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Research Overview

The Search for a Sustainable Environment

There are hundreds of active research projects at Scripps Institution of Oceanography at UC San Diego. Scripps scientists can be found on every continent and in every ocean as they collaborate on research with colleagues throughout the United States and in 65 nations. This overview briefly describes some of the research projects that most directly benefit society.

Introduction

Climate change, the loss of biodiversity, rising sea levels, earthquakes, and similar phenomena are among the most ciritical and complex issues facing society. Achieving a sustainable balance between the natural environment and human activity is unquestionably a defining challenge of the twenty-first century.

In 50 years we will know much more about such things as climate change. We may know whether society has been able to find a productive relationship with nature as it continues its economic growth. What we do in the next 10 years will determine what is possible in the next 50. Will we have the knowledge needed to make the truly critical environmental decisions humankind must face in coming decades?

Not surprisingly, Scripps is increasingly being called upon by the public and by policy makers to provide the scientific expertise necessary to address environmental questions. To meet this challenge, Scripps has developed three initiaties: to seek new approaches to environmental science, to teach leaders of tomorrow's science, and to communicate new understanding of scientific discoveries.

These Reseach Overview pages will acquaint you with just some of the wide range of scientific projects happening at Scripps as the institution embarks on its second century.