Publication Items

A Super (Probably ‘Duper’) El Niño Is Coming. Watch Out! [1]

The news has been full of warnings about a larger-than-normal El Niño, the periodic weather pattern that portends drastic fluctuations in everything from temperatures and precipitation to ocean currents and hurricanes. The latest Issue Backgrounder takes a step back to help explain exactly how this phenomenon works and what its impacts may be, while offering a parting thought on smart coverage.

SEJ Publication Types:
Backgrounders [2]
Topics on the Beat:
Agriculture [3]
Climate Change [4]
Environmental Studies [5]
Fish & Fisheries [6]
Food [7]
Journalism & Media [8]
Science [9]
Water & Oceans [10]
Region:
National (U.S.) [11]
International [12]
Visibility:
Public [13]
- Read more about A Super (Probably ‘Duper’) El Niño Is Coming. Watch Out! [1]
Catch-22 on the Baltic — Twilight of Poland’s Coastal Fisherman [14]

Small-scale fisheries on the wane in an obscure region of the world, and a unique ethnic group trapped between being a tourist attraction and surviving a failing industry. Read how award-winning Polish journalist Tadeusz Michrowski turned this small, unsexy story into something bigger, a complex and nuanced portrait of a community of individuals in transition.

SEJ Publication Types:
Inside Story [15]
Topics on the Beat:
Environmental Politics [16]
Fish & Fisheries [6]
Journalism & Media [8]
Natural Resources [17]
People & Population [18]
Water & Oceans [10]
Region:
International [12]
Europe [19]
Visibility:
Public [13]
- Read more about Catch-22 on the Baltic — Twilight of Poland’s Coastal Fisherman [14]
Kelp — The Understory, Underwater [20]

Massive kelp groves, little-noticed despite their proximity to populated coastlines or their importance to ecosystems and to us humans, face numerous pressures and a drastic decline. In “Forest of the Sea,” author David Helvarg dives into the subject, literally, to help reveal this unique undersea world. BookShelf contributing editor Jennifer Weeks has a review.

SEJ Publication Types:
BookShelf [21]
Topics on the Beat:
Biodiversity [22]
Climate Change [4]
Environmental Health [23]
Fish & Fisheries [6]
Natural Resources [17]
Pollution [24]
Water & Oceans [10]
Region:
National (U.S.) [11]
International [12]
Visibility:
Public [13]
- Read more about Kelp — The Understory, Underwater [20]
How Attribution Science Can Help Reporters on the Heat Beat [25]

With 2026 shaping up to be an exceptional El Niño year, expect lots of record-breaking heat waves and other extreme weather. But climate change will also contribute. Explaining the role of both is essential to complete coverage. Journalist Ethan Brown shares tips and resources for using climate attribution science as a powerful reporting tool. Plus, five questions to ask while covering the next extreme climate event.

SEJ Publication Types:
Features [26]
Topics on the Beat:
Climate Change [4]
Disasters [27]
Environmental Politics [16]
Environmental Studies [5]
Journalism & Media [8]
Policy [28]
Science [9]
Region:
National (U.S.) [11]
International [12]
Visibility:
Public [13]
- Read more about How Attribution Science Can Help Reporters on the Heat Beat [25]
Extreme Heat Will Get You This Summer. Watch Out! [29]

With the approach of what looks like an unusually hot summer, the latest TipSheet offers guidance on covering extreme heat, starting with the step-by-step basics of understanding heat’s health impacts, from dehydration to heat exhaustion and heat stroke. Plus, get 10 story ideas and reporting resources to cover the dangers of extreme heat locally.

SEJ Publication Types:
TipSheet [30]
Topics on the Beat:
Climate Change [4]
Disasters [27]
Health [31]
Journalism & Media [8]
Region:
National (U.S.) [11]
International [12]
Visibility:
Public [13]
- Read more about Extreme Heat Will Get You This Summer. Watch Out! [29]
Graphic Content — Journalistic Lessons From Crossing Genres [32]

Today’s teens are growing up in a world of conspicuous climate change, often directly affected by its consequences. Despite their youth, some are at the forefront of the fight against this threat. Freelance journalist and author Meera Subramanian — co-creator of a new nonfiction graphic novel about young climate campaigners — on teens as sources, activism as a topic and the pleasures of collaboration. See a sample of the book [33].

SEJ Publication Types:
Features [26]
Topics on the Beat:
Activism [34]
Biodiversity [22]
Climate Change [4]
Disasters [27]
Diversity [35]
Environmental Health [23]
Environmental Justice [36]
Environmental Politics [16]
Environmental Studies [5]
Health [31]
Journalism & Media [8]
Pollution [24]
Religion, Faith and Spirituality [37]
Science [9]
Region:
National (U.S.) [11]
Northeast (CT MA ME NH NJ NY RI VT) [38]
International [12]
Visibility:
Public [13]
- Read more about Graphic Content — Journalistic Lessons From Crossing Genres [32]
National Seashores Are a Secret Summer Treasure [39]

While less heralded than its national park system, the United States abounds in waterfront treasures that are part of the national seashore and lakeshore program. The latest TipSheet takes you on a guided tour of more than a dozen, from barrier islands and dunes to tidepools and turtles. Plus, a half-dozen reporting ideas for your own region.

SEJ Publication Types:
TipSheet [30]
Topics on the Beat:
Government [40]
Journalism & Media [8]
Laws & Regulations [41]
Natural Resources [17]
Water & Oceans [10]
Region:
California [42]
Great Lakes (IL IN MI MN OH WI) [43]
Mid-Atlantic (DC DE MD PA VA WV) [44]
Northeast (CT MA ME NH NJ NY RI VT) [38]
SE (AL AR FL GA KY LA MS NC PR SC TN) [45]
Southwest (AZ NM OK TX) [46]
International [12]
Canada [47]
Visibility:
Public [13]
- Read more about National Seashores Are a Secret Summer Treasure [39]
What Is the Half-Life of a Nuclear Revival? Part 2 [48]

Is the United States in the midst of a “nuclear renaissance”? This two-part Backgrounder explores the question, with a look at next-gen reactor design, the (lack of) independence of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission and what to do with nuclear waste. Plus, see Part 1 [49] on the government role in developing nuclear power and an earlier effort at industry rebirth.

SEJ Publication Types:
Backgrounders [2]
Topics on the Beat:
Disasters [27]
Energy & Fuel [50]
Environmental Politics [16]
Laws & Regulations [41]
Nuclear Power & Radiation [51]
Policy [28]
Technology [52]
Region:
National (U.S.) [11]
International [12]
Visibility:
Public [13]
- Read more about What Is the Half-Life of a Nuclear Revival? Part 2 [48]
Scouring the Skies for Methane Data [53]

Emissions of the global warming gas methane are widely tracked through satellite sensors, despite some unexpected bumps in the data-gathering effort. But a big challenge is how to interpret and use the resulting insights in your coverage. The latest Reporter’s Toolbox points out several important methane datasets and offers useful insights into how to turn them into stories.

SEJ Publication Types:
Reporters Toolbox [54]
Topics on the Beat:
Climate Change [4]
Environmental Health [23]
Environmental Studies [5]
Journalism & Media [8]
Science [9]
Region:
National (U.S.) [11]
International [12]
Visibility:
Public [13]
- Read more about Scouring the Skies for Methane Data [53]
What Is the Half-Life of a Nuclear Revival? Part 1 [49]

Is the United States in the midst of a “nuclear renaissance”? This two-part Issue Backgrounder explores that question, beginning in Part 1 with a look at the government’s part in developing nuclear power, including through subsidies, as well as why the new reactors built earlier in the 2000s didn’t really make the case for the industry’s rebirth.

SEJ Publication Types:
Backgrounders [2]
Topics on the Beat:
Disasters [27]
Energy & Fuel [50]
Environmental Politics [16]
Laws & Regulations [41]
Nuclear Power & Radiation [51]
Policy [28]
Technology [52]
Region:
National (U.S.) [11]
International [12]
Visibility:
Public [13]
- Read more about What Is the Half-Life of a Nuclear Revival? Part 1 [49]

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