"The Environmental Protection Agency will establish a new national office of environmental justice, the Biden administration’s latest effort to rectify the disproportionate harm caused by pollution and climate change in communities of color and in low-income cities, towns and counties."
As concerns over global warming, the endangerment of plant and animal species, and water rights escalate, many environmentalists are turning to Indigenous people for guidance. As part of a Society of Environmental Journalists special initiative focused on covering climate solutions, we take a closer look at nature-based solutions and Indigenous people with reporter Brian Bull. Check out a resource toolbox and stay tuned for a reporting tipsheet in coming weeks. Plus, be sure to register for a Sept. 28 webinar on covering Indigenous communities and nature-based climate solutions.
Solid data can fuel great journalism. But the data must come from somewhere. For environmental reporters, one critical source is the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Access to its data, however, is not always as free as journalists would like. So a new WatchDog takes an (admittedly geeky) look at the agency’s open data plan to clarify its efforts to promote access.
Extreme weather and other natural disasters can bring a community to its knees. But journalists can be part of what gets it standing again — or even foresee the risk … if they’ve got the right resources. The latest Reporter’s Toolbox takes a close look at two federal products that could be a good starting point, along with several others worth a try.
"Biosecurity advisers to the federal government are calling for tighter scrutiny of experiments with potentially dangerous viruses and other pathogens, reflecting an ongoing debate within the scientific community over the benefits and risks of such laboratory research."
"The federal government faces increasing fiscal exposure from climate change, according to a new watchdog report released Monday."
Carbon dioxide may get more attention, but the second-most damaging greenhouse gas, methane, is now the focus of a global pledge to cut emissions 30% by 2030. As part of a Society of Environmental Journalists publishing project focused on covering climate solutions, we take a closer look at methane with energy reporter Nushin Huq. A primer on the climate-related problems of methane and the promise of methane-based solutions. Plus, watch a recent SEJ methane solutions webinar and see our Methane and Climate Change Toolbox.
"A political crisis has left Iraq without a functional government and unable to act on worsening climate change impacts".
In the fine print of the historic Biden climate bill is a controversial commitment to pass legislation on fossil fuel permitting, a measure deeply opposed by the environmental community and calling for heavy political muscle to move through Congress this month. Issue Backgrounder details what’s in it, and what’s not, and takes the measure of the measure’s prospects.
Chicken production in the United States is a colossal industry controlled by a few vertically integrated companies. On a much smaller scale, it’s also heritage breeds and increasingly popular backyard flocks. As the latest avian flu outbreak makes headlines, journalist Christine Heinrichs looks at environmental reporting opportunities related to poultry pathogens, pollution and more.
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