Publication Items

On the Front Lines, When Wildfires Turn Personal [1]

Forest fires have grown increasingly dangerous in a warming climate, a subject freelance journalist Jane Braxton Little has covered extensively in recent years. But her reporting turned personal when the rampaging Dixie Fire destroyed her small California town. As she explains in the new Inside Story Q&A, the wildfire disaster gave her a perspective no reporter would wish for.

SEJ Publication Types:
Inside Story [2]
Topics on the Beat:
Climate Change [3]
Disasters [4]
Forests [5]
Journalism & Media [6]
People & Population [7]
Region:
National (U.S.) [8]
California [9]
Visibility:
Public [10]
- Read more about On the Front Lines, When Wildfires Turn Personal [1]
When Extreme Weather Amplifies Hazardous Waste Threats [11]

Toxic waste is bad enough when it’s in one spot. But it can be even more dangerous when it is made mobile by climate-induced natural disasters. The latest TipSheet looks at just a few of the problems that can arise — or have already arisen. Plus, story ideas and reporting resources to cover this issue in your locale.

SEJ Publication Types:
TipSheet [12]
Topics on the Beat:
Air [13]
Chemicals [14]
Climate Change [3]
Disasters [4]
Environmental Health [15]
Health [16]
Journalism & Media [6]
People & Population [7]
Pollution [17]
Waste [18]
Water & Oceans [19]
Region:
National (U.S.) [8]
SE (AL AR FL GA KY LA MS NC PR SC TN) [20]
Southwest (AZ NM OK TX) [21]
Visibility:
Public [10]
- Read more about When Extreme Weather Amplifies Hazardous Waste Threats [11]
Grant Prompts Improved Coverage of Indigenous Perspectives at Bears Ears [22]

Inspired by a discussion at a Society of Environmental Journalists conference, freelancer Rico Moore (pictured, left) applied for a Fund for Environmental Journalism grant to report on Bears Ears National Monument. Then, armed with advice for better covering Indigenous communities and Native American tribes, Moore found a new way to write about the cultural and environmental richness of those lands. His experience, in the new FEJ StoryLog.

SEJ Publication Types:
FEJ StoryLog [23]
Topics on the Beat:
Activism [24]
Diversity [25]
Environmental Justice [26]
Environmental Politics [27]
Journalism & Media [6]
Natural Resources [28]
People & Population [7]
Region:
National (U.S.) [8]
Mountain West (CO ID MT NV UT WY) [29]
Visibility:
Public [10]
- Read more about Grant Prompts Improved Coverage of Indigenous Perspectives at Bears Ears [22]
Reporting on the Amazon Rainforest Highlights Accelerating Destruction [30]

A prize-winning feature from the frontlines of the Amazon rainforest drew accolades in the Society of Environmental Journalists’ most recent awards contest. Judges said the “deeply reported account explains history and present-day politics through the lens of people whose voices are rarely heard in U.S. media.” Bloomberg investigative reporter Jessica Brice shares insights from the joint project, in the latest Inside Story Q&A.

SEJ Publication Types:
Inside Story [2]
Topics on the Beat:
Agriculture [31]
Biodiversity [32]
Economy & Business [33]
Environmental Health [15]
Environmental Justice [26]
Environmental Politics [27]
Forests [5]
Journalism & Media [6]
Natural Resources [28]
People & Population [7]
Region:
International [34]
South America [35]
Visibility:
Public [10]
- Read more about Reporting on the Amazon Rainforest Highlights Accelerating Destruction [30]
Reporters Can Address Uncertainty Over Local Risk of Rising Seas [36]

U.S. coastal counties are home to 127 million people, making the risk to life and property of flooding from sea level rise a serious one. But how great that risk is varies widely from place to place. So the latest TipSheet makes the case for environmental journalists to explain the local reality to their audiences. Get context, story ideas and resources to do just that.

SEJ Publication Types:
TipSheet [12]
Topics on the Beat:
Climate Change [3]
Diversity [25]
Environmental Justice [26]
Environmental Studies [37]
Journalism & Media [6]
People & Population [7]
Water & Oceans [19]
Region:
National (U.S.) [8]
SE (AL AR FL GA KY LA MS NC PR SC TN) [20]
Visibility:
Public [10]
- Read more about Reporters Can Address Uncertainty Over Local Risk of Rising Seas [36]
Covering Indigenous Communities — Tips for Non-Native Journalists [38]

Non-Indigenous journalists may think they’re doing “marginalized” Indigenous communities a favor by covering them, but their coverage is too often extractive and riddled with racist tropes. Contributor Valerie Vande Panne offers insights and advice for avoiding these pitfalls. Seeking permission, listening, sharing and respecting are all critical tools for the job.

SEJ Publication Types:
Features [39]
Topics on the Beat:
Activism [24]
Diversity [25]
Environmental Justice [26]
Government [40]
Journalism & Media [6]
People & Population [7]
Religion, Faith and Spirituality [41]
Region:
National (U.S.) [8]
Alaska and Hawaii [42]
Northeast (CT MA ME NH NJ NY RI VT) [43]
Southwest (AZ NM OK TX) [21]
International [34]
Visibility:
Public [10]
- Read more about Covering Indigenous Communities — Tips for Non-Native Journalists [38]
SEJ Panel Gauges Issues in the Works in the U.S. West [44]

As part of our 2023 Journalists’ Guide to Energy & Environment special report, we’ve got highlights from last week’s reporter panel on the year ahead, led by #SEJ2023 conference co-chair Tom Michael (pictured, left). The focus was largely on the U.S. West, where challenges abound over issues like equitable siting of renewable energy infrastructure, regulating natural gas, managing wildfires and addressing the health consequences of climate-driven heat waves. Read our account [44], plus check out the full 2023 Guide [45].

SEJ Publication Types:
SEJ News [46]
Topics on the Beat:
Agriculture [31]
Air [13]
Biodiversity [32]
Climate Change [3]
Disasters [4]
Economy & Business [33]
Energy & Fuel [47]
Environmental Health [15]
Environmental Justice [26]
Environmental Politics [27]
Fish & Fisheries [48]
Food [49]
Forests [5]
Government [40]
Health [16]
Infrastructure [50]
Journalism & Media [6]
Natural Resources [28]
People & Population [7]
Planning & Growth [51]
Policy [52]
Pollution [17]
Water & Oceans [19]
Wildlife [53]
Region:
California [9]
Mountain West (CO ID MT NV UT WY) [29]
Northwest (OR WA) [54]
Southwest (AZ NM OK TX) [21]
Visibility:
Public [10]
- Read more about SEJ Panel Gauges Issues in the Works in the U.S. West [44]
Water-Sharing in the West: An Urgent and Complicated Environmental Story [55]

Water has always been a precious commodity in the western states. Now, with rapid population growth and a drying climate, the way this resource is shared and distributed is becoming more contentious across the region. Freelance journalist Jennifer Oldham talks about the tensions between supply and demand and how to drill down into water rights laws and policies.

SEJ Publication Types:
Features [39]
Topics on the Beat:
Agriculture [31]
Climate Change [3]
Consumer [56]
Economy & Business [33]
Environmental Health [15]
Environmental Politics [27]
Government [40]
Infrastructure [50]
Journalism & Media [6]
Laws & Regulations [57]
Natural Resources [28]
People & Population [7]
Planning & Growth [51]
Policy [52]
Technology [58]
Water & Oceans [19]
Region:
National (U.S.) [8]
California [9]
Mountain West (CO ID MT NV UT WY) [29]
Southwest (AZ NM OK TX) [21]
Visibility:
Public [10]
- Read more about Water-Sharing in the West: An Urgent and Complicated Environmental Story [55]
Collaborative Journalism Project Reveals Inequities in Escaping Climate Change Hazards [59]

When U.S. communities become unlivable due to climate change impacts, can residents count on government relocation assistance — and are those most in need of help actually getting it? Those questions kickstarted a year-long investigation led by three high-powered journalism organizations. Now they’re sharing their reporting resources toolkit and inviting other journalists to widen the coverage with more local stories.

SEJ Publication Types:
Features [39]
Topics on the Beat:
Climate Change [3]
Disasters [4]
Diversity [25]
Economy & Business [33]
Environmental Health [15]
Environmental Justice [26]
Environmental Politics [27]
Government [40]
Health [16]
Infrastructure [50]
Journalism & Media [6]
Laws & Regulations [57]
People & Population [7]
Planning & Growth [51]
Policy [52]
Water & Oceans [19]
Region:
National (U.S.) [8]
Alaska and Hawaii [42]
California [9]
Great Lakes (IL IN MI MN OH WI) [60]
Mid-Atlantic (DC DE MD PA VA WV) [61]
Northeast (CT MA ME NH NJ NY RI VT) [43]
Northwest (OR WA) [54]
SE (AL AR FL GA KY LA MS NC PR SC TN) [20]
Southwest (AZ NM OK TX) [21]
Visibility:
Public [10]
- Read more about Collaborative Journalism Project Reveals Inequities in Escaping Climate Change Hazards [59]
Journalism Industry Program Supports Reporting on Workers — and Work — in a Warming World [62]

As the economic impacts of climate change intensify, reporting on how individuals are affected, particularly in the Global South, is lagging. Veteran journalist Christine Spolar at The Pulitzer Center for Crisis Reporting details a new initiative to encourage journalists to fill this gap. The story of recent grantees Bhasker Tripathi and Susan Schulman, who have tracked job losses and migrations tied to climate change in India and Iraq.

SEJ Publication Types:
Features [39]
Topics on the Beat:
Activism [24]
Agriculture [31]
Climate Change [3]
Disasters [4]
Economy & Business [33]
Environmental Justice [26]
Environmental Politics [27]
Food [49]
Government [40]
Health [16]
Journalism & Media [6]
People & Population [7]
Policy [52]
Technology [58]
Water & Oceans [19]
Region:
National (U.S.) [8]
International [34]
Africa [63]
Asia [64]
Middle East [65]
Visibility:
Public [10]
- Read more about Journalism Industry Program Supports Reporting on Workers — and Work — in a Warming World [62]

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