Energy

an overhead shot of land split in three. the left side is dry and dusty. the middle has some vegetation, and the right side has a lot.

Desertification is destroying fertile land. Here’s how we’re fighting it.

a female presenting person in a lab coat holding a solar cell

New “tandem” solar cell breaks world record

A new tandem solar cell containing layers of silicon and perovskite has demonstrated an unprecedented efficiency of 33.7%.

Kristin Houser

Clean Energy

These 4 charts show the unstoppable growth of solar

Solar is growing fast enough to displace fossil fuels from the entire global economy before 2050, but infrastructure needs to keep up.

Andrew Blakers

Climate Crisis

Researchers found a species of stony coral ready to withstand climate change

At current trends, more than 90% of the world’s coral reefs will be massively degraded by 2050. Researchers have found a species of stoney coral that has sparked new efforts for coral reef restoration.

Teresa Carey

A vision of a Recompose facility in Seattle. Recompose is experimenting with “human composting” and alternative

Sustainability

Human composting could help crowded cities bury their dead sustainably

Working toward sustainability, cities are searching for ways to make funerals more eco-friendly. Green burials and human composting could be the solution.

Tien Nguyen

Series| Future of Cities

Futuristic Copenhagen architecture builds on water

5:05

The innovators of Copenhagen architecture are pioneering new solutions to urban living challenges, from floating parks to man-made islands.

Copenhagen's innovative approach to waste management turns trash into ski slopes

Series| Future of Cities

Copenhagen turns trash into ski slopes

6:09

Humans throw away 3.5 million tons of waste every day. Copenhagen is taking waste management to new heights (literally) to deal with trash from residents, making it the sustainable city of the future.

Series| Future of Cities

The sustainable city of the future: Copenhagen, Denmark

5:49

By 2050, 70% of the world’s population will live in urban areas (up from 50% now). With the climate crisis worsening, how can we support this urban trend in a sustainable way?

Sustainability

Paving the way with recycled roads

The world is facing a massive build up of waste. But this solution of recycled roads may pave the way for a cleaner future.

B. David Zarley

Sustainability

The world's first floating dairy farm

In the search for more sustainable methods of global food production, one couple in the Netherlands is taking an unconventional approach: they have become the operators of the world's first and only floating dairy farm.

Series| Future of Food

It’s time to embrace the frankenfish

7:06

Would you eat fish that was genetically designed in a lab? What if it was your only option? Like it or not, GMO salmon and other futuristic foods are revolutionizing the global food system right in front of our eyes.

Sustainability

These pioneers are building the sustainable food systems of tomorrow

In a new Freethink original series, Michael O'Shea goes around the world to introduce us to the scientists who are working hard to ensure that we can feed our future world.

Music

This musician transforms scientific data into elaborate melodies

When we convert complex data into sound and listen to it, quite often what emerges is something we can understand through sound, even though we could never understand it visually.

Teresa Carey

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