Climate diplomats worldwide will gather in Warsaw, Poland, Nov. 11-22 for the 19th annual United Nations Climate Change Conference. Duke University's Nicholas Institute for Environmental Policy Solutions will be among those at the negotiations. Staff will host a side event with the German Marshall Fund focused on energy technology, serve as advisors to a delegation of Duke students assisting stakeholder organizations and developing country parties in negotiations and debut materials intended to inform talks on the issue of reducing emissions from deforestation and degradation (REDD+).

Linwood Pendleton, director of the Nicholas Institute's Ocean and Coastal Policy Program, shared his expertise on marine protected areas (MPAs) in France at the 3rd International Marine Protected Areas Congress. There, he discussed tools for enforcement and management of MPAs and talked with Ocean+TV about his research.

Even as hopes for a binding international agreement to substantially reduce global greenhouse gas emissions have faded, a bottom-up international climate policy regime is emerging. Duke's Billy Pizer, during a recent seminar at Harvard, responded to the excitement about expanding carbon markets by addressing one of the risks associated with linking programs: the prospect of delinking linked systems. 

Educating the next generation of environmental leaders is one of the many ways the Nicholas Institute helps bridge the gap between science and policy. With Duke's spring registration now open, learn more about the courses being taught by Nicholas Institute staff. 

Douglas Wheeler, Duke alumnus and a newly appointed member of the Nicholas Institute's Board of Advisors, discusses his work as an environmental lawyer focused on federal regulatory issues in this Q&A.

The Marine Ecosystem Services Partnership, an initiative of the Nicholas Institute, became a member of the International Coral Reef Initiative (ICRI) this month. The ICRI is an informal partnership of nations and organizations focused on preserving coral reefs and related ecosystems around the world.

The Nicholas Institute's annual report, which highlights work to help decision makers create timely, effective and economically practical solutions to the world's critical environmental challenges is now available. The report provides an overview of fiscal year 2013 accomplishments, including programmatic milestones, selected research publications and ground-breaking work on blue carbon.

Three panelists shared their experiences with adaptive management and discussed the science on three major western rivers during the recent two-day symposium, "Adaptive Management: Intersection of Science and Governance in Western Water." The event was co-hosted by the Nicholas Institute and the Nicholas School of the Environment. 

During the fall semester, the Nicholas Institute welcomed two new additions to our staff: Policy Analyst Caitlin Hamer and Water Policy Associate Lauren Patterson.