Marshes, mangroves, meadows

Salt marshes humming with insects and birds. Mangrove forests with tangled, arching roots. Seagrass meadows that blanket the ocean floor. The world’s coastal saltwater wetlands provide shelter for wildlife, purify water, and protect seaside infrastructure. And as Dr. Julie Simpson of MIT tells us, they also have a climate superpower: drawing down and locking away extraordinary amounts of planet-warming carbon dioxide. We gratefully acknowledge Professor Heidi Nepf; Ph.D. student Ernie Lee; and undergraduate student Joyce Yambasu of MIT for additional assistance and participation in this episode. Thanks as well to the Waquoit Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve and research coordinator Megan Tyrrell. For a deeper dive and additional resources related to this episode, visit: . For more episodes of Ask MIT Climate, check out askmitclimate.org . Plus, find us on Instagram , TikTok , and YouTube for outtakes, bonus content, and more climate knowledge from MIT. As always, we love hearing from our listeners; email us at askmitclimate@mit.edu .

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Marshes, mangroves, meadows is an episode from TILclimate by MIT Climate Project.

This episode is 00:14:35 long.

This episode was published on Jan 29, 2026.

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