this means in a changing climate.