Insights

Turning Tides: Policy, Ethics, and the Promise of Clean Water

Maggie Greenfield with Karenna Gore and Paul Gallay April 22, 2026

DOWNLOAD PDF EXECUTIVE SUMMARY: The United States stands at a pivotal moment in the history of clean water protection. More than fifty years after the Clean Water Act established the national goal of making all waters fishable and swimmable, recent legal decisions and rulemaking have dramatically weakened the Act by narrowing the definition of “Waters of the United States” (WOTUS). This redefinition threatens to remove federal safeguards from more than

CEE to Attend Landmark Conference on Fossil Fuel Phaseout

Clara Chavez-Ives April 21, 2026

The Center for Earth Ethics’ Clara Chavez-Ives, Rosie Semlyen, Samira Siddique and Tory Field will be on the ground in Santa Marta, Colombia, this week for the First Conference on Transitioning Away from Fossil Fuels, hosted by the governments of Colombia and the Netherlands. This historic conference emerged from the annual UN climate conference (COP) last fall in Belém, Brazil, where the COP30 Presidency laid out a vision to create

“The Land of the Long White Cloud”: Roberto Múkaro Borrero Travels to Aotearoa for Treaty of Waitangi Commemoration

Roberto Múkaro Borrero April 21, 2026

The Pacific Island State of New Zealand is known in the Indigenous Māori language as Aotearoa. This term is commonly translated as “the land of the long white cloud.” While originally used by Māori to refer to the North Island, the name is now widely used for the entire country. On February 6, 1840, representatives of the United Kingdom and Māori leaders signed the Treaty of Waitangi, at Waitangi also

Toward a World Beyond Plastics

Rosie Semlyen April 16, 2026

On Saturday, March 21, advocates, organizers and community leaders from across the northeast gathered in Philadelphia for the Beyond Plastics Regional Conference, under the theme, Radical Optimism for a World Beyond Plastics. The day brought together frontline community members, environmental justice advocates, policy leaders and grassroots organizers to share wins, deepen strategy and strengthen the regional network working to end plastic pollution. The Problem with Plastics Judith Enck, founder of

“The Substance of Things Hoped For”: Opening Remarks in the Faiths and Wisdom for the Earth Session of ChangeNOW 2026

Karenna Gore April 15, 2026

CEE Executive Director Karenna Gore delivered the following remarks in Paris at the 2026 ChangeNOW Summit, a “global meeting point for those building a just and sustainable future.” After her keynote address, she moderated an interfaith panel featuring Satish Kumar, Rabbi Jonathan Wittenberg, Othman Llewellyn and Laura Morosini. Together, they explored environmental and social transformation through the lens of religion, spirituality and ethics. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qIUC3YGCUR0 It is a pleasure to be back

New York Weighs Moratorium on New Data Centers

Rosie Semlyen March 25, 2026

Artificial Intelligence (AI) is rapidly transforming society, influencing everything from governance, business and education, to personal interactions and decision-making. There are now more than one billion people around the world using standalone AI platforms each month. OpenAI’s ChatGPT is used by at least 700 million people monthly—more than 10% of the world’s adult population. Even those who avoid AI platforms like ChatGPT still use AI in ways they may be