Several years ago, it looked as though the United States was running short of natural gas. Prices spiked as declining production in old fields collided with increasing industrial demand. Electric utilities shifted from 'clean' gas back to cheap coal, and suppliers began building terminals to import liquefied natural gas from abroad.

US funding for hydrogen-fuelled transportation research got a boost on 17 July as the House of Representatives voted to restore $85 million to the research budget. The administration of President Barack Obama had proposed cutting the funds altogether.

Farmers in the Ethiopian village of Adi Ha have been busy sowing fresh crops of grain in recent weeks, as is customary when their maize crops struggle because of drought. But this year, they have a second backstop against hunger: insurance.

Earth's disturbed ecosystems have much more to offer than many would give them credit for. (Editorial)

Lake ecosystem productivity, defined by the rate of biomass synthesis, is believed to be limited by nutrient availability.

An investigation of lakes in Sweden has delivered results that run counter to the idea that primary production is generally limited by the availability of nutrients. There are lessons for limnologists in this.

What can we learn about the relationship between native peoples and environmentalism in the Amazon from last month's tragic clashes between indigenous protesters and government security forces in Bagua, Peru?

We write in response to your issue discussing "the coming climate crunch", including the Editorial 'Time to act' (Nature 458, 1077

In your Special Report 'Cutting out the chemicals', you discuss the possible shift of regulatory control of hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs) from the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change to the Montreal Protocol (Nature 457, 518

Maurice Strong has shaped how nations respond to planetary crises. Ehsan Masood meets the man whose successes