From wetlands to rocket fuel, how CSULB is fighting climate change

California's climate story is often told in extremes - droughts and floods, wildfires and coastal erosion, smoggy freeways and warming waters. But at Cal State Long Beach, a quieter kind of climate work is underway: in labs, along the coast and in classrooms where students engage with more than 150 sustainability-related courses.

And it's not just theoretical.

Faculty - especially in the colleges of Natural Sciences and Mathematicsand Engineering- are tackling climate change head on: advancing clean energy, building resilient infrastructure and protecting wildlife. Their research informs policy and drives innovation while opening doors for under-resourced students whose communities often are the first and hardest hit by global warming.CSULB is also part of the new, CSU-wide Consortium on Climate Adaptation to advance climate literacy and research.

In honor of Earth Day, here's a look at some of the most significant climate work being funded at The Beach.

Reviving the wetlands

Tucked between busy roads and rising seas, California's wetlands are easy to overlook. But to wetlands ecologist and CSULB Professor Christine Whitcraft, the coastline's muddiest stretches do some of the heaviest lifting in climate resilience.

"These systems slow down water flow, protect from storm surge, filter water and remove pollutants before they reach the ocean," said Whitcraft. "From just a human food perspective - if you like fish tacos, then you like wetlands. That's what I always say."

Whitcraft's team studies more than 20 wetland sites along the California coast, tracking how they hold up against pollution, rising seas and development. The data they collect helps state agencies identify troubled areas and guide restoration, protecting wildlife and the nearby neighborhoods from flooding and flood protection and poor water quality.

Her work is just the kind of research CSULB's newly launched Urban Coast Fundaims to support. A partnership between the College of Natural Sciences and Mathematics and Long Beach-based California Resources Corporation (CRC), the fund backs high-impact, student-led research on urban coastal challenges.

"This partnership with CRC is just the start of what we hope will be a place that people see the potential to make a difference," Whitcraft said, adding that more funding will be crucial to survival.

If you like fish tacos, then you like wetlands. That's what I always say.

For students, it's more than a research opportunity - it's access. The fund helps cover fieldwork, lab supplies and travel, lowering barriers for students, especially those from underrepresented backgrounds.

"Even if the undergrads do not become wetland ecologists, they will know that there's value in that muddy, stinking ecosystem," Whitcraft said. "And it keeps them engaged. It makes the classroom real."

Innovating clean energy

Fossil fuels like oil, coal and natural gas power much of our world - but they're also the biggest source of heat-trapping emissions driving climate change. That's why CSULB researchers are developing smarter energy solutions to power the future without polluting it.

• Chemistry Professor Fangyuan Tianis designing porous materials to capture methane from landfills, transforming a powerful greenhouse gas into a usable resource.
  

• Professor Matt Beckerstudies geothermal energy, which is tapped from deep inside the Earth. Becker uses fiber-optic sensors to track underground heat and fluid flow.

• Mechanical engineering Professor Joseph Kalmanis developing cleaner rocket fuels with over $2.5 million in Department of Defense grants to study how microscopic changes in propellants affect burn rates and emissions.
  

• And Assistant Professor Yu Yang, in partnership with SoCalGas, leads a student-powered chemical engineering project to cut industrial emissions through hydrogen-based carbon capture.
  

Tracking climate change

As sea levels rise and temperatures climb, California's coastlines face mounting threats - from saltwater intrusion to habitat loss and declining water quality. CSULB scientists are studying these changes to protect ecosystems and support coastal communities.

• Laurie Huning, assistant professor of civil engineering, studies how extreme weather affects water resources across the western United States. With support from organizations such as NASA, she uses satellite data and hydrologic models to track snowpack, heatwaves, storms and droughts - helping communities devise smarter coping strategies.
  

• Earth science Professor Ben Hagedornmonitors how drought and rising seas are pushing saltwater into freshwater supplies, threatening water security. Using sensor networks and field samplings, Hagedorn is building a clearer picture of how climate change moves underground.
  

• Associate Professor Darren Johnsonstudies how fish populations adapt - or fail to adapt - to changing ocean conditions. Johnson's biological sciences lab looks at long-term data to see how warmer water changes fish populations, which helps guide sustainable fisheries.
  

• Researchers like chemistry Professor Stephen Mezyk, biological sciences Associate Professor Erika Hollandand civil engineering lecturer Rebeka Sultanaare tracking how microplastics move through stormwater systems and marine food chains - findings that shape public health protections.
  

• Finally, earth sciences Professor Lora Stevensbrings the long view. By studying sediment cores from ancient lakes in Greece, Vietnam and Iran, Stevens uncovers how past societies responded to climate shifts - helping scientists predict what today's changes could mean for human communities worldwide.