TED Talks
TED: How to stop the next pandemic? Stop deforestation | Neil Vora
Clearing tropical forests isn't just dangerous to the natural world — it's also a threat to human health and wellbeing, says physician Neil Vora. Tracing how environmental devastation led to deadly epidemics like Ebola, he presents three...
TED-Ed
The world's largest organism | Alex Rosenthal
The largest animal in the world is the blue whale, which weighs a massive 150 metric tons. Even so, it's not remotely close to being the largest organism by weight. That title goes to an organism so huge that it's estimated to weigh the...
TED Talks
TED: Ecology from the air | Greg Asner
What are our forests really made of? From the air, ecologist Greg Asner uses a spectrometer and high-powered lasers to map nature in meticulous kaleidoscopic 3D detail -- what he calls "a very high-tech accounting system" of carbon. In...
SciShow
Cutting Beef Could Reduce Emissions. No, Like, a Lot
Switching from beef to a specific kind of vegetarian protein just once a week could have huge environmental benefits, according to a study out this week in Nature. And, in a study in Nature Communications, researchers in the US have...
MinuteEarth
The Great Acceleration
We’re in the middle of a rapid, unprecedented, and world-changing increase in the intensity and scale of human activity on this planet.
TED Talks
Ashwin Naidu: The link between fishing cats and mangrove forest conservation
Mangrove forests are crucial to the health of the planet, gobbling up CO2 from the atmosphere and providing a home for a diverse array of species. But these rich habitats are under continual threat from deforestation and industry. In an...
SciShow
5 Ways Humans Have Changed The Earth
We are approaching a whole new era! . . .or at least a new epoch. Michael Aranda explains how humans are leaving their mark on the Geologic Time Scale.
TED-Ed
TED-Ed: What if there were 1 trillion more trees? | Jean-François Bastin
Today humanity produces more than 1,400 tons of carbon every minute. To combat climate change, we need to reduce fossil fuel emissions, and draw down excess CO2 to restore the balance of greenhouse gases. Like all plants, trees consume...
Be Smart
How Many Trees Are There?
It may be an impossible questions, but we can at least get close.
TED Talks
TED: Hopeful lessons from the battle to save rainforests | Tasso Azevedo
Save the rainforest is an environmental slogan as old as time — but Tasso Azevedo catches us up on how the fight is actually going these days. Spurred by the jaw-dropping losses of the 1990s, new laws (and transparent data) are helping...
TED-Ed
TED-Ed: How smart are orangutans? - Lu Gao
Along with humans, orangutans belong to the Hominidae family tree, which stretches back 14 million years. But it's not just their striking red hair that makes orangutans unique among our great ape cousins. Lu Gao shares some amazing...
TED-Ed
TED-Ed: Which type of milk is best for you? | Jonathan J. O'Sullivan and Grace E. Cunningham
If you go to the store in search of milk, there are a dizzying number of products to choose from. There's dairy milk, but also plant-based products such as almond, soy, and oat milks. So which milk is actually best for you? And which...
Crash Course
What Are Ecosystems? Crash Course Geography
Today we're going to take a closer look at ecosystems -- which are communities of living organisms in an area interacting with their environment -- and how this relationship between the amount of energy a place receives and the movement...
Bozeman Science
Forestry and Rangelands
In this video Paul Andersen explains how forests and rangelands are managed to provide renewable lumber and cattle. Threats to renewability of forests include old-growth logging, forest fires, and tree plantations. Threats to renewable...
Bozeman Science
Environmental Science
In this video Paul Andersen outlines the AP Environmental Science course. He explains how environmental science studies the interaction between earth and human systems. A planetary boundary model is used to explain the importance of...
Curated Video
Why Tree Planting Campaigns Don’t Work
In 2019, a Turkey tree planting campaign set a world record. Three months later, 90% of those saplings were dead. Planting trees to replace old-growth forests is a common solution, but it typically does not solve the problem. With...
Curated Video
Carbon Capture: Artificial Trees
Artificial trees: what are they? How do they work? And how could they help to prevent climate change in the future? Human Geography - A Changing World - Learning Points. The rate of climate change is increasing because of the increasing...
Curated Video
Deforestation
Discover how the destruction of the rainforest impacts ecosystems, and begins a cycle that contributes to global warming. Earth Science - Human Impacts - Learning Points. Forests are home to 70% of Earth's land animals and plants....
Curated Video
Palm Oil: Biofuel of the Future?
Explore whether the production of palm-oil biodiesel is sustainable. Do the positive impacts for farmers and consumers outweigh the negative impacts on the rainforest environment? Earth Science - Earth's Resources - Learning Points. Palm...
Curated Video
The Greenhouse Effect
Without the greenhouse effect, our planet would be too cold to inhabit, but it's currently a major cause of global warming. What is the greenhouse effect, and why is it such a conundrum? Earth Science - Human Impacts - Learning Points....
Curated Video
Fold Mountains: Uses
Fold mountains provide a challenge for humans in many ways. What are the uses of this terrain around the world? And how do these effect the environment of fold mountain ranges? Earth Science - Geology - Learning Points. The impressive...
Curated Video
The Carbon Cycle
Through organic matter, rocks and the oceans, the element central to all life on Earth is constantly on the move. Earth Science - Earth's Resources - Learning Points. The carbon cycle is a transfer of carbon between living matter and the...
Curated Video
Brazil: Agricultural Revolution
With global food need increasing, but less new agricultural land available, progressive agricultural methods are needed to feed the world. See some of those methods in action in Brazil. Human Geography - A Changing World - In the last...
Curated Video
Ecosystem Management: Tropical Rainforests
The Amazon rainforest is being cut down for resources and land at a rapid rate. Learn how alternative farming methods, incentives to cut carbon emissions and protected reserves are helping to conserve the rainforest from further harm....