And why our lives depend on it; an excerpt from professor Jeffrey Sachs’ new book, A New Foreign Policy.

Taught by Jeffrey Sachs, the Massive Open Online Course will focus on the new directions of macroeconomic analysis required to integrate sustainable development challenges.

Ruth DeFries and Jeffrey Sachs have been named University Professors, the highest rank Columbia University bestows on its faculty.

At the end of September, all 193 member countries of the United Nations have agreed to adopt the Sustainable Development Goals towards eradicating poverty, protecting the planet and advancing prosperity by 2030. What do they hope to accomplish and why do they matter?

The World Happiness Report 2015 measures and ranks the happiness of individuals in 158 countries around the globe. Which countries are the happiest and why?

Scientists at Columbia University’s Earth Institute will present important talks at the Dec. 15-19 meeting of the American Geophysical Union, the world’s largest gathering of earth and space scientists. Here is a journalists’ guide in rough chronological order.

The Earth Institute is grateful to its many partners for their important role in the effort to develop the science and solutions necessary for sustainable development. Please visit the interactive digital 2013 Annual Report to read more about how we are forging partnerships across disciplines and sectors to advance the global effort to guide our planet onto a path toward sustainability.

The Earth Institute’s annual donor report for fiscal year 2011 is now available in an interactive digital format. We remain committed to finding extraordinary support to unprecedented global challenges, many of which are outlined in this report. We have highlighted some of our innovative projects in research, policy, and education, as well as the partnerships that are helping to support them.

Professor Sachs mentioned feed-in tariffs as an innovative way to decrease our dependency on fossil fuels and increase investments in renewables. They are a fairly simple and cost-effective way to jump-start production of renewable energy. Feed-in tariffs have been used to transition many European countries, particularly Germany, away from fossil fuels.

Jeffrey Sachs’ discusses what it will take to kick start the US economy and the possible links between climate change and this summer’s weather on CNN’s “GPS with Fareed Zakaria”.