One Earth

Material price surges threaten an equitable and timely renewable energy transition Achieving climate targets hinges on rapid solar and wind expansion, especially in developing economies. Rising material prices threaten the affordability of this transition, while their long-term impacts remain poorly explored. Here, we incorporate material price dynamics into an integrated assessment model through 2050 and show that long-term price spikes could raise global annual installation costs by up to $228 billion and delay PV and wind power deployment in developing regions by 5–8 years, undermining efficient and equitable transitions.

Online now: Material price surges threaten an equitable and timely renewable energy transition

Imported solar photovoltaics contributed to health and climate benefits in the United States Global supply chains have helped drive the rapid deployment of solar photovoltaics, but their broader societal benefits are often overlooked. Here, we estimate that imported solar panels in the US displaced 305 TWh of fossil generation, avoided 178 million tons of CO2, and prevented 595 premature deaths between 2014 and 2022. These findings highlight how the international clean energy supply chain delivers substantial climate and health benefits—critical evidence for informing energy policy and supply chain resilience debates.

Online now: Imported solar photovoltaics contributed to health and climate benefits in the United States

Upcycling trace amounts of biomass waste into flash graphene can boost crop yields by more than a quarter and offer climate benefits Scaling biochar for soil fertility, carbon sequestration, and food security faces challenges due to biomass limitations and energy-intensive production. Nano-enabled foliar feeding offers promise but lacks field-scale validation for overall sustainability. We propose an on-site platform producing flash graphene (FG) from a miniscule volume of crop residues. Field applications of just 18 g FG per hectare increased yields by 9%–27% across four staple crops over two seasons while significantly reducing costs and emissions. This innovation paves the way for scalable and sustainable nano-enabled agriculture.

Online now: Upcycling trace amounts of biomass waste into flash graphene can boost crop yields by more than a quarter and offer climate benefits

Long-term moderate warming shifts soil carbon cycling but maintains carbon sinks in a subtropical forest Climate warming increases both above- and below-ground temperatures, altering plant-soil interactions and reshaping soil organic carbon dynamics. This study offers rare experimental evidence on how these interactions influence the responses of different soil organic carbon fractions to warming over time.

Online now: Long-term moderate warming shifts soil carbon cycling but maintains carbon sinks in a subtropical forest

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Join a special panel discussion exploring the plastics economy, and ask your publishing questions to our experienced Cell Press editors Vjekoslav Dekaris (Chem) & Xiaoxiao Qiao (Chem Catalysis) @CellSymposia #CSPlastics2025
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Join us Oct 22, 2025, 9:30am ET for the Cell Press Forum on Sustainability: Urban decarbonization – Priorities for COP30. #CPWebinars
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Online now: Leave no one behind in the UN Ocean Decade

Socioeconomic well-being losses of Australia’s Black Summer fires (2019–2020): Burden by burned area, poverty, and gender This study examines the impact of the 2019–2020 Australian Black Summer wildfires on socioeconomic well-being across poverty, gender, and geographical areas. Using a quasi-experimental approach, the authors find that poorer communities faced greater housing pressure and unpaid work burden, while urban-wildland zones experienced sharp income declines. These findings underscore the importance of incorporating well-being metrics—beyond physical damage—in wildfire recovery planning and provide globally relevant insights for equitable climate disaster response.

Online now: Socioeconomic well-being losses of Australia’s Black Summer fires (2019–2020): Burden by burned area, poverty, and gender

Global flux of perfluoroalkyl acids from glaciers in a warming climate Global warming is accelerating the release of perfluoroalkyl acids (PFAAs) from melting glaciers, yet their release fluxes remain poorly quantified on a global scale. This study combines field and literature data with machine learning and a glacier mass balance model to estimate PFAA fluxes from glaciers worldwide. By quantifying fluxes in both dissolved and particle-bound phases under three warming scenarios, the study identifies regional hotspots of concern and defines a critical time window for action. These findings shed light on PFAA cycling in the cryosphere and inform policy responses.

Online now: Global flux of perfluoroalkyl acids from glaciers in a warming climate

Managing the reduction of soil phosphorus can prolong global reserves of fertilizer phosphorus and improve water quality Phosphorus fertilizer helps crops grow but comes from limited resources. Many farms have used too much, raising soil levels beyond what is needed, thus increasing phosphorus losses to rivers and lakes and causing harmful algal blooms. By stopping unnecessary use, soil phosphorus drops over time. A global study found this could save large amounts of fertilizer, worth around 230 billion USD, and improve water quality for about 3 billion people, all while still supporting strong crop growth. Efficient phosphorus use means less waste, lower costs, and less pollution.

Online now: Managing the reduction of soil phosphorus can prolong global reserves of fertilizer phosphorus and improve water quality

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Continued global warming from aviation even under high-ambition mitigation scenarios The International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) has set ambitious CO2 mitigation goals, but the ultimate climate effects are unclear. Here, we use a climate model to analyze the resulting global temperature change from the aviation sector, considering also non-CO2 emissions that are not included in the ICAO goals. The results indicate that aviation-induced warming will more than double by 2070, even under the most ambitious mitigation scenario that ends the use of fossil jet fuels by 2040, due to residual life cycle CO2 emissions and non-CO2 effects.

Online now: Continued global warming from aviation even under high-ambition mitigation scenarios

Unlocking legacy phosphorus sustains yields and reduces emissions with paddy-upland rotation cultivation Intensive phosphorus fertilization has saturated soils in China’s Yangtze River Basin, fueling water pollution and depleting nonrenewable phosphate rock. Our 13-year rice-wheat trial shows that omitting P fertilizer during flooded rice seasons mobilizes legacy soil P to sustain yields and cut P runoff by 23%. Scaling this practice could reduce fertilizer demand by 71 Gg yearly, lower runoff by 2.3 Mg, and save millions of dollars, offering a blueprint for nutrient-efficient, sustainable agriculture globally.

Online now: Unlocking legacy phosphorus sustains yields and reduces emissions with paddy-upland rotation cultivation

Mapping the limits to timber traceability at origin: The case of Pará, Brazil Building on the backdrop of new EU Deforestation Regulation, demand for information on timber origins and their socioecological impacts is at an all-time high. Analyzing over a decade of data from public digital systems for tracking timber origins requiring geolocation, we highlight key lessons on the limits of determining true origins. Our findings show how timber volumes at origin link (or not) to forest exploitation. Transparency in data is critical for filling gaps in traceability and socioecological risk assessments.

Online now: Mapping the limits to timber traceability at origin: The case of Pará, Brazil

Potential planetary health impacts of the airborne plastisphere Plastics interact with microorganisms in ways that can profoundly affect ecosystems and human health. Despite their global atmospheric presence, microplastic-microbe interactions in air and their planetary health ramifications remain poorly understood. In this review, by synthesizing emerging evidence, we show that airborne microplastics could carry and sustain microorganisms over long distances and timescales, potentially dispersing pathogens, antibiotic-resistance genes, and other bioactive agents across ecosystems—highlighting an overlooked, multisector planetary health threat and research agenda.

Online now: Potential planetary health impacts of the airborne plastisphere

Revealing hidden extinction risks in China’s flora through dynamic habitat assessment Plant biodiversity in China has continued to decline, driven by increasing extinction risks and severe native habitat loss. Habitat loss remains the primary driver of plant extinction, as evidenced by a nationwide reduction of 2.81% in native habitat over the past 40 years, placing an estimated 5% of plant species at risk. This decline is particularly pronounced in eastern China, where habitat fragmentation and land-use change have further exacerbated biodiversity loss.

Online now: Revealing hidden extinction risks in China’s flora through dynamic habitat assessment

Misrepresented optimum temperatures for global vegetation productivity in Earth system models The temperature at which ecosystem productivity peaks is pivotal for projecting global carbon uptake. Using site-level and remote-sensing data, the authors reveal that Earth system models overestimate this temperature in 60.3% of ecosystems due to underrepresented vegetation structure and water-stress responses, providing key pathways to improve land carbon projections.

Online now: Misrepresented optimum temperatures for global vegetation productivity in Earth system models

Seashell waste reforming suppresses oxygen evolution to produce carbon-negative hydrogen and sustainable single-cell protein Alkaline water electrolysis is gaining momentum for large-scale green hydrogen production but suffers from low productivity. Meanwhile, environmentally damaging limestone mining for calcium carbonate (CaCO3) production is non-sustainable. An alternative is seashell waste (SSW) that contains natural CaCO3, but whether SSW can simultaneously enable efficient green hydrogen production remains elusive. Here, we propose a circular-driven electro-bioprocess that successfully converts SSW to life-cycle carbon-negative green hydrogen at a high production rate of ∼14 L h−1, while also yielding single-cell protein.

Online now: Seashell waste reforming suppresses oxygen evolution to produce carbon-negative hydrogen and sustainable single-cell protein

Seashell waste reforming suppresses oxygen evolution to produce carbon-negative hydrogen and sustainable single-cell protein Alkaline water electrolysis is gaining momentum for large-scale green hydrogen production but suffers from low productivity. Meanwhile, environmentally damaging limestone mining for calcium carbonate (CaCO3) production is non-sustainable. An alternative is seashell waste (SSW) that contains natural CaCO3, but whether SSW can simultaneously enable efficient green hydrogen production remains elusive. Here, we propose a circular-driven electro-bioprocess that successfully converts SSW to life-cycle carbon-negative green hydrogen at a high production rate of ∼14 L h−1, while also yielding single-cell protein.

Online now: Seashell waste reforming suppresses oxygen evolution to produce carbon-negative hydrogen and sustainable single-cell protein

Agriculture breaks down traditional biogeographic barriers of soil fungi Land-use change can profoundly reshape microbial biodiversity. By surveying soil fungi across natural and agricultural ecosystems in China, the authors show that agriculture disrupts traditional biogeographic patterns, promotes generalist species and plant pathogens, and emphasizes the need to consider soil microbes in sustainable land management.

Online now: Agriculture breaks down traditional biogeographic barriers of soil fungi

Under-five mortality burden in low- and middle-income countries set to increase under future warming Zhu et al. provide the global perspective that high-temperature exposure increased the under-5 child mortality in low- and middle-income countries (LIMCs). The child mortality burden attributable to climate warming would increase by over 3-fold under a high-emission scenario by the end of 21st century. The study reveals the vulnerability and inequality of children in LIMCs amid climate warming, emphasizing the urgent need for targeted climate change mitigation and adaptation strategies, especially those in climate-sensitive regions.

Online now: Under-five mortality burden in low- and middle-income countries set to increase under future warming

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Unequal impacts of rising temperatures on global human sentiment Climate change’s emotional toll on humanity remains poorly understood globally. Analyzing over 1.2 billion social media posts from 157 countries, we reveal that temperatures above 35°C significantly worsen human sentiment worldwide. The impact is three times stronger in poorer countries than in wealthy ones, highlighting climate inequality. Future warming could reduce global emotional well-being by 2.3% by 2100. These findings demonstrate that climate change threatens not just physical health and economic stability but also the daily emotional experiences of billions worldwide.

Online now: Unequal impacts of rising temperatures on global human sentiment

Mitigating the risk of natural climate solutions failure through diversified portfolios Natural climate solutions (NCSs) offer promising ways to mitigate climate change, but their effectiveness is often uncertain due to various risks. This study applies modern portfolio theory to NCS strategies, demonstrating how diversifying investments across different pathways can increase the overall success and resilience of carbon sequestration efforts. By strategically combining NCS options, considering geographical contexts and ecosystem types, the approach balances risk reduction with carbon benefit optimization, providing valuable insights for policymakers and land managers to enhance nature-based climate mitigation effectiveness.

Online now: Mitigating the risk of natural climate solutions failure through diversified portfolios

(8/8) This thread highlights the theme pieces, but our full issue contains much more. Zoonotic disease transmission and environmental change, biodiversity integrity, global terrestrial carbon stocks …
Read here: www.cell.com/one-earth/is...

Threshold 32°F Threshold 32°F, a science-art collaborative work by Klara Maisch, Debbie Clarke Moderow, and Rebecca E. Hewitt, reflects on the tipping point when 32°F rises to 33°F, and ice turns to water. Based on ...

(7/8) Visual Earth: “Threshold 32°F”.
www.cell.com/one-earth/fu...
Artist Klara Maisch, writer Debbie Clarke Moderow, and scientist Rebecca E. Hewitt ventured into interior Alaska on a warm September morning. Their journey culminated in the creation of Threshold 32°F.

Warming of northern peatlands increases the global temperature overshoot challenge The study highlights the critical role of northern peatlands in amplifying climate change under overshoot scenarios, that is, when global temperature temporarily exceeds the targeted level. We simulat...

(6/8) Research Article: “Warming of northern peatlands increases the global temperature overshoot challenge”
#OpenAccess: www.cell.com/one-earth/fu...
From: Biqing Zhu, Chunjing Qiu, Thomas Gasser, Philippe Ciais, ..., Wenxin Zhang, Yuan Zhang, Dan Zhu

Q&A with Jan Nitzbon: Permafrost uncertainties and global climate tipping points Dr. Jan Nitzbon, postdoctoral researcher at the Alfred Wegener Institute Helmholtz Centre for Polar and Marine Research, as well as an Earth system scientist, recently spoke with One Earth about Arcti...

(5/8) Q&A with Jan Nitzbon: Permafrost uncertainties and global climate tipping points
www.cell.com/one-earth/fu...

Addressing uncertainties in permafrost-climate interactions Peatlands and permafrost have accumulated and stored organic matter for millennia. Now, anthropogenic climate change is rapidly disrupting the biogeochemical processes of these environments, with pote...

(4/8) We asked the experts: What are the key processes of permafrost and peatland change, and how can uncertainty be reduced?
Insights from Min Jung Kwon, Michelle Walvoord, Isabelle Laurion, Gabriela Schaepman-Strub, Florent Domine, Amanda Koltz, & Carolina Voigt
www.cell.com/one-earth/fu...

(3/8) Our Editorial: “Peatlands and permafrost: Carbon uncertainty” www.cell.com/one-earth/fu...
"... From microbial processes to landscape-scale monitoring, we urgently need a better understanding of the carbon dynamics of the high latitudes. …”