Nature sustainability
Volume 4 Issue 10, October 2021
Tuna-dependent economies and climate change
Climate change will shift tuna fish away from the tropics. The study by Bell and colleagues finds two routes to sustaining the tuna-dependent economies of Pacific Small Island Developing States—reducing greenhouse gas emissions or negotiating to maintain the current benefits they receive from tuna.
See Bell et al.
Image: ©ISSF, Fabien Forget. Cover Design: Valentina Monaco.
Editorial
Editorial | 11 October 2021
No time left
As the climate crisis continues its deadly course, how much longer will it take for world leaders to act?
Comment & Opinion
Comment | 08 July 2021
From natural capital accounting to natural capital banking
Natural capital accounting will confirm what we know — without change, we are headed for environmental disaster resulting from economic growth. We propose a natural capital bank, a new institution to help maintain natural capital adequacy and chart a course to a sustainable future via accounting.
- Michael J. Vardon
- Heather Keith
- David B. Lindenmayer
News & Views
News & Views | 26 July 2021
A deadly double dose for India’s poor
Cooking with solid fuels is a major source of early death and ill health among lower-income Indians. The same group also suffers disproportionately from air pollution generated by other, more general sources.
- Zoë Chafe
- Sourangsu Chowdhury
News & Views | 08 July 2021
Alternative plastics
Plastics have posed substantial environmental and human health risks, therefore their design, manufacturing and disposal should incorporate sustainability considerations. Now a study reports success in developing hydroplastics from renewable cellulosic biomass that can be shaped in water.
- Liang Yuan
- Leman Buzoglu Kurnaz
- Chuanbing Tang
News & Views | 12 July 2021
The challenges of electrolytic valorization of carbon dioxide
Electroreduction of carbon dioxide is an enabling technology that can produce valuable chemicals, notably C1 (for example, formic acid and carbon monoxide) and C2 chemicals (for example, ethylene and ethanol), with a minimal or even negative carbon footprint. Now, a techno-economic analysis shows that only the C1 products can achieve competitive prices, while substantial improvements in process economics are needed for C2.
- Robert S. Weber
The political effects of emergency frames in sustainability
Emergency frames in sustainability debates can stimulate collective action on issues for which it is lacking but can have consequences. This Review examines the political effects of emergency frames in sustainability and develops a typology of different effects to build a shared vocabulary for analysis and decision-making.
- James Patterson
- Carina Wyborn
- Dhanasree Jayaram
Research
Article | 19 July 2021
Benefit of woodland and other natural environments for adolescents’ cognition and mental health
A longitudinal cohort study shows a positive effect of exposure to woodland in urban areas on cognitive development and emotional and behavioural well-being in children, but no effect of blue space or grassland.
- Mikaël J. A. Maes
- Monica Pirani
- Mireille B. Toledano
Article | 26 July 2021
Household contributions to and impacts from air pollution in India
A quantification of PM2.5 pollution finds that mortality risk lies disproportionately within low-income households, and that addressing their indoor air pollution sources can avert more absolute deaths, yet wealthier individuals are more responsible for the emissions.
- Narasimha D. Rao
- Gregor Kiesewetter
- Fabian Wagner
Article | 12 July 2021
Selective electrocatalytic synthesis of urea with nitrate and carbon dioxide
Urea is one the most-used synthetic nitrogen fertilizers that have been key to feeding a growing population. However, its production is energy intensive. Here, the authors show an electrocatalytic approach that allows for selective urea synthesis from nitrate and carbon dioxide at ambient conditions.
- Chade Lv
- Lixiang Zhong
- Guihua Yu
Article | 08 July 2021
Hydroplastic polymers as eco-friendly hydrosetting plastics
Eco-friendly processing of plastics could leverage the advantages of plastics while maximizing their environmental sustainability. Here the authors show a cellulose cinnamate polymer that could be repeatedly programmed into various 2D or 3D stable shapes through a sustainable hydrosetting process.
- Jiaxiu Wang
- Lukas Emmerich
- Kai Zhang
Analysis | 05 July 2021
Global bioenergy with carbon capture and storage potential is largely constrained by sustainable irrigation
Capturing the carbon from energy crops—bioenergy with carbon capture and storage (BECCS)—requires water to grow the crops. This study finds that although unlimited irrigation could increase BECCS potential by 60–71% by 2100, doing so sustainably would increase it by only 5–6%.
- Zhipin Ai
- Naota Hanasaki
- Shinichiro Fujimori
Analysis | 28 June 2021
Upward expansion and acceleration of forest clearance in the mountains of Southeast Asia
Southeast Asia contains half the world’s tropical mountain forests. This study finds increasing mountain forest loss there, with the clearing frontier moving higher in the 2010s and causing unprecedented carbon loss.
- Yu Feng
- Alan D. Ziegler
- Zhenzhong Zeng
Analysis | 29 July 2021
Pathways to sustaining tuna-dependent Pacific Island economies during climate change
Climate change will alter the distribution of tuna, impacting the economies of Pacific Small Island Developing States. This study finds that greater greenhouse gas emissions will worsen these impacts.
- Johann D. Bell
- Inna Senina
- Peter Williams
Collection:
Analysis | 12 July 2021
Techno-economic assessment of low-temperature carbon dioxide electrolysis
Low-temperature CO2 electrolysis is a promising process for producing renewable chemicals and fuels. This work provides a systematic techno-economic assessment of four major products, prioritizing technological development, and proposes guidelines to facilitate market adoption.
- Haeun Shin
- Kentaro U. Hansen
- Feng Jiao
Amendments & Corrections
Author Correction | 22 September 2021
Author Correction: Historical dynamics of landslide risk from population and forest-cover changes in the Kivu Rift
- Arthur Depicker
- Liesbet Jacobs
- Gerard Govers
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