July 2025 Newsletter

In her Ph.D. studies in population health sciences, Elizabeth Rojo tackles one of the most pressing public health threats driven by climate change: extreme heat. She uses her personal and professional knowledge to center the voices of community in her research — particularly farm workers, who are disproportionately affected by climate-related heat hazards.

"Nurses aren’t just caregivers. We are advocates, educators, scientists, and change agents, and we are essential to building a healthier, more sustainable future.”

Read a Q&A with Dr. Valerie Sabol, the School of Nursing’s Director of Planetary Health and learn more about the important connections between nursing and climate preparedness and sustainability. 

A massive heat dome this month brought an extended period of high temps to a large portion of the U.S. How can people stay safe in the heat - without air conditioning? Check out research-based strategies in an infographic by the Heat Policy Innovation Hub - also available as an accessible pdf by clicking the link.

Ashley Ward, director of Duke's Heat Policy Innovation Hub, said there are effects on health and people's productiveness at work, especially if they work outside. Heat is affecting infrastructure as well, such as weakening bridges. Read more in her recent interview with Public News Service.

Duke faculty member Douglas Nowacek was part of a delegation at the recent UN Ocean Conference exploring communities for ocean resilience. Nowacek studies how human-made noise threatens marine life and their behaviors – vital and urgent work in our world. Video from The New York Climate Exchange, which hosted the delegation.

Miss any of the 2025 “From Billions to Trillions” summit? Catch up on all the climate finance conversations and plan for the future with the full video playlist. The second annual summit tackled the critical question of how to unlock trillions of dollars in private capital needed to supply the world with energy while generating fewer greenhouse gas emissions. Representatives from finance, government, industry, and academia unpacked challenges and explored potential solutions at the April summit, which attracted 500+ attendees.

Congrats to the many partners involved in a new report as part of the Climate-Responsive Opportunities in Plant Science (CROPS) project to advance agtech innovation in North Carolina and establish a 42-county agtech innovation corridor in the state. 

Photo of Duke Campus Farm during community work day. Get involved!

Congratulations to Duke Trinity College of Arts & Sciences students Arjun Chadha, B.S. 2025, Maya Khodabakchian, and Nicholas Nease and Duke University Pratt School of Engineering students Michael Scutari and Ben Verlander. The Duke students won a $20,000 prize during the DOE Office of Technology Commercialization's 2025 EnergyTech University Prize Competition, which challenges student teams to showcase creative ways to bring a DOE National Laboratory-developed or other high-potential energy technology to market. The Blue Devils on team "GasS Station" won the Geothermal Technologies Office Bonus Prize for their business plan for driving adoption of geothermal energy hubs to power co-located data centers.

In late June, the Arts+ Resilience Through Puppetry team wrapped up six weeks of immersive, hands-on work at the Duke Marine Lab in Beaufort, NC. Part of the Arts+ experiential summer learning program, their project culminated in a final showcase alongside other student teams. For their presentation, the Puppetry team created a short documentary-style video capturing the heart of their summer: interviews with community partners, behind-the-scenes glimpses of their creative process, and personal reflections on how art can foster resilience, spark learning, and build meaningful connections.

From coral reefs to rainforests, tropical ecosystems in Belize were immersive classrooms for students in the marine ecology travel course, led by faculty member Brian Silliman. Students studying at the Duke Marine Lab of the Nicholas School of the Environment can participate in travel courses that pair classroom learning with experiential education at field sites across the globe. 

In June, a group of Duke student-athletes engaged in environmental conservation and sustainability efforts while supporting community development projects alongside local partners in Gandoca, Costa Rica through the ACE program. Photo above from student-athlete William Skelly: "Listening to Kendall and witnessing the work being done by Casa Tucan gave me so much hope. This community chose to build itself up, despite all the hardship and injustice they faced. That kind of resilience and passion is something I’ll remember and be inspired by for a long time." 

Read more student-athlete blogs from the Costa Rica experience.

The 2025 Collegiate Sports Sustainability Conference brought together attendees from around the country in person at Duke and online. The conference included more than 75 leaders, professionals and students in athletics and sustainability from more than 50 universities and organizations nationwide. Participants shared project "wins" from their schools and explored a new nationwide network for sports sustainability.

September: Hope in the Water screening + discussion hosted by Oceans@Duke

September: Climate Week NYC

October: Summit for Ocean Stewards featuring Dr. Jill Tiefenthaler, CEO of National Geographic (and Duke alumna)

November: Energy Week at Duke 

November: Duke University Energy Conference