A joint Technion–Reichman University study has revealed that bacteria carried on desert dust storms from the Sahara and Egypt can survive by forming microscopic biofilms on dust particles. These protective layers shield them from dehydration, radiation, and nutrient scarcity during long atmospheric journeys. Published in Communications Earth and Environment, the research highlights how airborne bacterial communities can travel thousands of kilometers, influencing ecosystems, disease patterns, and even antibiotic resistance. The team isolated beneficial Bacillus strains, suggesting that natural selection in dust storms favors innovative bacteria with potential applications in agriculture, construction, and medicine, while broadening our understanding of the airborne microbiome.

World-renowned plant biologist Lucia Strader, previously at Duke University, will join the faculty at the Salk Institute in October 2025. Her research will help Salk’s Harnessing Plants Initiative design more resilient crop varieties that can thrive in changing environments.

Timber companies are more likely to use plantation forestry—clear-cutting and replanting trees close together. Leveraging a unique lidar dataset, the authors created 3D maps of forest before five wildfires burned 1.1 million acres. During extreme weather, the number of trees per acre was the strongest predictor of high-severity fire. Thinning trees would reduce risk, even in the face of accelerating climate change.

Study shows plants adapted to farming and irrigation with root changes that helped corn adjust to low nitrogen and deeper water, making them key to the success of its domestication.

A new global analysis reveals a critical oversight in sustainable coffee and carbon-capture initiatives. These programs incentivize the planting of new trees yet fail to reward the preservation of mature shade trees in existing agroforestry farms, despite their far greater carbon storage potential. To maximize the potential of coffee farming to fight climate change and boost biodiversity, the study authors call for creating carbon payment programs that reward protecting existing shade trees and ensuring these payments are accessible to small farms. For tree-planting efforts, researchers recommend explicitly prioritizing tree diversity in all planting initiatives to support biodiversity. Without these changes, global coffee agriculture may continue to lose carbon and biodiversity despite investments in tree planting.