Sustaining agricultural productivity amidst population growth, climate change, water scarcity, and declining soil health presents a daunting global challenge. California, currently in its fourth year of severe drought, serves as ground zero for these unprecedented pressures on farmers and supply chains. This plenary uses California as a case study to highlight key strategies and tough choices for feeding the world's seven billion people while preserving the planet.

Speakers include Brooke Barton (Senior Program Director, Water Program, Ceres), Dennis Dimick (Executive Editor, Environment, National Geographic Magazine), Janet Ranganathan (Vice President for Science and Research, World Resources Institute), and J. Miles Reiter (Chairman, Driscoll's Inc.).

Dame Ellen MacArthur, a record-breaking yachtswoman, shares her inspiring journey. Her solo global sailing experience underscored the critical need for resource management, mirroring humanity's broader challenge.

She transitioned into an international champion for the circular economy. This system change advocates retaining the value of vital, finite resources, moving away from one-way consumption models.

Her presentation is followed by a Q&A with Jack Ehnes, CEO of the California State Teachers Retirement System and a Ceres Board member.

Published on June 23, 2015, this content features EPA Administrator Gina McCarthy's keynote address at the Ceres Conference 2015.

McCarthy discussed the Clean Power Plan, climate change, and the crucial role businesses and investors play in transitioning to a clean energy economy.

Ceres and Bloomberg New Energy Finance (BNEF) released "Mapping the Gap: The Road from Paris," a report exploring how to finance the global clean energy transition. Michael Liebreich (BNEF) presented its findings at the 2016 Investor Summit on Climate Risk at the U.N. headquarters in NYC.

The report reveals a significant $12.1 trillion global renewable energy investment opportunity in the electric sector over the next 25 years.

Download the full report and learn about Ceres' Clean Trillion initiative. Explore details on the Investor Summit on Climate Risk.

Paul Morrell, OBE, addresses critical challenges facing built environment professions, emphasizing the need for adaptability. He advocates for collaborative reforms in sector structure, education, policy, and accountability to enhance efficiency and societal value.

Many institutions, rooted in Victorian principles, struggle in today's world of technological shifts, blurring professional lines, and a discerning public. Morrell questions how they can update their past to remain relevant.

He highlights a critical "performance gap": buildings often fail to deliver on promises of health, well-being, and low-carbon impact, a systemic failure of the professions to address.

The Pachamama Alliance is a non-profit organization dedicated to creating a just, thriving, and sustainable world for all. Its work originated in the Amazon rainforest, responding to a call from indigenous partners.

From these beginnings, the Alliance's message has spread globally, advocating for a better future.

Indigenous leaders, directly affected by the Ecuador and Andes Petroleum contract, held a January 28 press conference in Quito. They declared the government's consultation process illegal and illegitimate, rejecting oil exploration in blocks 79 and 83, and further development in the South-Central region. More details are available on the Pachamama website and their YouTube channel.

Manari Shigua of the Sápara people testified that UNESCO's designation of Sápara culture as "Oral heritage of humanity" implies all resources in their territory are world heritage. He asserted the Ecuadorian government must consult the world before exploiting these resources, especially those opposed by the people.

Leif Wenar, author of "Blood Oil: Tyrants, Violence, and the Rules That Run the World," delivered a talk at Town Hall Seattle on January 27, 2016. He argued that the principle "might makes right" must be retired. Wenar serves as the Chair of Philosophy Law at King's College London, having studied at Stanford and Harvard under John Rawls, Robert Nozick, and T.M. Scanlon.

His expertise includes property rights and international ethics. For more details on his work, visit his King's College London profile or CleanTrade.org. "Blood Oil" is available for purchase via Amazon or at your local bookstore.

Sam Pizzigati, an Associate Fellow at the Institute for Policy Studies, discusses his new book, "The Rich Don't Always Win: The Forgotten Triumph Over Plutocracy That Created the American Middle Class, 1900-1970."

Pizzigati also edits the Too Much blog. Explore more content from the Institute for Policy Studies on their YouTube channel.

The book is available to order from Amazon or at your local bookstore.

Published by McKinsey & Company on January 17, 2016, this article explores how technology-driven trends will revolutionize industry responses to evolving consumer behavior, partnership development, and transformational change.

For more details on these disruptive trends, particularly within the auto industry, visit the full report here.

Alejandro Aravena, tasked with building housing for 100 families in Chile, found inspiration in favelas and slums. Rather than conventional small units, he designed flexible "half-homes" that families could expand. This innovative, simple solution arose from direct collaboration with the families themselves.

Aravena presents three projects demonstrating how clever rethinking leads to beautiful, beneficial design. He emphasizes, "With the right design, sustainability is nothing but the rigorous use of common sense."

Find closed captions and translated subtitles for this talk at ted.com/translate.

Published January 14, 2016, Jessica M. Vaughan, Director of Policy Studies for the Center for Immigration Studies, stated, "Our compassion has to be backed up by our wallets," discussing the financial implications of aiding Syrian refugees.

Watch the full Intelligence Squared US debate here.

Hector De La Torre from the Air Resources Board discussed with Climate One how evolving generations are changing their vehicle use.

This discussion was published by Climate One on January 14, 2016.

The RSA was thrilled to host Sir David Attenborough and explorer/conservationist Tim Flannery.

They spoke passionately about the era-defining issue of climate change.

We spoke with guest editors Stephan Lewandowsky, Chair in Cognitive Psychology at the University of Bristol, and Richard Pancost, Professor of Biochemistry. They discussed their contributions to *Philosophical Transactions*.

Their work explores the complex relationship between scientific uncertainty regarding climate change and knowledge drawn from physical, economic, and social perspectives. This interdisciplinary examination offers valuable insights into a critical global issue.

International law currently recognizes four major crimes: war crimes, genocide, torture, and crimes against humanity. However, Spanish magistrate Baltasar Garzón and Scottish lawyer Polly Higgins advocate for expanding this list to include a fifth: ecocide.

They aim to establish ecocide as an international crime, thereby placing the large-scale destruction of ecosystems high on the global political agenda. This initiative was highlighted by VPRO Backlight on November 30, 2015.

Shell is preparing another attempt to extract an estimated 400 billion barrels of oil and gas from the Arctic. However, drilling in this region is expensive and dangerous.

Falling oil prices and potential government action could jeopardize Shell's ambitions in the face of these significant challenges.

For further reading, see This Changes Everything by Naomi Klein here. Published by The Guardian on July 16, 2015.

Governments from over 190 nations will convene at the UN 2015 Paris Climate Conference (November 30 – December 11) to forge a new global agreement on climate change.

This year's summit holds greater promise than the unsuccessful 2009 Copenhagen meeting. Optimism stems from the growth of renewable energy and evolving stances among major polluters, including the US.

For further reading, visit the Guardian website. Explore related videos: "Could Arctic oil drilling save the climate?" Watch here and "Naomi Klein: This Changes Everything" Watch here.

This Royal Society animation introduces key concepts of unconscious bias. It aims to educate members of selection and appointment panels on recognizing bias in themselves and others, understanding diverse candidate presentations, and identifying inappropriate advocacy or unreasoned judgment.

For more information on unconscious bias, including current academic research, download a briefing at www.royalsociety.org/diversity.

This "Innovate and Inspire" presentation, published on November 6, 2015, features Sandra Postel.

Postel is the Director of the Water Policy Project and a Freshwater Fellow with the National Geographic Society.