Nature Sustainability

Nature Sustainability, Published online: 27 April 2026; doi:10.1038/s41893-026-01805-y Wastewater utilities use anaerobic digestion and biogas utilization to reduce energy costs and emissions, but methane leakage can undermine both the climate benefits and project economics of these systems, especially as power grids decarbonize. Safeguarding climate integrity will require performance-based metha…

Nature Sustainability, Published online: 27 April 2026; doi:10.1038/s41893-026-01818-7 Biogas recovery enables renewable energy production alongside waste treatment, but the climate benefits are compromised by methane leakage. Here the authors systematically assessed how to manage methane leakage for sustaining net climate benefits of wastewater biogas recovery.

Nature Sustainability, Published online: 17 April 2026; doi:10.1038/s41893-026-01813-y This work shows a sustainable, scalable and cost-effective synthetic process from polyacrylonitrile precursors for the production of high-performance carbon anode in lithium-ion batteries.

Nature Sustainability, Published online: 20 April 2026; doi:10.1038/s41893-026-01802-1 Tidal flats are vital carbon sinks and biodiversity hotspots, yet they face increasing threats from misapplied climate solutions, including mangrove afforestation and renewable energy expansion. Protecting tidal flats from well-intentioned but misapplied solutions is crucial for aligning global climate and biod…

Nature Sustainability, Published online: 22 April 2026; doi:10.1038/s41893-026-01812-z Direct non-oxidative conversion of methane into valuable hydrocarbons is a highly promising low-carbon pathway. This study presents a filament-catalyst reactor that spatially separates high-temperature methane activation from low-temperature product formation for better efficiency and selectivity.

Nature Sustainability, Published online: 27 April 2026; doi:10.1038/s41893-026-01803-0 Enacting the social and environmental change needed to address the most pressing sustainability challenges can prove unwieldy. However, identifying positive tipping points that accelerate positive feedback cycles may be the key to large-scale natural recovery.

Nature Sustainability, Published online: 23 April 2026; doi:10.1038/s41893-026-01823-w Electrochromic windows provide an energy-efficient pathway to manage thermal efficiency. This work describes a glazing design that is scalable, stable over cycling and functional for a wide solar spectrum.

Nature Sustainability, Published online: 20 April 2026; doi:10.1038/s41893-026-01817-8 Governments are considering subsidies for bioenergy with carbon capture and storage fuelled by wood from existing forests. However, a transparent model estimates that this will probably increase emissions for decades, increase electricity costs 3.5-fold and not generate negative emissions for 150 years.

Nature Sustainability, Published online: 02 April 2026; doi:10.1038/s41893-026-01796-w Global trade tightly links water, energy and food systems, but its effects on cross-border sustainability and equity remain unclear. A study now maps global water–energy–food trade networks, finding that trade balances overall resource gains while deepening cross-country income inequalities.

Nature Sustainability, Published online: 02 April 2026; doi:10.1038/s41893-026-01797-9 Urban traffic emission estimates are often too coarse or slow to evaluate decarbonization policies. A study now fuses data from traffic cameras and mobile phones to estimate citywide emissions in near-real time, finding strong spatiotemporal variation and a 16–22% emission drop after congestion pricing.

Nature Sustainability, Published online: 26 March 2026; doi:10.1038/s41893-026-01782-2 Massive hydropower expansion in the global south repeats unsustainable past social and environmental harms, raising questions about how to govern these projects effectively. This Review highlights shifting and evolving global dynamics, and identifies opportunities for more just and strategic hydropower governan…

Nature Sustainability, Published online: 27 March 2026; doi:10.1038/s41893-026-01793-z Climate change, particularly intensifying droughts, is often blamed for wildfires across the Gran Chaco, a vast South American dry woodland. An analysis of over 30 years of fire patterns, however, reveals that the majority of fires are driven by agricultural expansion and deforestation.

Nature Sustainability, Published online: 30 March 2026; doi:10.1038/s41893-026-01794-y Although lithium–sulfur batteries are prized for their sustainability, practical energy densities are often limited by heavy host materials. The authors report a graphdiyne architecture that integrates anchoring and catalytic functions, enabling ultrahigh sulfur loading and exceptional energy densities, even in…

Nature Sustainability, Published online: 02 April 2026; doi:10.1038/s41893-026-01804-z Surface cleaning is needed in various industrial systems but remains water intensive due to low water utilization efficiency. This study proposes a method—liquid droplet mops—that can efficiently clean superhydrophobic-coated solar panels with substantially reduced water consumption.

Nature Sustainability, Published online: 01 April 2026; doi:10.1038/s41893-026-01799-7 Electrochemical advanced oxidation water treatment processes (EAOPs) can help achieve a sustainable water cycle but remain challenging to scale up and implement. This study presents a flow-through EAOP device design that features good scalability and exhibits high practical application potential.

Nature Sustainability, Published online: 01 April 2026; doi:10.1038/s41893-026-01795-x Copper is a critical resource for the energy transition, but the associated mine waste and tailings present an environmental hazard. Global copper tailings generation is projected to continue to rise until at least the middle of the century, prompting a need for a coordinated, multilateral strategy to manage co…