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Olivia Box

Olivia Box

Olivia is a writer, beekeeper, and an ecologist. Currently, she is a graduate student at the University of Vermont where she is studying forests threatened by climate change and invasive pests. Her freelance work has been featured in Northern Woodlands, Massive Science, and The Counter. You can follow her work at  @oliviafaybox or see her complete portfolio here.
Mt. Ontake spews volcanic ash on September 28, 2014 in Otaki, Japan
Natural Science

After the Volcano Erupts

The catastrophic eruption of Japan’s Ontake-san allowed residents to reconsider and reinvent their relationships to the mountainous landscape.
An amazing looking super cell storm cloud forming on the east coast of Queensland, Australia.
Science & Technology

Ecosystems and Extreme Weather Events

Cyclones, droughts, and other severe climate events produce a variety of ecological responses, some of them irreversible.
Plants and saplings growing in a previously logged area of a foggy forest in the Cascade Range of Oregon.
Science & Technology

Reforestation: It’s A Trade-Off

While reforestation may help address the climate crisis, implementation requires long-term flexibility, careful listening, and an ability to compromise.
An electric car charges at a mall parking lot on June 27, 2022 in Corte Madera, California.
Science & Technology

How Much Does It Cost to Reduce Carbon Emissions?

Analyses including both static and dynamic costs can help us make better decisions while developing technologies to address climate change.
Meji Jingu Shrine on December 15, 2012 in Tokyo, Japan
Education & Society

Sacred Trees in Japan

In the modern city of Tokyo, mature forests and trees form a spiritual bridge between past and present.
A White-crowned Sparrow
Plants & Animals

A Noisy City Affects Birdsong

As anthropogenic ambient noise increases in urban areas, birds adapt their songs to make themselves heard.
A no parking sign stands in the increased surf brought in by Tropical Storm Alberto June 13, 2006 in Cedar Key, Florida.
Science & Technology

Improving Communications Around Climate Change

How can scientists better explain the potential hazards of sea-level rise to historic coastal communities?
Fish swimming in underwater kelp forest
Plants & Animals

Turf Algae and Kelp Forests

Structurally complex kelp forests, pushed beyond their tipping points, are being replaced by mat-like, low-structure turf algae around the world.
Photograph: NPS employee talking to visitors in the Tuolumme Meadows in Yosemite National Park. Source:https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:HFCA_1607_NPS_Employees,_Women_512.jpg_(a3046c74ddc24fe6bc480fae94f4ce43).jpg
Education & Society

National Parks Are for Everyone

The majority of national park visitors—roughly seventy-eight percent—are white? Why, and why does that need to change?
Mono Lake
Science & Technology

The Imperiled Inland Sea

Twenty years ago, scholar W. D. Williams predicted the loss of salt lakes around the world.
Frankfurt, Germany
Science & Technology

Can We Cool Warming Cities?

The new, hotter normal requires urban planners and city governments to consider heat hazards when creating climate action plans.
Teenage boy stands looking ahead with power plant fumes behind him
Science & Technology

Young People and Eco-Anxiety

As problems caused by climate change become more acute, so too does the eco-anxiety of the world's youth.
An illustration of a man holding tomatoes
Plants & Animals

Choose the Correct Cover Crop

Organic tomato farmers know that cover crops are key for ensuring adequate nitrogen supply in the soil each year. But not all covers are equal.
Trawler Fishing Off The Coast Of Shetland
Plants & Animals

When Too Many Fish Causes a Conservation Problem

Marine reserves may solve a common but challenging bycatch problem in fisheries.
an aerial view of The south eastern region of Malta
Science & Technology

Sustainability in One of the Smallest Countries

Surrounded by rising seas, island nations face particular challenges in terms of growth. How can they best assess the sustainability of future development?
an overflowing trash can
Science & Technology

Food Waste: A Persistent Problem

Even when people think wasting food is bad, they tend to toss out as much (or more) food than they eat. Can that behavior be changed?
A group of great tits (Parus major) on a branch
Plants & Animals

Angry Birds: Climate Change and Avian Migration

Temperature fluctuations throughout the years are affecting bird migration and mating, with sometimes violent results.
People walk on the Jialing River bed during a drought period on December 12, 2007 in Chongqing Municipality, China.
Science & Technology

How Can Cities Keep Water Clean Now and in the Future?

As "megacities" grow in Africa and Asia, assuring residents long-term access to clean water may require a multidisciplinary approach.
A group of children holding up a small globe
Science & Technology

Making Climate Communication Nature-Driven

How climate change is represented in popular media allows us to avoid the complex, interconnected roles humans have played to create it.
Site of Thoreau's Hut, Concord, Mass
Plants & Animals

Using Thoreau’s Notebooks to Understand Climate Change

Thoreau's time at Walden Pond has provided substantial data for scientists monitoring the effects of a warming climate on the area's plant life.
A forest in Maine
Plants & Animals

Forests as Fuel: Is Bioenergy Carbon Neutral?

Can using forest harvests for biofuel be carbon neutral? A case study of the Northern Forest appears to say "no."
Green-Wood Cemetery with Manhattan in background
Science & Technology

Restoration in the Heart of the City

Green-Wood cemetery in New York City is also a site of urban grassland management and restoration, an effort to mitigate its contributions to climate change.
Flaring off gas at the Flotta oil terminal on the Island of Flotta in the Orkney's Scotland
Science & Technology

Marketed as Natural, this Gas is Complicated

The substitution of natural gas for coal is not a simple matter. The same concerns about climate and environment remain, along with new impacts.
Canopy gaps in a forest
Plants & Animals

Canopy Gaps Define Growth in the Forest

Gaps in the forest canopy can reveal important information, and result in regeneration.
A bodega in the Castle Hill section of the Bronx
Education & Society

A Food Desert in an Urban Neighborhood

Food deserts have complex causes, and require multiple solutions.

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