Publication Items

Following Nature on a Transformative Journey Away From the Mean Streets of D.C. [1]

As a young man, Rodney Stotts knew plenty about drugs, guns and poverty and little about the other kinds of wildlife in his hometown. A chance offer of a job cleaning up Washington, D.C.’s Anacostia River set him on the path to becoming a master falconer — despite racist resistance — and a mentor to others who share his inner-city roots. BookShelf’s Jennifer Weeks reviews Stotts’ memoir, “Bird Brother.”

SEJ Publication Types:
BookShelf [2]
Topics on the Beat:
Activism [3]
Diversity [4]
Pollution [5]
Water & Oceans [6]
Wildlife [7]
Region:
National (U.S.) [8]
Mid-Atlantic (DC DE MD PA VA WV) [9]
Visibility:
Public [10]
- Read more about Following Nature on a Transformative Journey Away From the Mean Streets of D.C. [1]
NOAA Data Portal Is a Great Home Port for Environmental Journalists [11]

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration database is as vast as the oceans the agency monitors and filled with information collected by a wide array of instruments operating above, below and on the water’s surface. The latest Reporter’s Toolbox delves into the NOAA Data Discovery Portal and takes a look at a new search tool that promises easier exploration of this treasure trove.

SEJ Publication Types:
Reporters Toolbox [12]
Topics on the Beat:
Air [13]
Climate Change [14]
Disasters [15]
Environmental Studies [16]
Fish & Fisheries [17]
Government [18]
Journalism & Media [19]
Science [20]
Technology [21]
Water & Oceans [6]
Region:
National (U.S.) [8]
Visibility:
Public [10]
- Read more about NOAA Data Portal Is a Great Home Port for Environmental Journalists [11]
Grants Uncover Downside of Wood Stoves, Water Subsidy Impacts [22]

When a young Ohio-based journalist found her interest piqued by the environmental impacts of wood-burning stoves, she turned — for a second time — to the Fund for Environmental Journalism. Her grant helped her dig deeper and, ultimately, produce a report for Undark. Reporter Diana Kruzman shares her experience with both FEJ-funded projects, along with advice for other grant seekers, in the new StoryLog.

SEJ Publication Types:
FEJ StoryLog [23]
Topics on the Beat:
Air [13]
Consumer [24]
Energy & Fuel [25]
Environmental Health [26]
Environmental Justice [27]
Government [18]
Health [28]
Journalism & Media [19]
Pollution [5]
Region:
National (U.S.) [8]
Northeast (CT MA ME NH NJ NY RI VT) [29]
Southwest (AZ NM OK TX) [30]
International [31]
Visibility:
Public [10]
- Read more about Grants Uncover Downside of Wood Stoves, Water Subsidy Impacts [22]
WTO Deal on Fishing Subsidies May Reduce Ocean Overfishing [32]

A new World Trade Organization agreement to limit global overfishing may yield important stories for environmental journalists, as billions of people around the world rely on already heavily exploited fish stocks as their main source of protein. This Backgrounder offers details on the pact and how it tries to address the problem, while providing resources for your reporting.

SEJ Publication Types:
Backgrounders [33]
Topics on the Beat:
Economy & Business [34]
Environmental Health [26]
Environmental Justice [27]
Environmental Politics [35]
Fish & Fisheries [17]
Food [36]
Government [18]
Journalism & Media [19]
Laws & Regulations [37]
Natural Resources [38]
Policy [39]
Water & Oceans [6]
Wildlife [7]
Region:
National (U.S.) [8]
International [31]
Asia [40]
Europe [41]
Visibility:
Public [10]
- Read more about WTO Deal on Fishing Subsidies May Reduce Ocean Overfishing [32]
Covering Sharks in Shark Week's Wake — You're Gonna Need a Bigger Meme [42]

Despite how it looks on annual summer “shark attack”-style TV programming, the danger sharks represent to humans is dwarfed by the danger we represent to sharks. The latest TipSheet explores how mass media can distort the reality behind sharks and miss the point of their ecological value — and sheer wonder. Get ideas to better report the real story behind sharks.

SEJ Publication Types:
TipSheet [43]
Topics on the Beat:
Fish & Fisheries [17]
Journalism & Media [19]
Water & Oceans [6]
Wildlife [7]
Region:
National (U.S.) [8]
International [31]
Visibility:
Public [10]
- Read more about Covering Sharks in Shark Week's Wake — You're Gonna Need a Bigger Meme [42]
Can Qatar’s World Cup Really Be Carbon Neutral? [44]

Qatar — the world’s highest carbon emitter on a per capita basis — made big promises in its winning bid for the 2022 FIFA World Cup. But will they deliver? Doha-based journalism professor Craig LaMay writes that while sports megaevent hosts face increasing pressure to address environmental concerns, critical coverage of their follow-through is challenging, especially in countries with no free press or public right to government information.

SEJ Publication Types:
Features [45]
Topics on the Beat:
Climate Change [14]
Economy & Business [34]
Energy & Fuel [25]
Environmental Politics [35]
Government [18]
Infrastructure [46]
Journalism & Media [19]
Natural Resources [38]
Technology [21]
Transportation [47]
Waste [48]
Water & Oceans [6]
Region:
International [31]
Canada [49]
Africa [50]
Asia [40]
Europe [41]
Middle East [51]
Visibility:
Public [10]
- Read more about Can Qatar’s World Cup Really Be Carbon Neutral? [44]
Reporting Ocean Stories Is Key to Blue Literacy, Planetary Health [52]

As part of a Society of Environmental Journalists publishing project focused on covering climate solutions, we take a closer look at ocean-based solutions. In this special tipsheet, ocean scientist and science writer Juli Berwald offers a primer on the climate-related challenges and possibilities in the global ocean’s physics, chemistry and biology. Plus, check out an expanded toolbox [53] with reporting resources and watch a recent SEJ webinar [54].

SEJ Publication Types:
Special Reports [55]
Topics on the Beat:
Biodiversity [56]
Climate Change [14]
Environmental Health [26]
Environmental Politics [35]
Environmental Studies [16]
Fish & Fisheries [17]
Journalism & Media [19]
Laws & Regulations [37]
Natural Resources [38]
Policy [39]
Science [20]
Water & Oceans [6]
Region:
National (U.S.) [8]
International [31]
Antarctica & Arctic [57]
Visibility:
Public [10]
- Read more about Reporting Ocean Stories Is Key to Blue Literacy, Planetary Health [52]
Farmers Markets Offer Many Local Environmental Stories [58]

Reporters needn’t always go far and wide to find environment angles. A case in point is your local farmers market, which can yield a variety of food-related stories, ranging from food justice and urban agriculture to pesticides and organics. That and a few tasty samples on the side. TipSheet takes a stroll through the aisles for the backstory, plus reporting resources and story ideas.

SEJ Publication Types:
TipSheet [43]
Topics on the Beat:
Activism [3]
Agriculture [59]
Consumer [24]
Food [36]
Health [28]
Journalism & Media [19]
Region:
National (U.S.) [8]
Visibility:
Public [10]
- Read more about Farmers Markets Offer Many Local Environmental Stories [58]
Beat Reporter Looks to Get Ahead of the Story [60]

As Brazil’s wetlands burned and as the country illegally shipped wood from the Amazon and scaled back environmental enforcement amid the pandemic, award-winning journalist Jake Spring of Reuters was there, telling tough, sometimes dangerous stories. Spring shares insights into his “just the facts” reporting, including the surprises and the lessons, and offers some practical advice in this Inside Story Q&A.

SEJ Publication Types:
Inside Story [61]
Topics on the Beat:
Environmental Politics [35]
Forests [62]
Government [18]
Journalism & Media [19]
Natural Resources [38]
Policy [39]
Region:
International [31]
South America [63]
Visibility:
Public [10]
- Read more about Beat Reporter Looks to Get Ahead of the Story [60]
How 'Rights of Nature' Is Recasting the Relationship Between Law and the Earth [64]

In 2006, a local government council in Pennsylvania concerned about sewage sludge dumping enacted the Western legal system’s first formal “rights of nature” instrument. Today, numerous countries have laws recognizing specific rights or even legal personhood for nature. As legal expert Alice Bleby explains, this new perspective arises from a wide range of contexts and plays out in many different ways.

SEJ Publication Types:
Features [45]
Topics on the Beat:
Activism [3]
Biodiversity [56]
Chemicals [65]
Climate Change [14]
Environmental Health [26]
Environmental Justice [27]
Environmental Politics [35]
Environmental Studies [16]
Fish & Fisheries [17]
Forests [62]
Government [18]
Laws & Regulations [37]
Natural Resources [38]
Policy [39]
Pollution [5]
Religion, Faith and Spirituality [66]
Water & Oceans [6]
Region:
National (U.S.) [8]
California [67]
Great Lakes (IL IN MI MN OH WI) [68]
Mid-Atlantic (DC DE MD PA VA WV) [9]
International [31]
Africa [50]
Asia [40]
Australia & Oceania [69]
South America [63]
Visibility:
Public [10]
- Read more about How 'Rights of Nature' Is Recasting the Relationship Between Law and the Earth [64]

Pages