Climate Change

Ag Tech For Small Farms Highlighted at UC Merced Expo

November 26, 2025

Depicted is a sign reading "UC Merced Experimental Smart Farm" with the university campus in the background.

An expo at UC Merced next week will bring together farmers, ranchers, researchers and community organizers to highlight what's possible when agriculture technology is designed for small farms. The Small Farm Tech Expo , scheduled for 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Tuesday, Dec. 2, will include hands-...

Shakespeare’s ‘Dream’ Delights Yosemite Visitors for Earth Day Weekend

“April ... hath put a spirit of youth in everything,” Shakespeare wrote in Sonnet 98. He might as well have been writing about this year’s Shakespeare in Yosemite production....

Sierra Nevada forest tree trunks in a mechanically-thinned forest.

Billions of Gallons of Water Saved by Thinning Sierra Forests

There are too many trees in Sierra Nevada forests, say experts from UC Merced, UC Irvine and the National Park Service working at the National Science Foundation Southern Sierra Critical Zone...

Sustainable California Video Highlights UC Water Academy Experience

April is Earth Month. It’s also when UC Water Academy — an intensive course aimed at training the next generation of California water experts — starts its second year. To mark...

A bird's-eye view of browning forest due to the effects of drought.

Scientists Explain Mechanisms Affecting Runoff Levels During Drought

Scientists at UC Merced’s Sierra Nevada Research Institute (SNRI), UC Irvine, UC Davis and the USDA Forest Service have enumerated the mechanisms that serve as master regulators of streamflow...

Study: Climate Change, Drought Threaten Giant Sequoias

A new study published online in the Journal of Geophysical Research: Biogeosciences finds that the giant sequoia, a fixture of California’s Sierra Nevada forests for the past 2.6 million years...

‘Energize Colleges’ Sustainability Internships Available

UC Merced’s sustainability office is seeking undergraduate students who are thinking about careers in energy to fill this fall’s Energize Colleges internships. UC Merced is one of...

Two men pose with an oversized check on stage at a check presentation ceremony for the PG&E award to SNRI.

PG&E Funds Critical SNRI Work on Sierra Forest Resiliency

A team of UC Merced researchers was recently awarded $100,000 from Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG&E) to identify ways to improve drought resilience and reduce the risk of wildfire in Sierra...

Study: Critical Sierra Meadows Being Overtaken by Forest

Subalpine meadows are among the Sierra Nevada’s most enchantingly picturesque landscapes. These sparsely wooded, grassy expanses are home to plants and animals found nowhere else, and they play an...

Study: Wildfires, Climate Change Could Make Sierra a Polluter

What if nature were to become a polluter, discharging millions of tons of planet-warming carbon into the atmosphere in much the same way as diesel-fueled trucks or coal-fired power plants? This...