Yale Environment Review

Creating a sustainable world requires evaluating all dimensions--including children's toys. While many toys still offer benefits after normal wear and tear, 80 percent end up in landfills. Often controversial for the direct risks posed to humans, toys also pose a risk to the environment in their design, production, and life cycle. YER writer Dilara Karademir summarizes recent research in our newest article.

Most materials are recyclable, so why can’t children’s toys be sustainable? Toy consumption is a global contributor for ongoing issues about environmental justice and climate change. Each year, 60 million Barbie dolls are sold, contributing emissions equivalent to burning 381 million gallons of gasoline. In France, 40 million toys are discarded into landfills annually, and....

Nearly 2.4 billion people (about 40 percent of the world’s population) live within 100 kilometers of the coast. As coastal cities continue to grow, so too will their influence as actors in shaping sustainable development.

A new paper highlights the largely overlooked role of ocean cities in international legal frameworks to address environmental degradation in marine and coastal environments.

Kirsten Williams explains more in our latest article:

Sustainability at the Ocean-City Nexus: A New Frontier in Ocean Governance Traditionally, international legal frameworks only include national governments. Those governments then dictate whether cities can act independently in exercising authority over natural resource management and land use development. The established frameworks generally underestimate the unique contri...

Fear is a powerful force--and can be misdirected with devestating effects. When discussing climate change, media and news outlets often focus on its negative impacts and the threats it poses. Current research reveals that this approach not only fails to promote more pro-environmental behavior, but it may also heighten racist attitudes.

These findings highlight the importance of discussing global warming in a way that does not solely focus on its negative consequences, but also provides actionable suggestions on how to tackle climate change.

Focusing on the negative impacts of climate change may heighten racist beliefs When discussing climate change, media and news outlets often focus on its negative impacts and the threats it poses. Current research reveals that this approach not only fails to promote more pro-environmental behavior, but it may also heighten racist attitudes. These findings highlight the importan...