We are facing environmental problems head on through groundbreaking, data-driven research that crosses disciplines.
Research
The greatest environmental challenges of our time - climate change, sustainable energy, conservation, and mitigating pollution, just to name a few - are highly complex issues, and understanding how to solve them requires teams that collaborate across disciplines, oftentimes across the globe.
The Bren School is a leading center of environmental research conducted by faculty, postdoctoral scholars, visiting researchers, and students. Bren researchers are leaders in disciplines and issues that span the natural sciences, data science, engineering, law, policy, economics, business, and more under the umbrella of environmental science and management.
Bren faculty, lecturers, and visiting scholars are subject matter experts in areas that span the natural sciences, data science, law, policy, corporate practices, and economics.
Bren School PhD researchers immerse themselves in the process of conducting research to analyze, quantify, and develop solutions to complex environmental problems.
Every Bren master's student completes a research-driven thesis project on behalf of a client, developing comprehensive solutions to real world environmental problems.
Research Centers and Partners
Researchers at the Bren School collaborate across disciplines and departments, and oftentimes across the globe, to make a real impact solving environmental problems. Graduate students, post-docs, and visiting researchers benefit from Bren’s close partnership with these centers, institutes, and labs around the world
Strategic Environmental Research Initiatives
The Bren School's Strategic Environmental Research Initiative (SERI) program was launched to create new collaborations aimed at developing timely solutions to the grand environmental problems of our time. Involved faculty have the opportunity to assemble a broad community of scholars from the Bren School, the greater UCSB campus, and beyond to achieve significant progress in addressing these large-scale environmental challenges. SERI topics are also integrated into the Bren master's and PhD curricula, the Bren public colloquium series, and campus-wide activities.
SERI-Fire
Wildfires have been increasing in the western U.S. and elsewhere, a trend that is expected to continue with climate change. And while fire plays a vital role in maintaining the health of many ecosystems, it can also be a destructive force that puts human communities at risk. Recent ecological research has highlighted how changes in climate and land-management practices can affect fire regimes and their impacts.
Wildfire risk and climate change is the theme of SERI-Fire, a project funded by the National Science Foundation and the National Socio-Environmental Synthesis Center (SESYNC). Participating scientists develop new management strategies to prepare for and respond to wildfires in a changing climate. Learn more about the partners, research, and their findings at Serifire.com.
Research News Spotlight
Bren researchers and students develop solutions to critical environmental problems around the world. We are expanding our scientific understanding, planning and implementing viable solutions, and building sustainable industries.
Decade-long Amazon Soy Moratorium in Brazil Reduced Deforestation
Compounded by a cattle moratorium and multi-sector collaboration, more than 18,000 square kilometers of Amazon forest were saved
Dec 14 2020
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A Global Network of Marine Protected Areas Can Substantially Improve Future Catch
Study reveals expanding existing global MPAs by just 5% can improve future catch by at least 20%
Oct 27 2020
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Synthetic Microfiber Emissions from Wash Cycles Polluting Land Environments
Researchers find that 5.6 million metric tonnes of synthetic microfibers have been emitted from apparel washing onto terrestrial environments
Sep 16 2020
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Global Agricultural Emissions a Barrier to Climate Change Targets
Food system carbon emissions must be reduced considerably to meet the central goals of the Paris Climate Agreement, according to a new study
Nov 7 2020
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Bren Researchers Named to 2020 Highly Cited List
Professors Costello, Halpern, Suh, and Tilman are among the most influential researchers in the world.
Nov 18 2020