News from the Media

Tawny Simisky, entomologist, UMass Extension's Landscape, Nursery and Urban Forestry Program, provides an update on the emergence of cicada broods XIII and XIX, and the messaging that pest management professionals and landscape professionals can share about these periodical visitors.

Around this time of year, cranberries are a traditional and cherished addition to the holiday table—andUMass researchers are working to ensure that these beloved burgundy gems will thrive for generations to come.

A team of sustainability scientists, led by senior author Ana Quiñónez Camarillo and co-author, Timothy Randhir, have developed a community-based framework to help assess and respond to ecological threats. The framework is based on the local perception of threats, consequences, and solutions (TCS) which are easier to understand than "extremely theoretical scientific frameworks," Randhir says. “One of the biggest issues facing international sustainability efforts is that smaller,​ less economically developed ​countries often don’t have the resources to conduct nuanced, in-depth surveys of local people and the local environment in the threatened area,” says Quiñónez Camarillo. 

New UMass Amherst research is the first to precisely map how plant nurseries exacerbate the climate-driven spread of 80% of plant species. Bethany Bradley, professor of environmental conservation and senior author of two recently published papers, says one of the major hurdles in addressing the threat of invasive species is determining when and where a species crosses the line from being non-native to invasive. 

The UMass Cranberry Station is essential in supporting the commonwealth's top food crop. Despite challenges, like fruit rot, early frost, and record rainfall, Massachusetts farmers grew 200 million pounds of cranberries last year. The research facility in Wareham provides invaluable research to growers, helping them overcome such challenges. The station is critically important to the cranberry industry,” says John Mason, president of the Cape Cod Cranberry Growers Association.

An article examining billionaire Elon Musk’s environmental record cites research by Jared Starr, environmental conservation, which found that Americans who are in the top 10% of earners are responsible for 40% of the country’s total greenhouse gas emissions. “Musk is a complicated figure. On one hand, he’s played a critical role in popularising EV and battery storage with Tesla. On the other, he’s flying space tourists on missions that create a huge amount of pollution. Private jets also use a lot of fossil fuel, so he would himself be in the super-emitter category," Starr explains. 

Ezra Markowitz, environmental conservation, comments on a new “state of the climate report” that warns, “Life on planet Earth is under siege.” Markowitz says individual behaviors need to be framed as collective action to combat climate change. “It’s about becoming a part of a larger movement,” he says.

Christine Hatch, Earth, geographic and climate sciences explains how former cranberry bogs can be restored back into wetlands. “This is such a slam-dunk in terms of restoration,” she says. “[Cranberries are] an iconic state crop. However, some of these lands just aren’t going to turn a profit.” 

Christine Hatch, Extension Professor, Earth, geographic and climate sciences, discusses her research and teaching focusing on wetlands and her involvement with the Eureka! at UMass, program that mentors eighth through 12th grade girls in pursuing education and careers in STEM fields. Hatch also discusses the Integrated Concentration in STEM (iCons) Program for UMass Amherst undergraduates.