EarthLab News
Finding My Place in Climate Work Beyond the Lab
By Angelina Durbin
Climate Health Risk Tool Communications Intern, Summer 2025
For the majority of my life, I believed that climate work had a single entry point. If I wanted to make a meaningful contribution, I needed to be an engineer or a researcher who spent hours in the lab each day. This belief was instilled in me early on due to my educational background.
University of Washington's EarthLab Announces Two New Grant Programs to Advance Climate and Environmental Justice Research
EarthLab, an institute at the University of Washington College of the Environment, just announced the launch of two new grant programs designed to accelerate community-engaged climate change and environmental justice research. The Incubator Grants and Rapid Response Grants are now accepting applications through March 6, 2026. Both programs offer twelve-month awards of up to $10,000 to eligible University of Washington faculty, staff, and research scientists across all three campuses (Bothell, Seattle, and Tacoma).
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Now Hiring: Grants and Financial Manager
Are you passionate about environmental issues? Are you looking for a career that utilizes your grants/financial/budgets experience in service of a world where people and our planet thrive? Are you committed to centering equity and justice in your work? Apply today to be EarthLab's next Grants and Financial Manager!
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An Olympic orientation: UW Climate Impacts Group and Washington Sea Grant pilot a learning institute for emerging environmental professionals
Sixteen emerging environmental professionals – of different backgrounds, but together undertaking a new chapter in their careers near where the Elwha empties itself into the Strait of Juan de Fuca, on the Olympic Peninsula. They were part of a new week-long professional development opportunity designed through a partnership between the UW Climate Impacts Group and Washington Sea Grant. EarthLab team members supported the project and the story.
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Applying for the Research Fellowship Program
The Northwest Climate Adaptation Science Center (NW CASC) Research Fellowship Program supports research related to climate adaptation for Northwest natural and cultural resource management and provides training in the principles and practices of developing decision-relevant science. The NW CASC invites applications for its 2026-2027 Research Fellowship Program from graduate students at University of Washington (UW), Boise State University (BSU), Oregon State University (OSU), Portland State University (PSU) University of Montana (UM), Washington State University (WSU) and Western Washington University (WWU) and from postdoctoral scholars at BSU, OSU, PSU, UM, WSU and WWU (this fellowship cannot provide funding for postdocs at UW).
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Food Waste to Fuel: The Biodigester Project in South Park
Can food waste become a catalyst for climate justice, clean energy and community resilience? A 2024–25 EarthLab Innovation Grant supported a collaboration between the Duwamish Valley Sustainability Association (DVSA)—a community organization that supports equitable economic growth without harmful impacts to the environment, the Just Circular Communities Collaborative (JC3), and a University of Washington (UW) research team to explore that question. As a next phase that grows from a small, pilot anaerobic biodigester at Food Lifeline in collaboration with DVSA, they conducted a feasibility study on installing a large-scale anaerobic biodigester within the South Park neighborhood, a technology that turns food waste into biogas and liquid plant food.
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An Anchor Through Shifting Tides: Annual Community Dinners Foster Connection, Collaboration for Nature and Health
What keeps a tradition alive? Is it the strength of an idea? The dedication of the people who uphold it? For the Nature and Health community dinner, it’s both. And more. Participants in the first Nature and Health Community Dinner talk around a large table at Ravenna BreweryFor a decade, the organization has hosted quarterly dinners to bring together transdisciplinary, intergenerational groups of people who care about the intersections of nature and health.
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EarthLab Releases Second Annual Impact Report, Highlighting Community-Led Climate Solutions and Resilience
SEATTLE, WA – November 13, 2025
The University of Washington’s EarthLab released its second annual impact report today, documenting fiscal year 2025 achievements in community-centered environmental research and action. The report highlights how trust-based partnerships are driving climate solutions across Washington state.
“This past year has reminded me that everything we do begins with trust,” said Phil Levin, Interim Executive Director of EarthLab.
Q&A with EarthLab Grants Manager Becca Hart
On the profound ripple effect of administrative support across climate resilience research during difficult times
By Tess Wrobleski
Federal funding for climate research has been cut dramatically since the beginning of this year, and the federal landscape continues to be precarious. In the face of this uncertainty, Grants Manager Becca Hart and the entire EarthLab finance and administration team has stepped into a critical role in our shared services network — helping researchers rapidly pivot, find new resources, and keep vital environmental justice work alive.
EarthLab extends Strategic Plan through 2028
EarthLab has released an updated and extended strategic plan to guide the next three years of our work. This document reflects a shared commitment aligning our diverse partners — from Tribes and nonprofits to students and faculty — around a common vision for climate action. In times of uncertainty, this roadmap helps us make decisions that honor both our mission and the communities we serve, ensuring that our efforts create lasting, equitable impact.
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