News

It is with great sadness that the Penn Center for Science, Sustainability and the Media shares news of the passing of PCSSM Senior Research Fellow Dr. Joe Romm. Please find below an obituary prepared by his cousin, Dean Grodzins. Joseph J. Romm, a physicist who was among the most influential leaders in the nation’s fight…

Press release from the American Psychological Association on August 12, 2026. PCSSM Senior Fellow Dr. Kate Staley is a co-author of this report.  Schools Must Adapt to Extreme Heat in a Warming World New report finds extreme heat in pre-K through 12 schools harms learning and health, offers recommendations to mitigate the damage. WASHINGTON –…

Originally published on July 13, 2026 by Jason Klein for Penn Climate. Maya Halma is a 2026 graduate of the Master of Environmental Studies (MES) program at the University of Pennsylvania, where she concentrated in environmental sustainability. Before coming to Penn, she earned bachelor’s degrees in communication and social influence and Spanish from Temple University.…

Originally published on July 6, 2026 by Julianna Bragg for CNN. Cover photo credit: Nashville Zoo.  Before the sun has fully risen, Dr. Heather Schwartz is already warming up a bottle. A clouded leopard cub no bigger than her hands wiggles impatiently, waiting to be fed by the Nashville Zoo’s animal health director. Cradled in…

Originally published by Michelle Del Ray for USA Today on June 10, 2026 Feature image credit: Kids watching otter at Nashville Zoo at Grassmere on Aug. 20 2004. Larry McCormack/The Tennessean/USA TODAY NETWORK Hundreds of thousands of people, including country music singer Brad Paisley, are opposing the construction of a data center next to the…

Last week, The University of Pennsylvania’s College of Liberal and Professional Studies (LPS) announced a new Advanced Certificate in Strategic Climate Communication, developed in partnership with the Penn Center for Science, Sustainability, and the Media (PCSSM). The program equips students…Continue Reading New Opportunities for Penn Students: Advanced Certificate in Strategic Climate Communication

Originally published by Peter Stone for The Guardian on February 10, 2026. US courts, scholars and Democrats are pushing back against the president’s aggressive drive to boost fossil fuels Donald Trump’s aggressive drive to boost fossil fuels, including dirty coal, coupled with his administration’s moves to roll back wind and solar power, face mounting fire…

Originally published by Joe Romm on February 5, 2026 for Moms Clean Air Force. Public opposition to data centers is spreading like wildfire, fueled by soaring electricity bills and concerns about pollution, water, and job loss. “The data center rebellion is here, and it’s reshaping the political landscape,” as the Washington Post put it in January. The…

This was originally published on January 23, 2026 by Joe Romm for The Buffalo News. The last nuclear plant New York State built was completed in 1988. As the New York Times reported in 1984, “The Nine Mile Point 2 nuclear reactor under construction here is a decade behind schedule, is almost three years from operation, and has…

This press release was originally published on October 6, 2025 by the University of Oxford Smith School of Enterprise & Environment Academics at the University of Oxford and the University of Pennsylvania have conducted the most comprehensive review of evidence on the effectiveness on carbon offsetting to date and concluded the practice is ineffective and…

Originally published on October 8, 2025 by Kristin Toussaint for Fast Company A sprawling new study shows the $2 billion market has failed to curb global greenhouse gas emissions. Carbon offsets have existed for decades, and the size of the voluntary carbon market has ballooned to about $2 billion. Many countries and countless companies, including…

Originally published on October 10, 2025 by Erica Moser for Penn Today Joseph Romm’s journey has taken him from a physics Ph.D. student to the author of an award-winning climate change blog to a podcaster and Swiftie helping people improve their storytelling skills. Romm, a senior research fellow at the Penn Center for Science, Sustainability,…

Originally published on September 17, 2025 by Michael Barnard for Medium A few weeks ago, I had another opportunity to sit down with Dr. Joseph Romm, currently working with Michael Mann at the UPenn Center for Science, Sustainability, and the Media. The topic was the 20th anniversary edition of his book The Hype About Hydrogen,…

Originally published on September 15, 2025 by Sarah Kennedy for Yale Climate Connections Transcript: If you want to learn how to talk to people about climate change, one expert suggests studying Taylor Swift. Romm: “I think storytelling is the essential skill that we have to teach people who want to be better communicators in this…

Originally published on June 13, 2025 by Michael Barnard for CleanTechnica Recently, I had the opportunity to sit down again with Dr. Joseph Romm to discuss his then about to be released book, The Hype About Hydrogen, available now on Amazon. This is the second half of our conversation, lightly edited. Michael Barnard [MB]: Welcome…

Originally published on June 17, 2025 by Joe Romm for Rollingstone  The Trump administration released three executive orders on nuclear energy on the Friday afternoon before the Memorial Day weekend — a time often used to dump bad news. And these orders were as disastrous as they come. Continue reading here.   …Continue Reading Trump’s $4…

Originally published May 23, 2025 by Keerti Gopal for Inside Climate News President Donald Trump signed a series of executive orders Friday focused on speeding up nuclear energy development by reducing regulations that officials said have “choked” the industry for decades. Many nuclear rules stem from reforms to protect the public after a partial meltdown…

Originally published on May 27, 2025 by Sarah DeWeerdt for Anthropocene Magazine. A new study looks systematically for what works—and what doesn’t—to overcome psychological barriers that keep people stuck in the carbon-emissions status quo. Getting people to think more about the future, especially their own and that of people they care about, is the most…

Originally published May 13, 2025 by Erica Moser for Penn Today   A collaborative study from researchers affiliated with the Annenberg School for Communication, Annenberg Public Policy Center, and School of Arts & Sciences tested 17 strategies in an ‘intervention tournament.’ 4 min. read   Key Takeaways Interventions targeting future thinking, such as writing a…

Originally published on April 18, 2025 by Joe Romm for the LA Times It might seem like everyone from venture capitalists to the news media to the U.S. secretary of Energy has been hyping small modular reactors as the key to unlocking a nuclear renaissance and solving both climate change and modern data centers’ ravenous…

Originally published by Norah Findley for the Daily Pennsylvanian on April 17, 2025 The Penn Center for Science, Sustainability, and the Media will host its first Research Day on Friday, April 18. Showcasing the ongoing work at PCSSM, the Research Day will include research talks by a number of PCSSM staff and researchers, as well…

Originally published on April 3, 2025 by the Annenberg Public Policy Center. In the wake of sweeping cuts to federal funding for scientific research, including a proposal to reduce support for medical research nationwide, an interdisciplinary team of academic researchers from the University of Pennsylvania and four other institutions developed an interactive, data-driven map to…

Originally posted on April 3, 2025 by Meredith Rovine and Mandira Banerjee for the Annenberg School for Communication. Researchers at the University of Pennsylvania and the University of Maryland show that proposed NIH funding cuts lead to an estimated $16 billion in economic loss and 68,000 jobs lost nationwide. By Meredith Rovine and Mandira Banerjee…

The Penn Center for Science, Sustainability and the Media is excited to share that PCSSM Student Researcher Bronwyn Patterson will receive the Fred N. Scatena Award for Research on Climate Change on May 2, 2025 from the Penn Earth and Environmental Science Department.   Bronwyn Patterson is a fourth-year undergraduate candidate for a B.A. of…

Originally published April 9, 2025 by Meredith Rovine and Mandira Banerjee for Penn Today   Data-driven map shows local economic impact of cuts to federal funding for health research A new interactive map co-developed by researchers at Penn’s Annenberg School for Communication shows that proposed NIH funding cuts lead to an estimated $16 billion in…

More than two dozen events held Feb. 10-14 will give students, faculty, and staff an opportunity to learn…Continue Reading Fifth Energy Week to bring Penn community together around solutions

The Penn Center for Science, Sustainability and the Media is happy to announce that Heather Kostick has been appointed Associate Director of PCSSM….Continue Reading Heather Kostick appointed Associate Director of PCSSM

Michael Mann has been named the University of Pennsylvania’s inaugural vice provost for climate science, policy, and action, effective Nov. 1….Continue Reading Michael Mann appointed vice provost for climate science, policy, and action at Penn

A press release from Asia Initiatives on award recipients at the 25th Anniversary Gala in New York in September 2024: 8th UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon to Present Awards at Asia Initiatives’ 25th Anniversary Gala…Continue Reading Dr. Joseph Romm Received an Award from Asia Initiatives

Overall existential dread,” is how Michael Mann sums it up. Mann is Presidential Distinguished Professor in the School of Arts & Sciences’ Department of Earth and Environmental Science, has a secondary appointment in the Annenberg School for Communication, and directs …Continue Reading As the world warms, how are young people feeling?

Association of attorneys general has received millions from Koch Industries, fossil fuel lobby and fund linked to billionaire Leonard Leo. A powerful group that boasts 28 Republican attorneys general…Continue Reading Oil firms and dark money fund push by Republican states to block climate laws

The University of Pennsylvania is pleased to announce a $10 million gift from alumnus Alp Ercil to establish the Penn Climate Sustainability Initiative…Continue Reading Penn receives $10M gift to advance interdisciplinary work on climate and sustainability

A six-month investigation reveals that many carbon credit ventures reap profits from public lands they have no right to and fail to share revenue with those protecting the forest….Continue Reading How ‘carbon cowboys’ are cashing in on protected Amazon forest

It was still early in the day when the men with glitter in their copper beards started appearing on the streets. They had rhinestone…Continue Reading Swiftie dads show the power of positive masculinity

Senator Sheldon Whitehouse tells Guardian ‘quid pro quo is very evident’ amid investigation into Mar-a-Lago meeting in April….Continue Reading Trump’s $1bn pitch to oil bosses ‘the definition of corruption’, top Democrat says

As April 2024 wound up, the Biden administration released rules that aim to expedite infrastructure projects and require federal agencies to get stricter in weighing the potential impacts on the climate and low-income communities…Continue Reading How Green Hydrogen Is Critical to Electrifying Everything

Michael Mann, Presidential Distinguished Professor in the Department of Earth and Environmental Science, has been elected a fellow of the Royal Society…Continue Reading Michael Mann Elected Fellow of the Royal Society

Over 90 exceptional researchers from across the world have this year been elected to the Fellowship of the Royal Society, the UK’s national academy of sciences…Continue Reading Outstanding scientists elected as Fellows of the Royal Society

With a pair of fossil-fuel friendly senators at his side, former U.S. Energy Secretary Ernest Moniz on Tuesday released a favorable report on U.S. natural gas and liquified natural gas (LNG), funded by the natural gas industry…Continue Reading Academics and Lawmakers Slam an Industry-Funded Report by a Former Energy Secretary Promoting Natural Gas and LNG

When climate scientist Michael Mann was in talks to join the University of Pennsylvania faculty, he met with Kathleen Hall Jamieson, director of…Continue Reading Teaching climate change communication, from the classroom to a conference of journalists

From April 3-7, 2024, The Annenberg Public Policy Center (APPC) hosted the annual conference of the Society of Environmental Journalists (SEJ), bringing the group of journalists from across North America to the University of Pennsylvania for #SEJ2024, focusing on Democracy, Disinformation, Activism… What’s Environmental Journalism’s Role?”…Continue Reading APPC Hosts Society of Environmental Journalists (SEJ) Conference…

Originally published by Lindsay Bowen for SEJ on April 14, 2024. More than 100 journalists, students and others gathered for a day-long workshop on “Combating Climate and Science and Disinformation,” on April 3, at the Society of Environmental Journalists conference. Amy Westervelt, founder and executive editor of Drilled Media, an investigative reporting project on climate,…

The Society of Environmental Journalists held its annual conference at Penn from April 3-7, drawing hundreds of reporters to campus to explore climate stories and learn how to combat disinformation. …Continue Reading Penn hosts five-day conference for environmental journalists on climate change, disinformation

As part of its 30th anniversary celebration, the Annenberg Public Policy Center (APPC) has opened a new area of research, the Climate Communication division, led by Annenberg School for Communication vice dean Emily Falk….Continue Reading Psychologist and Neuroscientist Emily Falk to Lead APPC’s New Climate Communication Division

This year’s Society of Environmental Journalists conference focuses on journalism’s role in democracy, disinformation and activism….Continue Reading Hundreds of environmental journalists are coming to Philly to learn how to do their jobs better

Climate change is an undeniably complex global problem. It’s often challenging for individuals to feel like they can make an impact…Continue Reading What Are the Most Effective Strategies To Inspire Action on Climate Change?

The researcher had sued two writers for libel and slander over comments about his work. The jury awarded him damages of more than $1 million….Continue Reading Michael Mann, a Leading Climate Scientist, Wins His Defamation Suit

One of the most viral zingers from last year—the hottest year on record—was this tweet thumb-slammed in response to the global news of America’s beloved pop star…Continue Reading Taylor Swift Can Be the Climate Hero We Need Now

Carbon offsets for air travel, carbon capture and storage in wells drilled far underground, heat pumps for heating and cooling of buildings and replacing fossil fuel burners with…Continue Reading Separating myth from reality on climate change

Join our team! Please see this post for current opportunities….Continue Reading Post-Doctoral Researcher Opportunities with Michael Mann and PCSSM

The Penn Center for Science, Sustainability and the Media (PCSSM) is thrilled to share that along with Annenberg Public Policy Center (APPC) we are hosting the annual conference…Continue Reading Penn to Host Annual Society of Environmental Journalists Conference

Studying giant clams helps scientists understand increasing ocean acidity, which could lead to population decline in some species and leave fish more vulnerable…Continue Reading Clams and climate

Fighting climate change by sucking carbon dioxide out of the air with giant blowers seems like a brilliant idea. Why knock yourself out trying to eliminate carbon dioxide emissions when you…Continue Reading Carbon Capture Won’t Save Us From Climate Change

Michael Mann, a nationally recognized climate scientist at Penn, notes that Benjamin Franklin charted the Gulf Stream, launched complaints against tanneries polluting Philadelphia’s Dock Creek, and studied weather patterns….Continue Reading Princeton and Penn scientists win Philly award for their climate change work

Back in the home stretch of the 2020 presidential election, I stated that a second Trump term would be “game over for the climate.” That hasn’t changed…Continue Reading Trump 2.0: The climate cannot survive another Trump term

In a conversation with Penn Today, Joe Romm casts a sobering light on ‘solutions’ to curb climate change…Continue Reading Carbon capture and common misconceptions: A Q&A with Joe Romm

The maker of the iPhone is a leader in efforts to reduce the climate impact of its products, but a recent claim about its new line of Apple Watches…Continue Reading Apple Goes a Step Too Far in Claiming a Carbon Neutral Product, a New Report Concludes

In era punctuated by climate-driven disasters and an ever-worsening ecological crisis, the question of our planet’s future has never been more urgent…Continue Reading The world today: The crisis of climate-driven extinction

“The climate is always changing!” So goes a popular refrain from climate deniers who continue to claim that there’s nothing special about this particular moment…Continue Reading Opinion: Yes, there was global warming in prehistoric times. But nothing in millions of years compares with what we see today

The petulant protesters just won’t let up. On Sunday, climate activists attempted to interrupt the Berlin Marathon by dumping orange paint…Continue Reading Climate protesters will never get people to change if they keep acting like this

The UN claims to be almost entirely climate neutral, yet that claim is based on buying millions of carbon offset credits that experts say do little to reduce greenhouse gas emissions,…Continue Reading Is the UN Really Climate Neutral? No.

Apple recently released a five-minute ad in which a fictional Mother Nature grills executives on the company’s environmental performance…Continue Reading Too Many Carbon Offset Claims Are ‘Greenwashing’ Us into a Hotter World

On Sept. 12, PBS, WHYY, and the Penn Center for Science, Sustainability and the Media will convene community leaders, science communicators, journalists,…Continue Reading PBS is coming to Philly to talk climate, community empowerment at Penn

Gresham’s Law says that bad money drives out good. If you have two coins with a face value of $1, you will spend the bad one that contains…Continue Reading Opinion: To Fight Climate Change, We Need a Better Carbon Market

In hopes to inform people of ways to prevent climate change, former Penn State Distinguished Professor of Atmospheric Science Michael Mann plans to release a book on Sept. 26 that reviews the lessons…Continue Reading ‘The choice is ours’ | Former professor’s upcoming book details climate change history

One of the largest distributors of fossil fuel-based natural gas to Ohio homes wants to give customers the option to “offset” the carbon emitted…Continue Reading Ohio gas company wants to ‘offset’ its emissions. Environmentalists say it’s ‘greenwashing’

Noted climate researcher Joe Romm has published a paper debunking carbon offsets as basically useless and holding back emissions reductions….Continue Reading Carbon Offsets Are Unscalable, Unjust, & Unfixable — Joe Romm

Planting 1 trillion trees, a plan recently proposed by House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.), is not a serious solution to the climate crisis. In fact, it is magical thinking….Continue Reading The Magical Thinking of McCarthy’s Trillion-Tree Plan to Solve Climate Change

Michael E. Mann has been a central figure in the battle for the environment since the “hockey stick” graph made him a target…Continue Reading Mann in the Middle

Dr Joseph Romm is a US writer and climate expert. In 2006, he set up the Climate Progress blog….Continue Reading Joe Romm: “Carbon offsets are unscalable, unjust, and unfixable – and a threat to the Paris Agreement”

Joseph Romm, a leading expert on climate solutions and clean energy—and on communicating about these issues to the public—has joined…Continue Reading Joseph Romm Joins the Penn Center for Science, Sustainability and the Media

Companies that buy carbon offsets from the voluntary market to counterbalance their greenhouse gas emissions…Continue Reading New Carbon Offset Rules Aim to Clean Up Company Climate Claims

Dr. Joseph Romm, a leading expert on climate solutions and clean energy……Continue Reading PCSSM Welcomes Senior Research Fellow Dr. Joseph Romm

Fans who showed up early at Citizens Bank Park for a scheduled Phillies game on Wednesday were stunned to learn the air was too dangerous to play baseball, the first-ever “smoke-out”…Continue Reading America sleepwalks through a climate crisis. Will this smoke alarm wake us up?

The Penn Center for Science, Sustainability and the Media is thrilled to announce that three post-doctoral…Continue Reading PCSSM Welcomes New Post-Docs

Michael Mann, Presidential Distinguished Professor in the Department of Earth and Environmental Science and Director of …Continue Reading Michael Mann Receives Humanist of the Year Award

A group of climate change activists who deflated the tires of 43 gas guzzling SUVs in Boston’s Beacon Hill neighborhood …Continue Reading Climate change activists claim responsibility for deflating the tires to ‘over 11,000 SUVs’

As the Philadelphia region faces unseasonably hot weather Thursday and Friday, climate experts say this is a direct result of climate change. …Continue Reading Newly planted trees aim to help combat effects of climate change

On December 31, 2022, Extinction Rebellion (XR) — a UK-headquartered global environmental organization founded in 2018, known for acts of civil disobedience…Continue Reading Extinction Rebellion Shifts Away From Public Disruption

Known for his ‘hockey stick’ graph that hammered home the dramatic rise of the warming climate, the climate scientist is now making his mark on Penn’s campus…Continue Reading Climate scientist Michael Mann makes a home at Penn

In mid-October, a pair of climate activists from the group “Just Stop Oil” garnered substantial international media attention w…Continue Reading Throwing Soup at Art Shifted People’s Views of Climate Protests—But Maybe Not In The Right Way

Over the past few months, activists have targeted priceless works of art to call attention to the climate crisis…Continue Reading Why activists are targeting famous art to protest climate change

The recent spate of high-profile protests by young climate change activists…Continue Reading Activist attacks on famous paintings decrease support for addressing climate change, study finds

In the wake of high-profile climate protests that target priceless works of art or block streets and other public infrastructure…Continue Reading Climate Actions Like Throwing Soup at Art Dampen Support for Cause: Survey

A panel of climate scientists may seem an unusual choice for a discussion about the Supreme Court…Continue Reading How dark money fuels climate denialism

Former Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull and star American climatologist Michael E. Mann are…Continue Reading Extreme Avoidance

Originally published by the University of Pennsylvania Stroud Water Research Center has bestowed the 2022 Stroud Award for Freshwater Excellence upon Michael E. Mann, one of the world’s leading voices on climate change. The award was presented at the 20th annual The Water’s Edge gala at the Delaware Museum of Nature & Science. Mann, Presidential…

Climatologist Michael Mann speaks with with Newsy and The Washington Post about the politics, nuance and trends of climate messaging….Continue Reading Election ’22: What Matters: Michael Mann On Climate Messaging

With nearly 30 events planned for Oct. 10-14, Penn’s Climate Week invites the Penn community to ‘find your place in the climate movement.’…Continue Reading A Week of Building Climate Knowledge, Awareness, and Action

The climate emergency is everyone’s business. Join us during Climate Week at Penn to find your place in the climate movement….Continue Reading Penn Climate Week October 10-14

Originally published by Penn Today Perry World House’s 2022 Global Order Colloquium hosted experts from government, the media, and across the University to tackle the topic of the state of globalization (Left to right) Former Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull, Kathleen Hall Jamieson and Michael E. Mann discussed Australia’s leadership in fighting climate change at…

Originally published by Perry World House…Continue Reading Penn Center for Science, Sustainability and the Media Launches with Event at Perry World House – Rising to the Global Climate Challenge: Australia’s Leadership with PM Malcolm Turnbull & Dr. Michael Mann

One of the most famous — and famously attacked — climatologists in America is now the founding director of Penn’s new climate change institute. He has a few things to say to those who doubt we can still save the earth. — The Philadelphia Citizen…Continue Reading Michael E. Mann is Coming For Your Climate Doomism

The Tibetan Plateau will experience significant water loss this century due to global warming, according to research published Monday that warns of severe supply stress in a climate change “hotspot” —Originally published by France 24….Continue Reading Tibetan Plateau water stores under threat: study

The Daily Pennsylvanian has gathered a list of 10 people to know, ranging from the new president of the University to Wharton’s youngest tenured and highest-rated professors. — The Daily Pennsylvanian…Continue Reading From new administrators to well-known professors, here are 10 people to know on campus

The Senate of the United States – the world’s largest greenhouse gas emitter – has passed unprecedented legislation aiming to cut emissions 40 percent by 2030. — Al Jazeera…Continue Reading Scientists urge global action after ‘historic’ US climate bill

Michael Mann, who has been at Penn State for 16 years, will join the University of Pennsylvania where he will lead the new Penn Center for Science, Sustainability and the Media. — The Philadelphia Inquirer…Continue Reading High-profile Penn State climate scientist to join Penn