News + Media

The latest United Nations IPCC Reports describe how limiting global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels can avert the worst impacts of climate change. That will require global emissions to drop by roughly half over the next decade and reach net-zero emissions near...

In the United Nations Climate blog Electric Future, MIT Joint Program Deputy Director Sergey Paltsev highlights challenges in making EVs truly emissions-free (UNFCCC)
Believe it or not, if you had been walking through Manhattan in 1900, there is a good chance you would have seen an electric car. Roughly one third of cars on the road in New York back then were electric, while the city’s taxi fleet had thirty electric vehicles (EVs). It was to be a brief heyday...

Twenty winning projects will link industry member priorities with research groups across campus to develop scalable climate solutions
Molly Chase | Climate and Sustainability Consortium
Publication Date:
May 23, 2022
PRESS INQUIRIES

MIT Energy Initiative report supports energy storage paired with renewable energy to achieve clean energy grids
In deeply decarbonized energy systems utilizing high penetrations of variable renewable energy (VRE), energy storage is needed to keep the lights on and the electricity flowing when the sun isn’t shining and the wind isn’t blowing — when generation from these VRE resources is low or demand is...

Members of three working groups outline latest efforts implementing the ambitious plan, launched last year
In a combined in-person and virtual event on Monday, members of the three working groups established last year under MIT’s “Fast Forward” climate action plan reported on the work they’ve been doing to meet the plan’s goals, including reaching zero direct carbon emissions by 2026.

Why it's important for U.S. scientists to sustain engagement with their Chinese and Russian peers (The Hill)
Currently, seven astronauts are living on the International Space Station: three Americans, one European and three Russians. They may not agree on much outside the day-to-day management of their vessel, but they must cooperate on that task if they all are to survive. The same is true for us on...

The most recent United Nations climate change report indicates that without significant action to mitigate global warming, the extent and magnitude of climate impacts—from floods to droughts to the spread of disease—could outpace the world’s ability to adapt to them. The latest effort to...

Special Presidential Envoy for Climate John Kerry calls the initiative “classic MIT.” The MIT Joint Program is contributing to three of its five flagship projects. (MIT News) (Coverage: Bloomberg, Boston Globe, WBUR, NBC-Boston)
On the eve of Earth Day, more than 300 faculty, researchers, students, government officials, and industry leaders gathered in the Samberg Conference Center, along with thousands more who tuned in online, to celebrate MIT’s first-ever Climate Grand Challenges and the five most promising concepts ...

A new platform will unite climate models, impact predictions, random control trial evaluations, and humanitarian services to bring cutting-edge tools to Bangladeshi communities. MIT Climate Grand Challenges flagship project includes seven Joint Program-affiliated contributors. (MIT Lincoln Laboratory)
On April 11, MIT announced five multiyear flagship projects in the first-ever Climate Grand Challenges, a new initiative to tackle complex climate problems and deliver breakthrough solutions to the world as quickly as possible. This article is the fifth in a five-part series highlighting the...

To better inform local policy in the face of changing weather extremes, MIT researchers--including seven affiliated with the Joint Program--seek to advance the modeling of long-term weather risks (MIT School of Science)
On April 11, MIT announced five multiyear flagship projects in the first-ever Climate Grand Challenges, a new initiative to tackle complex climate problems and deliver breakthrough solutions to the world as quickly as possible. This article is the third in a five-part series highlighting the...