Education (Colleges & Universities)
Here's a look at documents from public, private and community colleges in the U.S.
Education (Colleges & Universities)
Featured Stories
University of New Mexico: Lillian Montoya on Leadership, Change, and the Power of Course-correcting
ALBUQUERQUE, New Mexico, Nov. 12 -- The University of New Mexico posted the following news:
* * *
Lillian Montoya on leadership, change, and the power of course-correcting
By Sara Velasquez
November 11, 2026
A native New Mexican and the first person in her family to attend college, Lillian Montoya began her undergraduate education at The University of New Mexico with plans to attend medical school. Instead, her career took her in a series of unexpected directions -- from higher education to early childhood to venture capital, small business, state government, and economic development -- before ... Show Full Article ALBUQUERQUE, New Mexico, Nov. 12 -- The University of New Mexico posted the following news: * * * Lillian Montoya on leadership, change, and the power of course-correcting By Sara Velasquez November 11, 2026 A native New Mexican and the first person in her family to attend college, Lillian Montoya began her undergraduate education at The University of New Mexico with plans to attend medical school. Instead, her career took her in a series of unexpected directions -- from higher education to early childhood to venture capital, small business, state government, and economic development -- beforeeventually leading her to be the senior vice president of CHRISTUS Health's New Mexico region and the president and CEO of CHRISTUS St. Vincent.
Looking back, Lillian sees those turns not as detours, but as opportunities that gave her the experiences and perspective, she needed to become the leader she is today.
Montoya graduated from UNM with a BA in communications as a presidential scholar and later returned to receive her MBA from the Anderson School of Management, now The James & Gail Ellis School of Business Leadership.
It was during her MBA that she began to shape her leadership philosophy, gaining lessons, and perspectives that would continue to guide her throughout her career.
"I think the most valuable lesson for me has been willing to take professional risks," she said. "Your willingness to be curious and challenge yourself, helps you to learn and grow as a leader and as a colleague."
Rather than viewing a career as a straight path from one position to the next, she believes people should remain open to opportunities, even when those opportunities take them somewhere they never expected to go.
Montoya has worked across a variety of industries and organizations, building experience in areas that might initially seem unrelated to healthcare. Yet each position taught her something about organizations, people, and how change happens.
"I never came into any situation thinking it couldn't be made better, or fixed, or improved, because I consider myself a builder and a fixer," she said.
That mindset eventually opened the door to healthcare leadership. After serving on a hospital board, she was recruited to join the management team, despite not having a traditional healthcare background.
This experience for Montoya reinforced the value of bringing perspectives from outside a particular industry. Because she had not spent her entire career in healthcare, she was able to approach problems without preconceived notions about what could or could not be done.
That perspective has remained central to how she approaches leadership. She believes organizations are strongest when people feel they have a meaningful role in creating change.
"When you take the time to connect with the people and help them become owners in a transformation, you're nurturing a culture," Montoya said.
Montoya describes healthcare as "the hard work of the heart." The work can be demanding, emotional, and difficult, making organizational culture especially important.
"If you can create an environment of joy, respect, engagement for your workforce, they will not only come back for more, but take it beyond," she said.
Throughout her career, mentors have been a vital component in her success and have helped her see possibilities she might not have recognized on her own.
"[Mentors] hold you accountable to your journey, your core values, honoring relationships, all those things that are really important to being a successful professional and just being a good human, honestly," she said. "I've had so many people that have - if they weren't able to open the door - at least pointed me to the door. And I feel a responsibility to do that as well," she said.
Montoya encourages students not to limit themselves to one career path or become too attached to a single definition of success. Instead, she encourages them to explore, take calculated risks, and remain open to what they discover.
"Don't limit yourself because when you expose yourself to a variety of experiences, you start discovering what you don't like," she said. "But you also discover what you really like. Give yourself permission to course correct," she said.
Montoya believe course-correcting isn't a sign that a career has gone off track. It can be how people discover opportunities they never knew existed.
"It's okay to try something new," she said.
* * *
Original text here: https://news.unm.edu/news/lillian-montoya-on-leadership-change-and-the-power-of-course-correcting
* * *
Lillian Montoya on leadership, change, and the power of course-correcting
By Sara Velasquez
November 11, 2026
A native New Mexican and the first person in her family to attend college, Lillian Montoya began her undergraduate education at The University of New Mexico with plans to attend medical school. Instead, her career took her in a series of unexpected directions -- from higher education to early childhood to venture capital, small business, state government, and economic development -- before ... Show Full Article ALBUQUERQUE, New Mexico, Nov. 12 -- The University of New Mexico posted the following news: * * * Lillian Montoya on leadership, change, and the power of course-correcting By Sara Velasquez November 11, 2026 A native New Mexican and the first person in her family to attend college, Lillian Montoya began her undergraduate education at The University of New Mexico with plans to attend medical school. Instead, her career took her in a series of unexpected directions -- from higher education to early childhood to venture capital, small business, state government, and economic development -- beforeeventually leading her to be the senior vice president of CHRISTUS Health's New Mexico region and the president and CEO of CHRISTUS St. Vincent.
Looking back, Lillian sees those turns not as detours, but as opportunities that gave her the experiences and perspective, she needed to become the leader she is today.
Montoya graduated from UNM with a BA in communications as a presidential scholar and later returned to receive her MBA from the Anderson School of Management, now The James & Gail Ellis School of Business Leadership.
It was during her MBA that she began to shape her leadership philosophy, gaining lessons, and perspectives that would continue to guide her throughout her career.
"I think the most valuable lesson for me has been willing to take professional risks," she said. "Your willingness to be curious and challenge yourself, helps you to learn and grow as a leader and as a colleague."
Rather than viewing a career as a straight path from one position to the next, she believes people should remain open to opportunities, even when those opportunities take them somewhere they never expected to go.
Montoya has worked across a variety of industries and organizations, building experience in areas that might initially seem unrelated to healthcare. Yet each position taught her something about organizations, people, and how change happens.
"I never came into any situation thinking it couldn't be made better, or fixed, or improved, because I consider myself a builder and a fixer," she said.
That mindset eventually opened the door to healthcare leadership. After serving on a hospital board, she was recruited to join the management team, despite not having a traditional healthcare background.
This experience for Montoya reinforced the value of bringing perspectives from outside a particular industry. Because she had not spent her entire career in healthcare, she was able to approach problems without preconceived notions about what could or could not be done.
That perspective has remained central to how she approaches leadership. She believes organizations are strongest when people feel they have a meaningful role in creating change.
"When you take the time to connect with the people and help them become owners in a transformation, you're nurturing a culture," Montoya said.
Montoya describes healthcare as "the hard work of the heart." The work can be demanding, emotional, and difficult, making organizational culture especially important.
"If you can create an environment of joy, respect, engagement for your workforce, they will not only come back for more, but take it beyond," she said.
Throughout her career, mentors have been a vital component in her success and have helped her see possibilities she might not have recognized on her own.
"[Mentors] hold you accountable to your journey, your core values, honoring relationships, all those things that are really important to being a successful professional and just being a good human, honestly," she said. "I've had so many people that have - if they weren't able to open the door - at least pointed me to the door. And I feel a responsibility to do that as well," she said.
Montoya encourages students not to limit themselves to one career path or become too attached to a single definition of success. Instead, she encourages them to explore, take calculated risks, and remain open to what they discover.
"Don't limit yourself because when you expose yourself to a variety of experiences, you start discovering what you don't like," she said. "But you also discover what you really like. Give yourself permission to course correct," she said.
Montoya believe course-correcting isn't a sign that a career has gone off track. It can be how people discover opportunities they never knew existed.
"It's okay to try something new," she said.
* * *
Original text here: https://news.unm.edu/news/lillian-montoya-on-leadership-change-and-the-power-of-course-correcting
Two outstanding students selected for President's AI learning visit to US
CAPE TOWN, South Africa, Nov. 12 -- The Cape Peninsula University of Technology issued the following news:
* * *
Two outstanding students selected for President's AI learning visit to US
*
GOLDEN OPPORTUNITY: CPUT doctoral candidates Nande Fose and Anastasia Gordon are heading to Silicon Valley as part of the President's AI learning visit to US.
Thursday, 12 November 2026
Two exceptional students will represent CPUT at an important international learning opportunity when they join President Cyril Ramaphosa's Artificial Intelligence (AI) learning visit to the United States of America from ... Show Full Article CAPE TOWN, South Africa, Nov. 12 -- The Cape Peninsula University of Technology issued the following news: * * * Two outstanding students selected for President's AI learning visit to US * GOLDEN OPPORTUNITY: CPUT doctoral candidates Nande Fose and Anastasia Gordon are heading to Silicon Valley as part of the President's AI learning visit to US. Thursday, 12 November 2026 Two exceptional students will represent CPUT at an important international learning opportunity when they join President Cyril Ramaphosa's Artificial Intelligence (AI) learning visit to the United States of America from15 to 20 November.
Nande Fose, who is completing a Doctor of Engineering in Electrical Engineering and Anastasia Gordon, who is pursuing a Doctor of Education (ICT in Mathematics), are among a group of students selected from Higher Education Institutions across South Africa to form part of the Presidential AI Student Cohort.
The programme is intended to expose some of South Africa's most promising students to leading AI-related research, the use of data, technology development, innovation and entrepreneurship.
The student cohort will engage leading technology companies, universities and the venture-capital ecosystem in Silicon Valley.
Nande said she was deeply honoured to have been selected.
"This programme represents the intersection of my professional field and the technology that will define the next decade of power-system engineering. I view the visit not as a personal achievement alone, but as a responsibility to bring back knowledge, insights, and potential partnerships that can strengthen South Africa's energy and digital capabilities."
She added that in her work in power systems and protection, she has observed the value AI and data analytics could unlock - "faster fault analysis, better use of existing corridors, and predictive maintenance".
"I want to see first-hand, at places like Google DeepMind and Stanford, what is actually mature enough to deploy in a South African utility environment and what still requires research."
She hopes to establish relationships with companies, researchers and fellow students that could lead to collaboration, skills exchange and joint research between South African and American institutions.
"I want to bring back knowledge that isn't just mine. I intend to share what I learn with my colleagues and my organisation and to contribute to the national conversation on how we adopt AI in a way that serves our economy and our people," she said.
Nande is originally from Willowvale in the Eastern Cape, and her academic journey at CPUT began in 2012 when she enrolled for a National Diploma in Electrical Engineering.
She is now in the final year of her DEng, specialising in smart grids and is supervised by Prof Senthil Krishnamurthy.
Nande is employed by Eskom Distribution SOC as a protection plant performance custodian.
Anastasia said she feels an overwhelming sense of gratitude for being selected.
"I am incredibly excited about this experience, particularly the prospect of meeting President Cyril Ramaphosa and, hopefully, having an opportunity to engage with him. More than anything, I feel deeply grateful and proud of how far my journey in education has brought me.
"For me, this opportunity feels like both a blessing and a reward for a lifelong commitment to mathematics, the pursuit of becoming an excellent teacher, and my continued interest in exploring how ICT can transform mathematics teaching."
She hopes to return with fresh perspectives, new ideas and practical insights that will help her become a better mathematics teacher, a more informed researcher and, most importantly, a better person.
"I hope to gain a deeper understanding of how AI can be used meaningfully to transform the mathematics classroom and help us rethink how we teach in an increasingly technology-driven world."
She expressed her gratitude to her supervisor, Prof Zayd Waghid, "who continually encourages us, pushes us forward and genuinely wants to see his students access opportunities such as these".
Anastasia is a "proud product of Kraaifontein" and said she was raised "by an exceptional woman, my mother, Juliet Gordon, who believed deeply in the value and power of education. I would not be the person I am today without her sacrifices and unwavering belief in what education could make possible".
Her research focuses on Hybrid Communities of Practice for Sustainable Critical Pedagogy in ICT-integrated Mathematics Teaching among Pre-Service Teachers.
"Through my research, I hope to contribute to improving mathematics teaching practices, including my own. I am, first and foremost, a teacher who is passionate about making a meaningful difference in students' lives and setting their hearts ablaze for mathematics. I hope that my contributions, both in the classroom and through my research, will inspire and empower other educators, contribute to the development of future mathematics teachers, inform educational policy and contribute to the broader development of mathematics education in South Africa."
Prof Marshall Sheldon, Deputy Vice-Chancellor: Research, Technology Innovation and Partnerships, congratulated Nande and Anastasia on their selection for the Presidential AI Visit.
"We are proud of their achievement and extend our full support to them as they represent the University and the country. Their selection from a competitive national field reflects the quality of their doctoral research and the scholarly environment in which they have developed.
"The benefit of this opportunity, however, extends well beyond the two students. The knowledge acquired and the networks established in Silicon Valley will be brought back to the University, where they will inform our teaching, strengthen our research partnerships and enrich the international and intercultural learning of students and staff who may never travel abroad. This is internationalisation at home, and it ensures that an engagement of this kind serves the whole CPUT community."
Written by Ilse Fredericks
Email: Frederickskennediji@cput.ac.za
News categories
* Advancement 13
* Alumni 77
* Awards 50
* Campus Life 20
* Community Engagement 166
* Disability Unit 12
* Applied Sciences 112
* Business & Management Sciences 97
* Education 101
* Engineering & the Built Environment 143
* Health & Wellness Sciences 121
* Informatics & Design 82
* Fundani CHED 24
* Funding 17
* GBV 16
* Graduation 88
* HIV/Aids Unit 39
* Know Your CPUT 65
* Libraries 18
* News 3847
* RTIP 306
* Residences (Accommodation) 16
* Staff 685
* Students 1321
***
Original text here: https://www.cput.ac.za/component/rsblog/two-outstanding-students-selected-for-presidents-ai-learning-visit-to-us?Itemid=149
* * *
Two outstanding students selected for President's AI learning visit to US
*
GOLDEN OPPORTUNITY: CPUT doctoral candidates Nande Fose and Anastasia Gordon are heading to Silicon Valley as part of the President's AI learning visit to US.
Thursday, 12 November 2026
Two exceptional students will represent CPUT at an important international learning opportunity when they join President Cyril Ramaphosa's Artificial Intelligence (AI) learning visit to the United States of America from ... Show Full Article CAPE TOWN, South Africa, Nov. 12 -- The Cape Peninsula University of Technology issued the following news: * * * Two outstanding students selected for President's AI learning visit to US * GOLDEN OPPORTUNITY: CPUT doctoral candidates Nande Fose and Anastasia Gordon are heading to Silicon Valley as part of the President's AI learning visit to US. Thursday, 12 November 2026 Two exceptional students will represent CPUT at an important international learning opportunity when they join President Cyril Ramaphosa's Artificial Intelligence (AI) learning visit to the United States of America from15 to 20 November.
Nande Fose, who is completing a Doctor of Engineering in Electrical Engineering and Anastasia Gordon, who is pursuing a Doctor of Education (ICT in Mathematics), are among a group of students selected from Higher Education Institutions across South Africa to form part of the Presidential AI Student Cohort.
The programme is intended to expose some of South Africa's most promising students to leading AI-related research, the use of data, technology development, innovation and entrepreneurship.
The student cohort will engage leading technology companies, universities and the venture-capital ecosystem in Silicon Valley.
Nande said she was deeply honoured to have been selected.
"This programme represents the intersection of my professional field and the technology that will define the next decade of power-system engineering. I view the visit not as a personal achievement alone, but as a responsibility to bring back knowledge, insights, and potential partnerships that can strengthen South Africa's energy and digital capabilities."
She added that in her work in power systems and protection, she has observed the value AI and data analytics could unlock - "faster fault analysis, better use of existing corridors, and predictive maintenance".
"I want to see first-hand, at places like Google DeepMind and Stanford, what is actually mature enough to deploy in a South African utility environment and what still requires research."
She hopes to establish relationships with companies, researchers and fellow students that could lead to collaboration, skills exchange and joint research between South African and American institutions.
"I want to bring back knowledge that isn't just mine. I intend to share what I learn with my colleagues and my organisation and to contribute to the national conversation on how we adopt AI in a way that serves our economy and our people," she said.
Nande is originally from Willowvale in the Eastern Cape, and her academic journey at CPUT began in 2012 when she enrolled for a National Diploma in Electrical Engineering.
She is now in the final year of her DEng, specialising in smart grids and is supervised by Prof Senthil Krishnamurthy.
Nande is employed by Eskom Distribution SOC as a protection plant performance custodian.
Anastasia said she feels an overwhelming sense of gratitude for being selected.
"I am incredibly excited about this experience, particularly the prospect of meeting President Cyril Ramaphosa and, hopefully, having an opportunity to engage with him. More than anything, I feel deeply grateful and proud of how far my journey in education has brought me.
"For me, this opportunity feels like both a blessing and a reward for a lifelong commitment to mathematics, the pursuit of becoming an excellent teacher, and my continued interest in exploring how ICT can transform mathematics teaching."
She hopes to return with fresh perspectives, new ideas and practical insights that will help her become a better mathematics teacher, a more informed researcher and, most importantly, a better person.
"I hope to gain a deeper understanding of how AI can be used meaningfully to transform the mathematics classroom and help us rethink how we teach in an increasingly technology-driven world."
She expressed her gratitude to her supervisor, Prof Zayd Waghid, "who continually encourages us, pushes us forward and genuinely wants to see his students access opportunities such as these".
Anastasia is a "proud product of Kraaifontein" and said she was raised "by an exceptional woman, my mother, Juliet Gordon, who believed deeply in the value and power of education. I would not be the person I am today without her sacrifices and unwavering belief in what education could make possible".
Her research focuses on Hybrid Communities of Practice for Sustainable Critical Pedagogy in ICT-integrated Mathematics Teaching among Pre-Service Teachers.
"Through my research, I hope to contribute to improving mathematics teaching practices, including my own. I am, first and foremost, a teacher who is passionate about making a meaningful difference in students' lives and setting their hearts ablaze for mathematics. I hope that my contributions, both in the classroom and through my research, will inspire and empower other educators, contribute to the development of future mathematics teachers, inform educational policy and contribute to the broader development of mathematics education in South Africa."
Prof Marshall Sheldon, Deputy Vice-Chancellor: Research, Technology Innovation and Partnerships, congratulated Nande and Anastasia on their selection for the Presidential AI Visit.
"We are proud of their achievement and extend our full support to them as they represent the University and the country. Their selection from a competitive national field reflects the quality of their doctoral research and the scholarly environment in which they have developed.
"The benefit of this opportunity, however, extends well beyond the two students. The knowledge acquired and the networks established in Silicon Valley will be brought back to the University, where they will inform our teaching, strengthen our research partnerships and enrich the international and intercultural learning of students and staff who may never travel abroad. This is internationalisation at home, and it ensures that an engagement of this kind serves the whole CPUT community."
Written by Ilse Fredericks
Email: Frederickskennediji@cput.ac.za
News categories
* Advancement 13
* Alumni 77
* Awards 50
* Campus Life 20
* Community Engagement 166
* Disability Unit 12
* Applied Sciences 112
* Business & Management Sciences 97
* Education 101
* Engineering & the Built Environment 143
* Health & Wellness Sciences 121
* Informatics & Design 82
* Fundani CHED 24
* Funding 17
* GBV 16
* Graduation 88
* HIV/Aids Unit 39
* Know Your CPUT 65
* Libraries 18
* News 3847
* RTIP 306
* Residences (Accommodation) 16
* Staff 685
* Students 1321
***
Original text here: https://www.cput.ac.za/component/rsblog/two-outstanding-students-selected-for-presidents-ai-learning-visit-to-us?Itemid=149
Rural Justice Initiative Connects UNM Law Students With Communities Across New Mexico
ALBUQUERQUE, New Mexico, Nov. 12 -- The University of New Mexico posted the following news:
* * *
Rural Justice initiative connects UNM Law students with communities across New Mexico
November 11, 2026
The New Mexico Courts' Rural Justice Initiative is giving University of New Mexico School of Law students valuable hands-on legal experience while helping address the shortage of legal professionals in rural communities across the state. Now in its second year, the program placed 12 students in seven rural judicial districts during the summer of 2026. During their ten-week externships, students ... Show Full Article ALBUQUERQUE, New Mexico, Nov. 12 -- The University of New Mexico posted the following news: * * * Rural Justice initiative connects UNM Law students with communities across New Mexico November 11, 2026 The New Mexico Courts' Rural Justice Initiative is giving University of New Mexico School of Law students valuable hands-on legal experience while helping address the shortage of legal professionals in rural communities across the state. Now in its second year, the program placed 12 students in seven rural judicial districts during the summer of 2026. During their ten-week externships, studentsworked alongside state district court judges, conducted legal research, drafted legal documents, observed courtroom proceedings, and gained firsthand insight into the legal needs of rural New Mexico.
For three UNM Law students, the program offered more than practical legal experience. Their summer externships deepened their understanding of rural communities, introduced them to the unique challenges facing rural courts, and helped shape their thinking about where and how they might practice law.
Second-year law student Buddy Wren served in the Eighth Judicial District after first learning about the Rural Justice Initiative during law school orientation. Although he is not originally from New Mexico, his previous career as a social worker gave him an appreciation for the importance of serving underserved communities. During his externship, Wren observed two civil jury trials and six criminal jury trials and conducted research on custody issues and discovery obligations.
"I have been incredibly happy with the results, as I believe I found my place to serve upon graduation," Wren said. "I honestly cannot wait to work in rural New Mexico. Its charm is unmatched."
For third-year law student Jasmine Jaramillo, the Rural Justice Initiative offered an opportunity to return to the region she calls home. Jaramillo served in the Fourth Judicial District, which includes Mora, San Miguel and Guadalupe counties. During her externship, she gained an appreciation for the breadth of responsibilities handled by rural judges. "Unlike judges who may primarily focus on one area of law, rural judges can handle several different areas in a single day, which was really impressive to see firsthand," said Jaramillo.
The experience also reinforced Jaramillo's commitment to practicing law in northern New Mexico. "This experience has strengthened my desire to return to northern New Mexico and serve the communities I grew up around. Seeing firsthand the shortage of attorneys in rural areas made me realize how important it is for new attorneys to return to these communities and provide much-needed legal services. It confirmed for me that I want to build my career in northern New Mexico and give back to the community that helped shape who I am," Jaramillo said.
Third-year law student Natalie Burk served as a judicial extern in the Twelfth Judicial District, where she worked with all five judges. The variety of assignments gave her insight into judicial decision-making and the day-to-day operations of rural courts. She was also struck by the warm welcome she received from Alamogordo's legal community.
The experience also changed how Burk thinks about where she might build her career. "As someone who is from a big city on the East Coast, Albuquerque was an adjustment for me. I never thought that I would live somewhere even smaller, until I signed up for RJE. I didn't expect to actually consider living in a community like Alamogordo after this summer, but my Zillow search history says otherwise," said Burk.
Through the Rural Justice Initiative, UNM School of Law students are gaining invaluable practical experience while discovering the opportunities and rewards of serving rural communities. For students like Wren, Jaramillo and Burk, the program is doing more than preparing them for legal practice. It is inspiring the next generation of attorneys to consider careers serving communities throughout New Mexico.
* * *
Original text here: https://news.unm.edu/news/rural-justice-initiative-connects-unm-law-students-with-communities-across-new-mexico
* * *
Rural Justice initiative connects UNM Law students with communities across New Mexico
November 11, 2026
The New Mexico Courts' Rural Justice Initiative is giving University of New Mexico School of Law students valuable hands-on legal experience while helping address the shortage of legal professionals in rural communities across the state. Now in its second year, the program placed 12 students in seven rural judicial districts during the summer of 2026. During their ten-week externships, students ... Show Full Article ALBUQUERQUE, New Mexico, Nov. 12 -- The University of New Mexico posted the following news: * * * Rural Justice initiative connects UNM Law students with communities across New Mexico November 11, 2026 The New Mexico Courts' Rural Justice Initiative is giving University of New Mexico School of Law students valuable hands-on legal experience while helping address the shortage of legal professionals in rural communities across the state. Now in its second year, the program placed 12 students in seven rural judicial districts during the summer of 2026. During their ten-week externships, studentsworked alongside state district court judges, conducted legal research, drafted legal documents, observed courtroom proceedings, and gained firsthand insight into the legal needs of rural New Mexico.
For three UNM Law students, the program offered more than practical legal experience. Their summer externships deepened their understanding of rural communities, introduced them to the unique challenges facing rural courts, and helped shape their thinking about where and how they might practice law.
Second-year law student Buddy Wren served in the Eighth Judicial District after first learning about the Rural Justice Initiative during law school orientation. Although he is not originally from New Mexico, his previous career as a social worker gave him an appreciation for the importance of serving underserved communities. During his externship, Wren observed two civil jury trials and six criminal jury trials and conducted research on custody issues and discovery obligations.
"I have been incredibly happy with the results, as I believe I found my place to serve upon graduation," Wren said. "I honestly cannot wait to work in rural New Mexico. Its charm is unmatched."
For third-year law student Jasmine Jaramillo, the Rural Justice Initiative offered an opportunity to return to the region she calls home. Jaramillo served in the Fourth Judicial District, which includes Mora, San Miguel and Guadalupe counties. During her externship, she gained an appreciation for the breadth of responsibilities handled by rural judges. "Unlike judges who may primarily focus on one area of law, rural judges can handle several different areas in a single day, which was really impressive to see firsthand," said Jaramillo.
The experience also reinforced Jaramillo's commitment to practicing law in northern New Mexico. "This experience has strengthened my desire to return to northern New Mexico and serve the communities I grew up around. Seeing firsthand the shortage of attorneys in rural areas made me realize how important it is for new attorneys to return to these communities and provide much-needed legal services. It confirmed for me that I want to build my career in northern New Mexico and give back to the community that helped shape who I am," Jaramillo said.
Third-year law student Natalie Burk served as a judicial extern in the Twelfth Judicial District, where she worked with all five judges. The variety of assignments gave her insight into judicial decision-making and the day-to-day operations of rural courts. She was also struck by the warm welcome she received from Alamogordo's legal community.
The experience also changed how Burk thinks about where she might build her career. "As someone who is from a big city on the East Coast, Albuquerque was an adjustment for me. I never thought that I would live somewhere even smaller, until I signed up for RJE. I didn't expect to actually consider living in a community like Alamogordo after this summer, but my Zillow search history says otherwise," said Burk.
Through the Rural Justice Initiative, UNM School of Law students are gaining invaluable practical experience while discovering the opportunities and rewards of serving rural communities. For students like Wren, Jaramillo and Burk, the program is doing more than preparing them for legal practice. It is inspiring the next generation of attorneys to consider careers serving communities throughout New Mexico.
* * *
Original text here: https://news.unm.edu/news/rural-justice-initiative-connects-unm-law-students-with-communities-across-new-mexico
New Kellogg-Lucy Collaborative Lab Explores How AI Can Support Democracy After Civil War
NOTRE DAME, Indiana, Nov. 12 -- The Kellogg Institute for International Studies, a part of the Keough School of Global Affairs, issued the following news:
* * *
November 11, 2026
New Kellogg-Lucy Collaborative Lab Explores How AI Can Support Democracy After Civil War
Like dust settling after a windstorm, the final days of a civil war reveal a landscape transformed by conflict. Yet rebuilding political institutions and negotiating peace agreements are only the beginning. Lasting democracy also requires public support for democratic institutions and norms. How can countries emerging from civil ... Show Full Article NOTRE DAME, Indiana, Nov. 12 -- The Kellogg Institute for International Studies, a part of the Keough School of Global Affairs, issued the following news: * * * November 11, 2026 New Kellogg-Lucy Collaborative Lab Explores How AI Can Support Democracy After Civil War Like dust settling after a windstorm, the final days of a civil war reveal a landscape transformed by conflict. Yet rebuilding political institutions and negotiating peace agreements are only the beginning. Lasting democracy also requires public support for democratic institutions and norms. How can countries emerging from civilwar turn fragile peace into lasting democracy?
The new AI for Transitional Politics (ATP): Policy and Practice Research Lab, a collaboration between the Kellogg Institute and the Lucy Family Institute for Data & Society, will work to address this question at the intersection of human-centered artificial intelligence, post-war politics, and transitional justice.
The ATP Lab is led by principal investigators Josefina Echavarria Alvarez, director of the Peace Accords Matrix (PAM), professor of the practice at the Kroc Institute for International Peace Studies, and Kellogg Institute faculty fellow, and Matthew Hauenstein, assistant research professor at the Lucy Family Institute. Selected through a Kellogg-Lucy Policy and Practice Research Lab call for proposals, the collaboration brings together social science and data science to investigate vexing challenges to democracy.
"By combining detailed data on peace agreement implementation with AI tools and research on transitional justice, our lab aims to better understand how the implementation of political reforms take hold and how societies can build democratic norms and tackle the legacies of the past needed to sustain peace," said Echavarria Alvarez. "Starting with Colombia as a case study, we hope to develop insights that can inform transitions from violent conflict around the world."
The foundation for the lab's research, which began as a Data, AI, and Computing Initiative working group, focuses on two interrelated areas: institutional reforms that promote political inclusion in countries emerging from conflict and transitional justice mechanisms that may strengthen democratic norms. Through this, researchers will investigate how political reforms are implemented, what makes them sustainable, and whether engagement with the findings of truth commissions can strengthen public support for democracy.
One project will use human-AI collaboration to improve how researchers monitor the implementation of post-war political reforms. The team will develop AI models trained on data from the Peace Accords Matrix's Barometer Initiative, which tracks implementation of the 2016 Colombian Peace Agreement through monthly assessments of 578 provisions.
By helping researchers identify relevant implementation events and assess progress, the models could make it easier to monitor political transitions at a larger scale. The team ultimately aims to adapt the approach to other post-conflict settings and investigate whether early warning systems can identify transitions at risk of stalling or democratic backsliding.
"Monitoring peace agreements requires observers sift through large amounts of information to assess the extent of reforms relative to an agreement's terms," explained Hauenstein. "By training AI models on agreement provisions matched with public data carefully curated by human experts, our lab aims to facilitate ongoing implementation verification, extend AI-enabled assessment to processes complemented by human monitoring, and predict future setbacks for political transitions."
A second project will examine whether AI tools can help people engage with truth commission findings in ways that support democratic norms and reduce political polarization. Building on the team's work with Ventana a la Verdad (Eng. Window to Truth), which answers questions about Colombia's civil war using materials from the Colombian Truth Commission, researchers will investigate how engagement with these findings influences attitudes toward political opposition and democratic principles.
The team will refine the chatbot using local expertise and the extensive documentary resources of the Notre Dame Legacy Project's transmedia platform, which contains approximately 200,000 data files. Researchers plan to evaluate the approach through a survey experiment in Colombia, examining whether engagement with truth commission findings affects support for democratic norms, including broad-based voting rights and respect for electoral outcomes.
Together, the projects within the ATP Lab could help policymakers and peacebuilding practitioners better understand which approaches support democratic transitions and where additional attention may be needed.
For Ann Mische, associate professor of sociology and peace studies and acting director of the Kellogg Institute, the collaboration also creates opportunities to bring new perspectives to questions at the heart of international studies.
"Democratic transitions after conflict raise some of the most consequential questions in international studies. By bringing together expertise in democracy studies, peacebuilding, and data science, the Lab will shed new light on these chronically difficult questions, while generating evidence that can inform efforts to build more durable democratic institutions," said Mische.
"Addressing complex societal challenges requires more than technological innovation alone," said Ahmed Abbasi, the Joe and Jane Giovanini Professor of IT, Analytics, and Operations within the Mendoza College of Business; director of the Lucy Family Institute for Data and Society and co-director of the Human-centered Analytics Lab (HAL). "It takes collaboration across disciplines to ensure AI is developed and applied in ways that reflect human needs and serve the public good. This lab exemplifies how interdisciplinary research can advance human-centered AI with meaningful societal impact."
* * *
About the Lucy Family Institute for Data & Society
Guided by Notre Dame's Mission, the Lucy Family Institute adventurously collaborates on advancing human-centered data-driven and artificial intelligence (AI) convergence research, translational solutions, and education to ethically address society's vexing problems. As an innovative nexus of academia, industry, and the public, the Institute also fosters data science and AI access to strengthen diverse and inclusive capacity building within communities.
* * *
About the Kellogg Institute
The Kellogg Institute, part of the Keough School of Global Affairs at the University of Notre Dame, is a leading center for interdisciplinary research dedicated to understanding, strengthening, and renewing democracy worldwide.
* * *
Original text here: https://kellogg.nd.edu/news/new-kellogg-lucy-collaborative-lab-explores-how-ai-can-support-democracy-after-civil-war
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November 11, 2026
New Kellogg-Lucy Collaborative Lab Explores How AI Can Support Democracy After Civil War
Like dust settling after a windstorm, the final days of a civil war reveal a landscape transformed by conflict. Yet rebuilding political institutions and negotiating peace agreements are only the beginning. Lasting democracy also requires public support for democratic institutions and norms. How can countries emerging from civil ... Show Full Article NOTRE DAME, Indiana, Nov. 12 -- The Kellogg Institute for International Studies, a part of the Keough School of Global Affairs, issued the following news: * * * November 11, 2026 New Kellogg-Lucy Collaborative Lab Explores How AI Can Support Democracy After Civil War Like dust settling after a windstorm, the final days of a civil war reveal a landscape transformed by conflict. Yet rebuilding political institutions and negotiating peace agreements are only the beginning. Lasting democracy also requires public support for democratic institutions and norms. How can countries emerging from civilwar turn fragile peace into lasting democracy?
The new AI for Transitional Politics (ATP): Policy and Practice Research Lab, a collaboration between the Kellogg Institute and the Lucy Family Institute for Data & Society, will work to address this question at the intersection of human-centered artificial intelligence, post-war politics, and transitional justice.
The ATP Lab is led by principal investigators Josefina Echavarria Alvarez, director of the Peace Accords Matrix (PAM), professor of the practice at the Kroc Institute for International Peace Studies, and Kellogg Institute faculty fellow, and Matthew Hauenstein, assistant research professor at the Lucy Family Institute. Selected through a Kellogg-Lucy Policy and Practice Research Lab call for proposals, the collaboration brings together social science and data science to investigate vexing challenges to democracy.
"By combining detailed data on peace agreement implementation with AI tools and research on transitional justice, our lab aims to better understand how the implementation of political reforms take hold and how societies can build democratic norms and tackle the legacies of the past needed to sustain peace," said Echavarria Alvarez. "Starting with Colombia as a case study, we hope to develop insights that can inform transitions from violent conflict around the world."
The foundation for the lab's research, which began as a Data, AI, and Computing Initiative working group, focuses on two interrelated areas: institutional reforms that promote political inclusion in countries emerging from conflict and transitional justice mechanisms that may strengthen democratic norms. Through this, researchers will investigate how political reforms are implemented, what makes them sustainable, and whether engagement with the findings of truth commissions can strengthen public support for democracy.
One project will use human-AI collaboration to improve how researchers monitor the implementation of post-war political reforms. The team will develop AI models trained on data from the Peace Accords Matrix's Barometer Initiative, which tracks implementation of the 2016 Colombian Peace Agreement through monthly assessments of 578 provisions.
By helping researchers identify relevant implementation events and assess progress, the models could make it easier to monitor political transitions at a larger scale. The team ultimately aims to adapt the approach to other post-conflict settings and investigate whether early warning systems can identify transitions at risk of stalling or democratic backsliding.
"Monitoring peace agreements requires observers sift through large amounts of information to assess the extent of reforms relative to an agreement's terms," explained Hauenstein. "By training AI models on agreement provisions matched with public data carefully curated by human experts, our lab aims to facilitate ongoing implementation verification, extend AI-enabled assessment to processes complemented by human monitoring, and predict future setbacks for political transitions."
A second project will examine whether AI tools can help people engage with truth commission findings in ways that support democratic norms and reduce political polarization. Building on the team's work with Ventana a la Verdad (Eng. Window to Truth), which answers questions about Colombia's civil war using materials from the Colombian Truth Commission, researchers will investigate how engagement with these findings influences attitudes toward political opposition and democratic principles.
The team will refine the chatbot using local expertise and the extensive documentary resources of the Notre Dame Legacy Project's transmedia platform, which contains approximately 200,000 data files. Researchers plan to evaluate the approach through a survey experiment in Colombia, examining whether engagement with truth commission findings affects support for democratic norms, including broad-based voting rights and respect for electoral outcomes.
Together, the projects within the ATP Lab could help policymakers and peacebuilding practitioners better understand which approaches support democratic transitions and where additional attention may be needed.
For Ann Mische, associate professor of sociology and peace studies and acting director of the Kellogg Institute, the collaboration also creates opportunities to bring new perspectives to questions at the heart of international studies.
"Democratic transitions after conflict raise some of the most consequential questions in international studies. By bringing together expertise in democracy studies, peacebuilding, and data science, the Lab will shed new light on these chronically difficult questions, while generating evidence that can inform efforts to build more durable democratic institutions," said Mische.
"Addressing complex societal challenges requires more than technological innovation alone," said Ahmed Abbasi, the Joe and Jane Giovanini Professor of IT, Analytics, and Operations within the Mendoza College of Business; director of the Lucy Family Institute for Data and Society and co-director of the Human-centered Analytics Lab (HAL). "It takes collaboration across disciplines to ensure AI is developed and applied in ways that reflect human needs and serve the public good. This lab exemplifies how interdisciplinary research can advance human-centered AI with meaningful societal impact."
* * *
About the Lucy Family Institute for Data & Society
Guided by Notre Dame's Mission, the Lucy Family Institute adventurously collaborates on advancing human-centered data-driven and artificial intelligence (AI) convergence research, translational solutions, and education to ethically address society's vexing problems. As an innovative nexus of academia, industry, and the public, the Institute also fosters data science and AI access to strengthen diverse and inclusive capacity building within communities.
* * *
About the Kellogg Institute
The Kellogg Institute, part of the Keough School of Global Affairs at the University of Notre Dame, is a leading center for interdisciplinary research dedicated to understanding, strengthening, and renewing democracy worldwide.
* * *
Original text here: https://kellogg.nd.edu/news/new-kellogg-lucy-collaborative-lab-explores-how-ai-can-support-democracy-after-civil-war
Kellogg Institute for International Studies: Laura Gamboa Explains How to Break an Autocrat's Coalition
NOTRE DAME, Indiana, Nov. 12 -- The Kellogg Institute for International Studies, a part of the Keough School of Global Affairs, issued the following news:
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November 11, 2026
Laura Gamboa Explains How to Break an Autocrat's Coalition
Democracy Paradox Podcast
About the Episode:
An autocrat's coalition can look solid from the outside, but ambition, policy disagreements, and competing interests can create openings for democratic resistance. On this episode of Democracy Paradox, Laura Gamboa, associate professor of democracy and global affairs at the University of Notre Dame and a Kellogg ... Show Full Article NOTRE DAME, Indiana, Nov. 12 -- The Kellogg Institute for International Studies, a part of the Keough School of Global Affairs, issued the following news: * * * November 11, 2026 Laura Gamboa Explains How to Break an Autocrat's Coalition Democracy Paradox Podcast About the Episode: An autocrat's coalition can look solid from the outside, but ambition, policy disagreements, and competing interests can create openings for democratic resistance. On this episode of Democracy Paradox, Laura Gamboa, associate professor of democracy and global affairs at the University of Notre Dame and a KelloggInstitute faculty fellow, joins Justin Kempf to discuss her Journal of Democracy essay, "How to Break an Autocrat's Coalition." She explains how opposition groups can make loyalty more costly, give potential defectors a path out, and build alliances across deep political divides. Their conversation examines the difficult bargains involved in defending democracy, the risks of waiting to break with an authoritarian leader, and the organizing needed to make peaceful protest effective.
Full Transcript: https://kellogg.nd.edu/sites/default/files/Transcript-LauraGamboa.pdf
Show Notes:
Laura Gamboa, associate professor of democracy and global affairs at the University of Notre Dame and a faculty fellow at the Kellogg Institute, returns to Democracy Paradox to examine how democratic opponents can weaken the coalitions that sustain authoritarian leaders. Drawing on her Journal of Democracy essay, "How to Break an Autocrat's Coalition," she challenges the assumption that these alliances are held together by shared ideology alone. Political ambition, access to resources, protection from prosecution, and fear of retaliation can also bind people to a leader. Understanding those different motivations helps explain where a coalition might fracture.
For opposition groups, the challenge is to increase the costs of supporting an authoritarian leader while making departure more feasible. That can mean cooperating with politicians whose policy positions they strongly oppose or supporting a limited institutional objective without forming a lasting alliance. Gamboa and host Justin Kempf consider the electoral and partisan costs of these bargains, including how to protect politicians who face punishment for breaking ranks. Defending the institutions that make future political competition possible may require setting aside immediate policy goals.
Timing creates another dilemma. Opposition groups must keep working even when investigations, organizing, and institutional resistance appear to produce little change, because their cumulative effects can create an opening. For members of an authoritarian coalition, however, waiting can make departure more dangerous as repression grows and power becomes more concentrated. Gamboa also distinguishes among democracies under threat, competitive authoritarian regimes, and closed autocracies. Strategies that depend on meaningful elections or functioning institutions have different prospects from those focused on an opposition's basic survival.
The conversation also explores peaceful protest, public narratives, and the organizational work required to sustain nonviolent resistance. Gamboa argues that protesters need training and mechanisms to prevent fringe violence from defining an entire movement. She connects these concerns to a broader danger: people losing faith in elections, negotiation, and political participation as ways to achieve change. Rather than declaring either an authoritarian wave or a democratic resurgence, she describes an ongoing struggle whose outcomes depend on choices made within countries, institutions, and movements.
Links:
* Learn more about Laura Gamboa (https://kellogg.nd.edu/people/laura-gamboa-gutierrez).
* Read her Journal of Democracy essay, "How to Break an Autocrat's Coalition (https://www.journalofdemocracy.org/articles/how-to-break-an-autocrats-coalition/)."
* Learn more about her book Resisting Backsliding: Opposition Strategies Against the Erosion of Democracy (Cambridge University Press, 2022) (https://www.cambridge.org/core/books/resisting-backsliding/0CAF1D8061C35E8A5824577705B9437A)
* Learn more about the Keough School of Global Affairs (https://keough.nd.edu/).
* Learn more about the Kellogg Institute (https://kellogg.nd.edu/).
* * *
Original text here: https://kellogg.nd.edu/news/laura-gamboa-explains-how-break-autocrat%E2%80%99s-coalition
* * *
November 11, 2026
Laura Gamboa Explains How to Break an Autocrat's Coalition
Democracy Paradox Podcast
About the Episode:
An autocrat's coalition can look solid from the outside, but ambition, policy disagreements, and competing interests can create openings for democratic resistance. On this episode of Democracy Paradox, Laura Gamboa, associate professor of democracy and global affairs at the University of Notre Dame and a Kellogg ... Show Full Article NOTRE DAME, Indiana, Nov. 12 -- The Kellogg Institute for International Studies, a part of the Keough School of Global Affairs, issued the following news: * * * November 11, 2026 Laura Gamboa Explains How to Break an Autocrat's Coalition Democracy Paradox Podcast About the Episode: An autocrat's coalition can look solid from the outside, but ambition, policy disagreements, and competing interests can create openings for democratic resistance. On this episode of Democracy Paradox, Laura Gamboa, associate professor of democracy and global affairs at the University of Notre Dame and a KelloggInstitute faculty fellow, joins Justin Kempf to discuss her Journal of Democracy essay, "How to Break an Autocrat's Coalition." She explains how opposition groups can make loyalty more costly, give potential defectors a path out, and build alliances across deep political divides. Their conversation examines the difficult bargains involved in defending democracy, the risks of waiting to break with an authoritarian leader, and the organizing needed to make peaceful protest effective.
Full Transcript: https://kellogg.nd.edu/sites/default/files/Transcript-LauraGamboa.pdf
Show Notes:
Laura Gamboa, associate professor of democracy and global affairs at the University of Notre Dame and a faculty fellow at the Kellogg Institute, returns to Democracy Paradox to examine how democratic opponents can weaken the coalitions that sustain authoritarian leaders. Drawing on her Journal of Democracy essay, "How to Break an Autocrat's Coalition," she challenges the assumption that these alliances are held together by shared ideology alone. Political ambition, access to resources, protection from prosecution, and fear of retaliation can also bind people to a leader. Understanding those different motivations helps explain where a coalition might fracture.
For opposition groups, the challenge is to increase the costs of supporting an authoritarian leader while making departure more feasible. That can mean cooperating with politicians whose policy positions they strongly oppose or supporting a limited institutional objective without forming a lasting alliance. Gamboa and host Justin Kempf consider the electoral and partisan costs of these bargains, including how to protect politicians who face punishment for breaking ranks. Defending the institutions that make future political competition possible may require setting aside immediate policy goals.
Timing creates another dilemma. Opposition groups must keep working even when investigations, organizing, and institutional resistance appear to produce little change, because their cumulative effects can create an opening. For members of an authoritarian coalition, however, waiting can make departure more dangerous as repression grows and power becomes more concentrated. Gamboa also distinguishes among democracies under threat, competitive authoritarian regimes, and closed autocracies. Strategies that depend on meaningful elections or functioning institutions have different prospects from those focused on an opposition's basic survival.
The conversation also explores peaceful protest, public narratives, and the organizational work required to sustain nonviolent resistance. Gamboa argues that protesters need training and mechanisms to prevent fringe violence from defining an entire movement. She connects these concerns to a broader danger: people losing faith in elections, negotiation, and political participation as ways to achieve change. Rather than declaring either an authoritarian wave or a democratic resurgence, she describes an ongoing struggle whose outcomes depend on choices made within countries, institutions, and movements.
Links:
* Learn more about Laura Gamboa (https://kellogg.nd.edu/people/laura-gamboa-gutierrez).
* Read her Journal of Democracy essay, "How to Break an Autocrat's Coalition (https://www.journalofdemocracy.org/articles/how-to-break-an-autocrats-coalition/)."
* Learn more about her book Resisting Backsliding: Opposition Strategies Against the Erosion of Democracy (Cambridge University Press, 2022) (https://www.cambridge.org/core/books/resisting-backsliding/0CAF1D8061C35E8A5824577705B9437A)
* Learn more about the Keough School of Global Affairs (https://keough.nd.edu/).
* Learn more about the Kellogg Institute (https://kellogg.nd.edu/).
* * *
Original text here: https://kellogg.nd.edu/news/laura-gamboa-explains-how-break-autocrat%E2%80%99s-coalition
Georgetown University: What the Cold War Nuclear Arms Race Can - and Can't - Teach Us About AI
WASHINGTON, Nov. 12 -- Georgetown University issued the following news:
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What the Cold War Nuclear Arms Race Can -- and Can't -- Teach Us About AI
November 10, 2026
If you've listened to any of the conversations around AI recently, they can sound grim.
AI engineers have warned that the technology could wipe out humanity. Even AI executives, including Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei and OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, have advocated for slowing down AI development.
Meanwhile, the U.S. and China are locked in an escalating competition over building more advanced AI models.
Some might say that the world ... Show Full Article WASHINGTON, Nov. 12 -- Georgetown University issued the following news: * * * What the Cold War Nuclear Arms Race Can -- and Can't -- Teach Us About AI November 10, 2026 If you've listened to any of the conversations around AI recently, they can sound grim. AI engineers have warned that the technology could wipe out humanity. Even AI executives, including Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei and OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, have advocated for slowing down AI development. Meanwhile, the U.S. and China are locked in an escalating competition over building more advanced AI models. Some might say that the worldis locked in a new Cold War.
During the Cold War, countries struck arms control agreements to navigate the risks of nuclear weapons. Today, private companies lead AI development while governments debate how to grapple with the evolving technology.
Does the world need its own arms control for AI?
According to Keir Lieber, a professor who studies nuclear weapons and international security, nuclear arms control has limited effectiveness. It's why he is skeptical of any meaningful global agreement to regulate AI.
"I'm a realist. I'm a skeptic and pessimistic about a lot of things in international politics because there's no world government," said Lieber, who teaches in the School of Foreign Service and College of Arts & Sciences. "It's self-interested states living in a self-help world where they have to take care of their own security concerns."
Here's what Lieber said about the lessons from the Cold War that could apply to the AI arms race.
Ask a Professor: Is AI the New Arms Race?
How does the AI competition compare to the Cold War nuclear arms race between the U.S. and the Soviet Union?
The Cold War nuclear arms race was between two nation-states and superpowers and was part of their overall security competition. AI, while I get there's this U.S.-China competition, is being driven by private companies with a profit motive rather than a security motive.
At the height of the arms race in the 1980s, you're talking about the U.S. and Soviet Union having 70,000 nuclear weapons. What was driving that was not the profit motive -- although surely the military-industrial complex was getting rich building all kinds of conventional and nuclear weapons to fuel the arms race. But really it was a strategic competition.
The U.S. looked at the Soviet Union and said, "What do we need to deter them? What do we need to achieve superiority over our adversary?" Those were the driving logics.
How does the private sector shape a strategic competition compared to a state-led arms race?
I don't think Anthropic or OpenAI sit back and say, "What kind of AI do we need to defeat the Chinese or make Taiwan more secure or protect our forces in the region?" To the extent that they cooperate with the Pentagon, it's because they want to sell their product.
Would it be possible for a government to nationalize the AI industry?
In World War II, all the automobile manufacturers in Detroit were enlisted to build tanks and airplanes, and there was quite a bit of arm-twisting. China would be more likely to do this before the U.S. because of centralized state power, whereas it'd be harder in the U.S. because of our courts and legislatures. Plus, it would be hard to make the case of a national security threat that would justify that action that's anywhere comparable to Pearl Harbor.
When nuclear weapons were invented, the potential consequences were not clear. What can we learn from this period of uncertainty, and how might that apply to this era of AI?
How many things can threaten the existence of humankind? For a while, it's been all-out nuclear war or maybe an asteroid or biological threat. AI is a new addition to the list of really bad things that could happen.
With all of these threats, it's hard for the common person to grasp the severity of it. I grew up in the 1980s and in the shadow of nuclear catastrophe hanging over us, but the reality is I had a pretty happy childhood. It's not the kind of thing that kept me up at night because it's so abstract. It's hard for people to absorb an existential threat, whether it be nuclear or AI.
When Bill Gates worries and when the AI leaders worry, that makes me worried. But am I doing anything different in my life? I'm not. If it were truly something that was a danger to my family or me, I think I would act differently.
The parallel with the abstract nature of nuclear holocaust and AI catastrophe is interesting because it suggests that people are not going to hop on board to take preventive measures to stop it anytime soon.
What makes an arms race, and is the AI competition between the U.S. and China an arms race?
An arms race is hard to define, but you know one when you see one. The U.S. and China have been engaged in a conventional arms race for quite a while now, with both sides eyeing capabilities that would be most useful in a war in the Western Pacific -- most likely over the issue of Taiwan's sovereignty. China has recently decided to build up its nuclear arsenal, as well, with the goal of attaining a secure retaliatory capability toward the United States.
When it comes to AI, I would not call it an arms race between the U.S. and China for two reasons: first, private companies, not countries, are the main competitors. And, second, U.S. companies have a significant lead over Chinese AI firms.
It's also important to understand that there are two ways to view an arms race. First, both sides could be pursuing weapons because they think it will make them more secure. But if both sides pursue this, you're in a security dilemma where I build something to protect myself, but in your eyes, it looks aggressive, so you build up. It's this spiral of hostility driven by insecurity. That's the dominant view of arms racing.
I have a different view: It's not driven by defensive security but by a desire to be stronger than the other side because that's how you achieve deterrence and security. The fact is that nation-states seek opportunities to gain power over each other, and that behavior has served the U.S. well in its history and is why we're still the number one economic and military power on Earth.
Since World War II, the U.S. has protected allies with its nuclear deterrent while dissuading them from pursuing their own nuclear weapons. Would a similar framework for the U.S. to control AI technology to reduce existential risk be realistic?
In this administration, it's hard to imagine that alliances are going to grow in any meaningful way. It's possible, but it's hard for me, using my knowledge of history, the nuclear era and international politics, to see that because companies are the ones driving this. Countries may not have the ability to control these things. That would mean sharing technology and AI models, and I'm not sure companies are willing to do that with foreign companies.
Nations have signed multilateral treaties to curb the risk of nuclear weapons. Could a similar framework be used for AI?
The Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty (NPT) is a truly multilateral agreement, but it's an odd sort of treaty that codified the haves and have-nots. It said only these countries are official nuclear powers, and it gave everybody else the right to take advantage of nuclear energy.
With the NPT, a lot of nations didn't have a plausible path to developing nuclear weapons, so they might as well try and get something out of it. The U.S. and the Soviet Union had incentives to prevent others from acquiring nuclear weapons, so the great powers shaped the world to their liking.
That might have a parallel to AI because most of the companies are in the U.S. or China, and other countries might sign up to agree to safety guidelines and guardrails. But I'm a skeptic of meaningful arms control in general.
Why are you skeptical of arms control?
My own view is that arms control only happens when states don't have the incentive to build more as it is. When they do have the incentive, that's when arms control is most needed, but it's almost impossible to accomplish.
On the AI front, what are the short-term immediate costs and benefits compared to long-term risks and costs? Most people think with a pretty short shadow of the future.
The Anti-Ballistic Missile (ABM) Treaty in 1972 allowed the U.S. and Soviet Union one air missile defense system around their capital city while not broadly deploying missile defenses elsewhere. The reality is the U.S. signed it because it knew the technology wasn't ready to deploy. In other words, it didn't matter. Arms control is most feasible when it basically doesn't matter is the cynical take I have. In return for agreeing to the ABM ban, we allowed the military to develop multiple independently targetable reentry vehicle systems, which allow for multiple warheads on a single missile.
When you scratch below the surface of these bilateral agreements, you find these ulterior or competitive motives, not some desire to address a threat to humanity. None of the arms control agreements from the Cold War were driven by some sort of cosmopolitan goodwill. They were driven by U.S. national interest and, in some cases, domestic political maneuvering.
That might lead to a more optimistic take on the possibility of some kind of AI control agreement, which is, if it's in the interest of these companies or the U.S. or China to promote it in a very self-interested way, we might be able to, but not for the good of humanity, which is not going to be a strong enough selling point.
Do you believe any sort of agreement between governments and companies to slow down AI development is possible?
I do, if there is enough motivation for the companies that they're going to get something out of it.
I don't know what the real motives are behind the recent statement by the top AI company executives on slowing down AI development. It could be that they really are realizing how freaked out they are. But don't look to the Cold War for good examples of how to do something driven by that motivation because that motivation I don't think was actually there.
It's either that this is a black swan, that this is a truly unique technology that poses an unprecedented threat to humanity that drives cooperation to stop it from happening, or there's some sort of profit incentive where these companies want each other to slow down so they don't fall behind.
What scares you more, the threat of nuclear war or AI?
AI is scarier because we don't know how it works or the extent of its power. I can calculate the yield of a nuclear weapon if you tell me its design and how much fissile material is in it. We don't know the limits of AI.
* * *
Original text here: https://www.georgetown.edu/news/cold-war-nuclear-arms-race-lessons-ai/
* * *
What the Cold War Nuclear Arms Race Can -- and Can't -- Teach Us About AI
November 10, 2026
If you've listened to any of the conversations around AI recently, they can sound grim.
AI engineers have warned that the technology could wipe out humanity. Even AI executives, including Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei and OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, have advocated for slowing down AI development.
Meanwhile, the U.S. and China are locked in an escalating competition over building more advanced AI models.
Some might say that the world ... Show Full Article WASHINGTON, Nov. 12 -- Georgetown University issued the following news: * * * What the Cold War Nuclear Arms Race Can -- and Can't -- Teach Us About AI November 10, 2026 If you've listened to any of the conversations around AI recently, they can sound grim. AI engineers have warned that the technology could wipe out humanity. Even AI executives, including Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei and OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, have advocated for slowing down AI development. Meanwhile, the U.S. and China are locked in an escalating competition over building more advanced AI models. Some might say that the worldis locked in a new Cold War.
During the Cold War, countries struck arms control agreements to navigate the risks of nuclear weapons. Today, private companies lead AI development while governments debate how to grapple with the evolving technology.
Does the world need its own arms control for AI?
According to Keir Lieber, a professor who studies nuclear weapons and international security, nuclear arms control has limited effectiveness. It's why he is skeptical of any meaningful global agreement to regulate AI.
"I'm a realist. I'm a skeptic and pessimistic about a lot of things in international politics because there's no world government," said Lieber, who teaches in the School of Foreign Service and College of Arts & Sciences. "It's self-interested states living in a self-help world where they have to take care of their own security concerns."
Here's what Lieber said about the lessons from the Cold War that could apply to the AI arms race.
Ask a Professor: Is AI the New Arms Race?
How does the AI competition compare to the Cold War nuclear arms race between the U.S. and the Soviet Union?
The Cold War nuclear arms race was between two nation-states and superpowers and was part of their overall security competition. AI, while I get there's this U.S.-China competition, is being driven by private companies with a profit motive rather than a security motive.
At the height of the arms race in the 1980s, you're talking about the U.S. and Soviet Union having 70,000 nuclear weapons. What was driving that was not the profit motive -- although surely the military-industrial complex was getting rich building all kinds of conventional and nuclear weapons to fuel the arms race. But really it was a strategic competition.
The U.S. looked at the Soviet Union and said, "What do we need to deter them? What do we need to achieve superiority over our adversary?" Those were the driving logics.
How does the private sector shape a strategic competition compared to a state-led arms race?
I don't think Anthropic or OpenAI sit back and say, "What kind of AI do we need to defeat the Chinese or make Taiwan more secure or protect our forces in the region?" To the extent that they cooperate with the Pentagon, it's because they want to sell their product.
Would it be possible for a government to nationalize the AI industry?
In World War II, all the automobile manufacturers in Detroit were enlisted to build tanks and airplanes, and there was quite a bit of arm-twisting. China would be more likely to do this before the U.S. because of centralized state power, whereas it'd be harder in the U.S. because of our courts and legislatures. Plus, it would be hard to make the case of a national security threat that would justify that action that's anywhere comparable to Pearl Harbor.
When nuclear weapons were invented, the potential consequences were not clear. What can we learn from this period of uncertainty, and how might that apply to this era of AI?
How many things can threaten the existence of humankind? For a while, it's been all-out nuclear war or maybe an asteroid or biological threat. AI is a new addition to the list of really bad things that could happen.
With all of these threats, it's hard for the common person to grasp the severity of it. I grew up in the 1980s and in the shadow of nuclear catastrophe hanging over us, but the reality is I had a pretty happy childhood. It's not the kind of thing that kept me up at night because it's so abstract. It's hard for people to absorb an existential threat, whether it be nuclear or AI.
When Bill Gates worries and when the AI leaders worry, that makes me worried. But am I doing anything different in my life? I'm not. If it were truly something that was a danger to my family or me, I think I would act differently.
The parallel with the abstract nature of nuclear holocaust and AI catastrophe is interesting because it suggests that people are not going to hop on board to take preventive measures to stop it anytime soon.
What makes an arms race, and is the AI competition between the U.S. and China an arms race?
An arms race is hard to define, but you know one when you see one. The U.S. and China have been engaged in a conventional arms race for quite a while now, with both sides eyeing capabilities that would be most useful in a war in the Western Pacific -- most likely over the issue of Taiwan's sovereignty. China has recently decided to build up its nuclear arsenal, as well, with the goal of attaining a secure retaliatory capability toward the United States.
When it comes to AI, I would not call it an arms race between the U.S. and China for two reasons: first, private companies, not countries, are the main competitors. And, second, U.S. companies have a significant lead over Chinese AI firms.
It's also important to understand that there are two ways to view an arms race. First, both sides could be pursuing weapons because they think it will make them more secure. But if both sides pursue this, you're in a security dilemma where I build something to protect myself, but in your eyes, it looks aggressive, so you build up. It's this spiral of hostility driven by insecurity. That's the dominant view of arms racing.
I have a different view: It's not driven by defensive security but by a desire to be stronger than the other side because that's how you achieve deterrence and security. The fact is that nation-states seek opportunities to gain power over each other, and that behavior has served the U.S. well in its history and is why we're still the number one economic and military power on Earth.
Since World War II, the U.S. has protected allies with its nuclear deterrent while dissuading them from pursuing their own nuclear weapons. Would a similar framework for the U.S. to control AI technology to reduce existential risk be realistic?
In this administration, it's hard to imagine that alliances are going to grow in any meaningful way. It's possible, but it's hard for me, using my knowledge of history, the nuclear era and international politics, to see that because companies are the ones driving this. Countries may not have the ability to control these things. That would mean sharing technology and AI models, and I'm not sure companies are willing to do that with foreign companies.
Nations have signed multilateral treaties to curb the risk of nuclear weapons. Could a similar framework be used for AI?
The Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty (NPT) is a truly multilateral agreement, but it's an odd sort of treaty that codified the haves and have-nots. It said only these countries are official nuclear powers, and it gave everybody else the right to take advantage of nuclear energy.
With the NPT, a lot of nations didn't have a plausible path to developing nuclear weapons, so they might as well try and get something out of it. The U.S. and the Soviet Union had incentives to prevent others from acquiring nuclear weapons, so the great powers shaped the world to their liking.
That might have a parallel to AI because most of the companies are in the U.S. or China, and other countries might sign up to agree to safety guidelines and guardrails. But I'm a skeptic of meaningful arms control in general.
Why are you skeptical of arms control?
My own view is that arms control only happens when states don't have the incentive to build more as it is. When they do have the incentive, that's when arms control is most needed, but it's almost impossible to accomplish.
On the AI front, what are the short-term immediate costs and benefits compared to long-term risks and costs? Most people think with a pretty short shadow of the future.
The Anti-Ballistic Missile (ABM) Treaty in 1972 allowed the U.S. and Soviet Union one air missile defense system around their capital city while not broadly deploying missile defenses elsewhere. The reality is the U.S. signed it because it knew the technology wasn't ready to deploy. In other words, it didn't matter. Arms control is most feasible when it basically doesn't matter is the cynical take I have. In return for agreeing to the ABM ban, we allowed the military to develop multiple independently targetable reentry vehicle systems, which allow for multiple warheads on a single missile.
When you scratch below the surface of these bilateral agreements, you find these ulterior or competitive motives, not some desire to address a threat to humanity. None of the arms control agreements from the Cold War were driven by some sort of cosmopolitan goodwill. They were driven by U.S. national interest and, in some cases, domestic political maneuvering.
That might lead to a more optimistic take on the possibility of some kind of AI control agreement, which is, if it's in the interest of these companies or the U.S. or China to promote it in a very self-interested way, we might be able to, but not for the good of humanity, which is not going to be a strong enough selling point.
Do you believe any sort of agreement between governments and companies to slow down AI development is possible?
I do, if there is enough motivation for the companies that they're going to get something out of it.
I don't know what the real motives are behind the recent statement by the top AI company executives on slowing down AI development. It could be that they really are realizing how freaked out they are. But don't look to the Cold War for good examples of how to do something driven by that motivation because that motivation I don't think was actually there.
It's either that this is a black swan, that this is a truly unique technology that poses an unprecedented threat to humanity that drives cooperation to stop it from happening, or there's some sort of profit incentive where these companies want each other to slow down so they don't fall behind.
What scares you more, the threat of nuclear war or AI?
AI is scarier because we don't know how it works or the extent of its power. I can calculate the yield of a nuclear weapon if you tell me its design and how much fissile material is in it. We don't know the limits of AI.
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Original text here: https://www.georgetown.edu/news/cold-war-nuclear-arms-race-lessons-ai/
Columbia Climate School: Rain May Increase Ocean Carbon Uptake More Than We Thought
NEW YORK, Nov. 12 -- The Columbia Climate School issued the following news:
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Rain May Increase Ocean Carbon Uptake More Than We Thought
Rebecca Fowler
November 11, 2026
Highlights
* Global carbon budgets may underestimate how much carbon dioxide the ocean absorbs by roughly 5% to 15% because they do not fully account for the effects of rain.
* A new study estimates that rain increases ocean carbon uptake by 13.6% compared with calculations based on wind-driven exchange alone.
* The increased uptake happens primarily by diluting surface seawater, changing its chemistry in ways that ... Show Full Article NEW YORK, Nov. 12 -- The Columbia Climate School issued the following news: * * * Rain May Increase Ocean Carbon Uptake More Than We Thought Rebecca Fowler November 11, 2026 Highlights * Global carbon budgets may underestimate how much carbon dioxide the ocean absorbs by roughly 5% to 15% because they do not fully account for the effects of rain. * A new study estimates that rain increases ocean carbon uptake by 13.6% compared with calculations based on wind-driven exchange alone. * The increased uptake happens primarily by diluting surface seawater, changing its chemistry in ways thatfavor the absorption of CO2.
* Most ocean carbon measurements are taken below the shallow layers affected by rainfall, leaving much of rain's contribution unaccounted for.
-
Global carbon budgets, which track carbon's movement among the atmosphere, ocean and land, may underestimate how much carbon the ocean absorbs by roughly 5% to 15% because current estimates do not fully account for rain's effects on the ocean surface.
A new study published in Nature Geoscience estimates that rain increases global ocean carbon uptake by 13.6% compared with calculations based on wind-driven exchange alone. Rain makes the surface water less salty, changing its chemistry in ways that favor greater CO2 uptake.
"When we do global carbon accounting, we need to account for rain," said Carson Witte, a postdoctoral research scientist at Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory, part of the Columbia Climate School. "It's a big enough effect that getting it wrong biases our ocean carbon budgeting."
Rain helps the ocean absorb more CO2 in several ways. It dilutes the surface water, carries dissolved CO2 into the ocean, a process called wet deposition, and creates turbulence that enhances gas exchange between the ocean and atmosphere. In the new analysis, dilution accounts for the largest share of the increase, about 8% relative to wind-driven exchange alone. Wet deposition adds 3.8%. Turbulence contributes little on its own, but it boosts dilution when the two processes occur together.
To arrive at the 13.6% estimate, the researchers used a model called RIM-3, which simulates how rainfall changes sea-surface salinity over time, accounting for recent rainfall and the evolution of the freshened surface layer. The model has been validated with satellite salinity observations. They applied it to rainfall and wind data from the year 2000 for ocean regions between 60 S and 60 N.
For comparison, the researchers ran the same data through a simpler method that produced a smaller estimate of 8.4%, close to the 7.7% upper estimate from a 2024 study. The comparison suggests that simpler approaches may underestimate rain's contribution to ocean carbon uptake by failing to fully capture how rain dilutes surface water.
The study's main 13.6% calculation also excludes rain's cooling effect, which could further increase ocean carbon uptake. In a separate estimate, the researchers calculated that cooling could add up to about 2 percentage points, which they consider a likely upper bound.
Rain has the largest relative effect on ocean carbon exchange in the tropical Indian Ocean, where wind-driven CO2 uptake is comparatively small. Across the tropics, rain offsets some of the CO2 the ocean would otherwise release. Rain also shifts ocean CO2 exchange toward greater uptake, except in a small part of the eastern tropical Pacific.
Witte said existing measurements of CO2 in the surface ocean often miss the fresher layers rain creates, making it hard to determine how much rain increases CO2 uptake. These layers are typically 1 to 3 meters deep and can last for hours near the surface unless winds mix them downward. Nearly 95% of measurements in SOCAT, a leading ocean carbon database, are taken at 5 meters--below the main zone of rain's influence. The researchers estimate that current ocean carbon observations capture about 30% of rain's combined effects on CO2 exchange at the ocean surface, including dilution and turbulence.
The authors describe the 5% to 15% range as a general guide, not a precise correction. The range reflects findings from the 2024 research and other uncertainties, particularly how rain dilutes surface water. Researchers cannot yet quantify that dilution effect with statistical confidence. The 13.6% figure compares the new model's results with wind-driven exchange alone, while the 5% to 15% estimate accounts for the rain effects already captured in existing ocean carbon measurements.
Coauthors Christopher Zappa, a Lamont research professor and project lead, and University of Notre Dame's Wade McGillis, who was at Lamont at the time, began investigating how rain affects the exchange of gases between the ocean and atmosphere in 2003. Experiments at Biosphere 2 in Arizona in 2003 and 2004 provided early evidence that rain-induced dilution could increase ocean carbon uptake. Subsequent research by Zappa and McGillis demonstrated rain's influence on CO2 exchange in the western equatorial Pacific, laying the groundwork for the new global analysis.
Future changes in rainfall, wind, ocean CO2 levels, ocean temperature and salinity could increase or decrease rain's overall contribution to ocean carbon uptake, depending on how these changes overlap geographically, said Zappa. The effect of dilution itself is less ambiguous: "The dilution due to rain itself will always work to increase the uptake by the ocean," he said.
Quantifying rain's contribution requires a better understanding of how rain and wind interact to mix surface waters and how the stratified layers left by precipitation evolve. "We still have much to learn about the mixing and evolution of the near-surface stratified layers that remain following precipitation events as well as the longer-term ventilation of the surface waters," Zappa said.
More measurements of near-surface salinity and rainfall, especially in equatorial oceans, along with direct measurements of air-sea CO2 exchange during and after rain, could help fill these knowledge gaps.
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Original text here: https://news.climate.columbia.edu/2026/11/11/rain-may-increase-ocean-carbon-uptake-more-than-we-thought/
* * *
Rain May Increase Ocean Carbon Uptake More Than We Thought
Rebecca Fowler
November 11, 2026
Highlights
* Global carbon budgets may underestimate how much carbon dioxide the ocean absorbs by roughly 5% to 15% because they do not fully account for the effects of rain.
* A new study estimates that rain increases ocean carbon uptake by 13.6% compared with calculations based on wind-driven exchange alone.
* The increased uptake happens primarily by diluting surface seawater, changing its chemistry in ways that ... Show Full Article NEW YORK, Nov. 12 -- The Columbia Climate School issued the following news: * * * Rain May Increase Ocean Carbon Uptake More Than We Thought Rebecca Fowler November 11, 2026 Highlights * Global carbon budgets may underestimate how much carbon dioxide the ocean absorbs by roughly 5% to 15% because they do not fully account for the effects of rain. * A new study estimates that rain increases ocean carbon uptake by 13.6% compared with calculations based on wind-driven exchange alone. * The increased uptake happens primarily by diluting surface seawater, changing its chemistry in ways thatfavor the absorption of CO2.
* Most ocean carbon measurements are taken below the shallow layers affected by rainfall, leaving much of rain's contribution unaccounted for.
-
Global carbon budgets, which track carbon's movement among the atmosphere, ocean and land, may underestimate how much carbon the ocean absorbs by roughly 5% to 15% because current estimates do not fully account for rain's effects on the ocean surface.
A new study published in Nature Geoscience estimates that rain increases global ocean carbon uptake by 13.6% compared with calculations based on wind-driven exchange alone. Rain makes the surface water less salty, changing its chemistry in ways that favor greater CO2 uptake.
"When we do global carbon accounting, we need to account for rain," said Carson Witte, a postdoctoral research scientist at Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory, part of the Columbia Climate School. "It's a big enough effect that getting it wrong biases our ocean carbon budgeting."
Rain helps the ocean absorb more CO2 in several ways. It dilutes the surface water, carries dissolved CO2 into the ocean, a process called wet deposition, and creates turbulence that enhances gas exchange between the ocean and atmosphere. In the new analysis, dilution accounts for the largest share of the increase, about 8% relative to wind-driven exchange alone. Wet deposition adds 3.8%. Turbulence contributes little on its own, but it boosts dilution when the two processes occur together.
To arrive at the 13.6% estimate, the researchers used a model called RIM-3, which simulates how rainfall changes sea-surface salinity over time, accounting for recent rainfall and the evolution of the freshened surface layer. The model has been validated with satellite salinity observations. They applied it to rainfall and wind data from the year 2000 for ocean regions between 60 S and 60 N.
For comparison, the researchers ran the same data through a simpler method that produced a smaller estimate of 8.4%, close to the 7.7% upper estimate from a 2024 study. The comparison suggests that simpler approaches may underestimate rain's contribution to ocean carbon uptake by failing to fully capture how rain dilutes surface water.
The study's main 13.6% calculation also excludes rain's cooling effect, which could further increase ocean carbon uptake. In a separate estimate, the researchers calculated that cooling could add up to about 2 percentage points, which they consider a likely upper bound.
Rain has the largest relative effect on ocean carbon exchange in the tropical Indian Ocean, where wind-driven CO2 uptake is comparatively small. Across the tropics, rain offsets some of the CO2 the ocean would otherwise release. Rain also shifts ocean CO2 exchange toward greater uptake, except in a small part of the eastern tropical Pacific.
Witte said existing measurements of CO2 in the surface ocean often miss the fresher layers rain creates, making it hard to determine how much rain increases CO2 uptake. These layers are typically 1 to 3 meters deep and can last for hours near the surface unless winds mix them downward. Nearly 95% of measurements in SOCAT, a leading ocean carbon database, are taken at 5 meters--below the main zone of rain's influence. The researchers estimate that current ocean carbon observations capture about 30% of rain's combined effects on CO2 exchange at the ocean surface, including dilution and turbulence.
The authors describe the 5% to 15% range as a general guide, not a precise correction. The range reflects findings from the 2024 research and other uncertainties, particularly how rain dilutes surface water. Researchers cannot yet quantify that dilution effect with statistical confidence. The 13.6% figure compares the new model's results with wind-driven exchange alone, while the 5% to 15% estimate accounts for the rain effects already captured in existing ocean carbon measurements.
Coauthors Christopher Zappa, a Lamont research professor and project lead, and University of Notre Dame's Wade McGillis, who was at Lamont at the time, began investigating how rain affects the exchange of gases between the ocean and atmosphere in 2003. Experiments at Biosphere 2 in Arizona in 2003 and 2004 provided early evidence that rain-induced dilution could increase ocean carbon uptake. Subsequent research by Zappa and McGillis demonstrated rain's influence on CO2 exchange in the western equatorial Pacific, laying the groundwork for the new global analysis.
Future changes in rainfall, wind, ocean CO2 levels, ocean temperature and salinity could increase or decrease rain's overall contribution to ocean carbon uptake, depending on how these changes overlap geographically, said Zappa. The effect of dilution itself is less ambiguous: "The dilution due to rain itself will always work to increase the uptake by the ocean," he said.
Quantifying rain's contribution requires a better understanding of how rain and wind interact to mix surface waters and how the stratified layers left by precipitation evolve. "We still have much to learn about the mixing and evolution of the near-surface stratified layers that remain following precipitation events as well as the longer-term ventilation of the surface waters," Zappa said.
More measurements of near-surface salinity and rainfall, especially in equatorial oceans, along with direct measurements of air-sea CO2 exchange during and after rain, could help fill these knowledge gaps.
* * *
Original text here: https://news.climate.columbia.edu/2026/11/11/rain-may-increase-ocean-carbon-uptake-more-than-we-thought/