The Earth Commons
The Earth Commons

Research

We assemble diverse, interdisciplinary teams of faculty, external experts and students to collaborate on the world’s greatest environmental and sustainability challenges and turn research into service for the common good. Our research isn’t restricted to the lab: we are transforming Georgetown’s campus into a living laboratory where we develop urgently-needed, scalable solutions to green the campus and broader community—and shape the future of our planet.

ECo Scholarship

Explore environmental scholarship across disciplines by ECo faculty that explores critical environmental issues

ECo Fellows

Apply for a post-doctoral research and teaching fellowship to advance the science on critical environmental issues

ECo Impact Awards

Apply for funding that empowers new interdisciplinary research and outreach

News & Publications from the ECo Faculty Network

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International, Scholarship

Armadillos May Be an Underexploited Source of Food Security for Rural Communities in the Peruvian Amazon.

Griffiths, B. M., & Pajuelo Chávez, G. (2025). Armadillos May Be an Underexploited Source of Food Security for Rural Communities in the Peruvian Amazon. Diversity, 17(10), 665. Griffiths, B. M., Dimitrie, D., Schierbeek, E.†, Chinchilla Perez, E.†, Nirenblatt, E†., Arcos Cano, N., & Gilmore, M. P. 2025. Proposed highway in the Peruvian Amazon threatens vulnerable Indigenous communities and their lands. Ambio.

August 30, 2025

All, Announcements, International, Scholarship, University Stories

Professor Megan Lickley Awarded $4M to Strengthen Global Monitoring of Potent Greenhouse Gases

Dr. Megan Lickley, Assistant Professor at Georgetown University’s Earth Commons Institute for Environment & Sustainability and the Science, Technology and International Affairs (STIA) Program, has been awarded $4 million from the UK-based Quadrature Climate Foundation (QFC) to advance global monitoring of hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs).

August 6, 2025

All, Announcements, International, Scholarship, University Stories

The Earth Commons’ Dr. Megan Lickley Awarded $4M Grant to Strengthen Global Monitoring of Potent Greenhouse Gases

July 31, 2025 Dr. Megan Lickley, Assistant Professor at the Earth Commons—Georgetown University’s Institute for Environment & Sustainability—and the School of Foreign Service has been…

August 5, 2025

ECo Faculty Network

Explore over 100 Georgetown faculty furthering research and teaching on complex environmental issues

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Research Programs

Below is a list of research programs related to the work of the Earth Commons:

Marra Lab

Director Peter Marra’s research uses birds to help us define and understand broad environmental issues, tackling contemporary conservation challenges by addressing fundamental knowledge gaps at the intersection of ornithology, ecology and conservation biology. The Marra Lab in Georgetown’s Department of Biology investigates migratory connectivity, full annual cycle ecology, urban ecology & applied conservation, Kirtland’s Warbler conservation & management, and identifies the smoking guns in bird declines.

Research Projects

Migratory Connectivity

Advancing the conservation and understanding of animals throughout their full life cycle by promoting the science of migratory connectivity.

Explore StoryMaps

Atlas of Migratory Connectivity

Through the Migratory Connectivity Project, led by Georgetown University and the Smithsonian Migratory Bird Center and together with the National Audubon Society and the Cornell Lab of Ornithology, we are working on an important and exciting two volume book entitled “Discovering Unknown Migrations: The Atlas of Migratory Connectivity for the Birds of North America.” 

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