Maxwell Bernstein | April 9, 2021
A poll from Gallup found that half of Americans prioritize the environment over economic growth, a number that has decreased from the two-thirds of Americans that took prioritized the environment two years ago. Around 42% of Americans believe that strengthening the U.S. economy should be the greatest priority.
The current attitudes match with the U.S. unemployment rate of 6%. Gallup found that when the unemployment rate is below 6%, the majority of Americans support the environment over economic growth, and the highest support occurred when the unemployment was at 5%.
“While slightly more U.S. adults today prioritize the environment over economic growth, the 50% doing so is down from 60% in early 2020 (largely before the pandemic was declared) and 65% in 2019, and is the lowest recorded since 2015, when 46% held this view,” Gallup said.
Maxwell Bernstein | April 7, 2021
Climate change will increase the damage from drought, flooding, air pollution, and toxic algae in the Midwest and also, the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration has found that the number of storms causing $1 billion or more are increasing Peter Thorne, the head of the University of Iowa’s Department of Occupational and Environmental Health, said in an interview with the Iowa Capital Dispatch.
As the climate changes, Iowans’ health will be affected. Iowans with hay fever will have their symptoms increase and pests such as the Lone star tick will become more common in Iowa, which can increase the spread of tick-borne diseases.
Maxwell Bernstein | February 17, 2021
Dr. Witold F. “Witek” Krajewski, director of the Iowa Flood Center and the University of Iowa Professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering, has been elected as a member of the National Academy of Engineering (NAE).
“As a sports analogy goes, it’s like being in the hall of fame,” Larry Weber, a research engineer for the IIHR-Hydroscience and Engineering said. According to the National Academy of Engineering press-release, “Academy membership honors those who have made outstanding contributions to “engineering research, practice, or education, including, where appropriate, significant contributions to the engineering literature” and to “the pioneering of new and developing fields of technology, making major advancements in traditional fields of engineering, or developing/implementing innovative approaches to engineering education.”
Maxwell Bernstein | February 17, 2021
Dr. Witold F. “Witek” Krajewski, director of the Iowa Flood Center and the University of Iowa Professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering, has been elected as a member of the National Academy of Engineering (NAE).
“As a sports analogy goes, it’s like being in the hall of fame,” Larry Weber, a research engineer for the IIHR-Hydroscience and Engineering said. According to the National Academy of Engineering press-release, “Academy membership honors those who have made outstanding contributions to “engineering research, practice, or education, including, where appropriate, significant contributions to the engineering literature” and to “the pioneering of new and developing fields of technology, making major advancements in traditional fields of engineering, or developing/implementing innovative approaches to engineering education.”
Maxwell Bernstein | December 23, 2020
The World Wildlife Fund for Nature’s Living Planet Report for 2020 focuses on, “bending the curve for biodiversity lost.” The report states the importance of biodiversity when it comes to human health, societal health, the health of ecosystems, and the preservation of nature.
Between 1970 and 2016, there was an average 68% decrease in population sizes for mammals, birds, amphibians, reptiles, and fish. The report says, “Since the industrial revolution, human activities have increasingly destroyed and degraded forests, grasslands, wetlands and other important ecosystems, threatening human well-being.”
Humans are the primary driving force of climate change and environmental destruction. “Until 1970, humanity’s Ecological Footprint was smaller than the Earth’s rate of regeneration. To feed and fuel our 21st century lifestyles, we are overusing the Earth’s biocapacity by at least 56%,” the report said.