Publication Items

Gas Prices Still Fuel Local Environmental Stories [1]

The spike in prices at the pump in recent months, thanks largely to the U.S.’s war with Iran, offers energy and environment reporters numerous local reporting angles, writes the latest TipSheet. A quick perspective and backstory, then more than a dozen story ideas to pursue, smart questions to ask and useful reporting resources to tap.

SEJ Publication Types:
TipSheet [2]
Topics on the Beat:
Consumer [3]
Energy & Fuel [4]
Environmental Politics [5]
Journalism & Media [6]
Natural Resources [7]
Policy [8]
Transportation [9]
Region:
National (U.S.) [10]
Visibility:
Public [11]
- Read more about Gas Prices Still Fuel Local Environmental Stories [1]
Trump Wants Nondisclosure Agreements for Federal Employees [12]

As if it’s not already hard enough for reporters to talk to civil servants, the Trump administration wants all federal government employees to sign a nondisclosure agreement that could cost them their jobs if they do. The new WatchDog Opinion column spotlights the dangers of such a policy and details the widespread opposition it has engendered.

SEJ Publication Types:
WatchDog [13]
Topics on the Beat:
Government [14]
Journalism & Media [6]
Laws & Regulations [15]
Policy [8]
Region:
National (U.S.) [10]
Visibility:
Public [11]
- Read more about Trump Wants Nondisclosure Agreements for Federal Employees [12]
Databases on Data Centers, Brockovich and Beyond [16]

An explosion of new artificial intelligence data centers means potential trouble, as they hoover up power and water, and spew global warming gases. It’s a story with national and global ramifications, certainly. But it’s also one that can be reported locally. Reporter’s Toolbox offers up some handy databases for environmental journalists to find data center stories in their communities.

SEJ Publication Types:
Reporters Toolbox [17]
Topics on the Beat:
Activism [18]
Climate Change [19]
Energy & Fuel [4]
Infrastructure [20]
Journalism & Media [6]
Planning & Growth [21]
Technology [22]
Water & Oceans [23]
Region:
National (U.S.) [10]
Visibility:
Public [11]
- Read more about Databases on Data Centers, Brockovich and Beyond [16]
Why the Loss of Voting Rights Is a Climate Crisis [24]

When the Supreme Court further hollowed out the Voting Rights Act this spring, it augured a historic loss of civic power for Black communities. And with that comes a further blow — to progress on the environment. For as Voices of Environmental Justice columnist Yessenia Funes explains, key to climate policy are Black voters, and the Black legislators they bring into office.

SEJ Publication Types:
Voices of Environmental Justice [25]
Topics on the Beat:
Activism [18]
Climate Change [19]
Disasters [26]
Environmental Justice [27]
Environmental Politics [5]
Government [14]
Journalism & Media [6]
Laws & Regulations [15]
People & Population [28]
Policy [8]
Pollution [29]
Region:
National (U.S.) [10]
SE (AL AR FL GA KY LA MS NC PR SC TN) [30]
Southwest (AZ NM OK TX) [31]
Visibility:
Public [11]
- Read more about Why the Loss of Voting Rights Is a Climate Crisis [24]
Great Lakes Steelmaking at a Crossroads [32]

The Great Lakes region is a top steel producer, but its coal-fired steel mills are also a major source of planet-warming emissions and health-harming pollution. Climate advocates, community members and workers have been pushing to clean up these facilities for decades. Now, foreign funding offers new hope for revitalizing and decarbonizing the region’s steel industry. Canary Media’s Maria Gallucci explains.

SEJ Publication Types:
Features [33]
Topics on the Beat:
Activism [18]
Air [34]
Climate Change [19]
Economy & Business [35]
Energy & Fuel [4]
Environmental Politics [5]
Government [14]
Health [36]
Natural Resources [7]
Pollution [29]
Technology [22]
Water & Oceans [23]
Region:
National (U.S.) [10]
Great Lakes (IL IN MI MN OH WI) [37]
SE (AL AR FL GA KY LA MS NC PR SC TN) [30]
International [38]
Asia [39]
Visibility:
Public [11]
- Read more about Great Lakes Steelmaking at a Crossroads [32]
A Super (Probably ‘Duper’) El Niño Is Coming. Watch Out! [40]

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 [41]
Topics on the Beat:
Agriculture [42]
Climate Change [19]
Environmental Studies [43]
Fish & Fisheries [44]
Food [45]
Journalism & Media [6]
Science [46]
Water & Oceans [23]
Region:
National (U.S.) [10]
International [38]
Visibility:
Public [11]
- Read more about A Super (Probably ‘Duper’) El Niño Is Coming. Watch Out! [40]
Catch-22 on the Baltic — Twilight of Poland’s Coastal Fisherman [47]

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 [48]
Topics on the Beat:
Environmental Politics [5]
Fish & Fisheries [44]
Journalism & Media [6]
Natural Resources [7]
People & Population [28]
Water & Oceans [23]
Region:
International [38]
Europe [49]
Visibility:
Public [11]
- Read more about Catch-22 on the Baltic — Twilight of Poland’s Coastal Fisherman [47]
Is Climate Disaster Insurance a Worsening Disaster? [50]

The growing disconnect between climate risk and risk insurance for homeowners is leaving millions on the knife-edge of economic disaster. But the latest TipSheet suggests that reality offers environmental journalists an opportunity to navigate the morass, community by community. Get more than a dozen story ideas and reporting resources in the latest column.

SEJ Publication Types:
TipSheet [2]
Topics on the Beat:
Climate Change [19]
Consumer [3]
Disasters [26]
Environmental Politics [5]
Government [14]
Journalism & Media [6]
Laws & Regulations [15]
People & Population [28]
Planning & Growth [21]
Policy [8]
Water & Oceans [23]
Wildlife [51]
Region:
National (U.S.) [10]
California [52]
SE (AL AR FL GA KY LA MS NC PR SC TN) [30]
Visibility:
Public [11]
- Read more about Is Climate Disaster Insurance a Worsening Disaster? [50]
Kelp — The Understory, Underwater [53]

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 [54]
Topics on the Beat:
Biodiversity [55]
Climate Change [19]
Environmental Health [56]
Fish & Fisheries [44]
Natural Resources [7]
Pollution [29]
Water & Oceans [23]
Region:
National (U.S.) [10]
International [38]
Visibility:
Public [11]
- Read more about Kelp — The Understory, Underwater [53]
How Attribution Science Can Help Reporters on the Heat Beat [57]

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 [33]
Topics on the Beat:
Climate Change [19]
Disasters [26]
Environmental Politics [5]
Environmental Studies [43]
Journalism & Media [6]
Policy [8]
Science [46]
Region:
National (U.S.) [10]
International [38]
Visibility:
Public [11]
- Read more about How Attribution Science Can Help Reporters on the Heat Beat [57]

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