Publication Items

‘Endangered’ USGS Pesticide Database Shows Wide Chemical Impact [1]

Pesticides are a major environmental and public health issue — harming vulnerable human populations, as well as contributing to declines in insect populations and even the birds that feed on them. The latest Reporter’s Toolbox explores an invaluable government database that reports estimates of county-level use of a wide array of these chemicals, but which recently faced severe cutbacks. Read more about the Pesticide National Synthesis Project.

SEJ Publication Types:
Reporters Toolbox [2]
Topics on the Beat:
Agriculture [3]
Chemicals [4]
Environmental Health [5]
Environmental Politics [6]
Food [7]
Health [8]
Journalism & Media [9]
Pollution [10]
Water & Oceans [11]
Region:
National (U.S.) [12]
Visibility:
Public [13]
- Read more about ‘Endangered’ USGS Pesticide Database Shows Wide Chemical Impact [1]
What Makes Communities More Survivable in Extreme Heat Events? [14]

When heat waves hit your area, as they did for much of the United States in June, local responses can (and should) go well beyond individual behaviors to address broader area actions — from cool pavements to urban trees. For environmental journalists, that means community-level heat response is an important climate story angle. TipSheet explains, then offers a dozen story ideas, along with reporting resources.

SEJ Publication Types:
TipSheet [15]
Topics on the Beat:
Climate Change [16]
Consumer [17]
Disasters [18]
Health [8]
Infrastructure [19]
Journalism & Media [9]
People & Population [20]
Region:
National (U.S.) [12]
Visibility:
Public [13]
- Read more about What Makes Communities More Survivable in Extreme Heat Events? [14]
Pulling Back the Curtain on the Plunder of the Planet [21]

“Pitfall: The Race to Mine the World’s Most Vulnerable Places,” a new work by investigative journalist Christopher Pollon, offers a sweeping global view of how the mining industry profits, despite causing vast environmental losses and failing to acknowledge Indigenous ownership or rights to the land it mines. BookShelf’s Melody Kemp lauds Pollon’s searing observations and investigations. Read her review.

SEJ Publication Types:
BookShelf [22]
Topics on the Beat:
Activism [23]
Biodiversity [24]
Consumer [17]
Economy & Business [25]
Environmental Health [5]
Environmental Justice [26]
Environmental Politics [6]
Fish & Fisheries [27]
Forests [28]
Natural Resources [29]
Policy [30]
Pollution [10]
Technology [31]
Water & Oceans [11]
Wildlife [32]
Region:
International [33]
Africa [34]
Asia [35]
Australia & Oceania [36]
South America [37]
Visibility:
Public [13]
- Read more about Pulling Back the Curtain on the Plunder of the Planet [21]
Tracking the EPA Agenda Through Agency Grants [38]

Much of what the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency accomplishes, whether cleaning up water, shoring up infrastructure or reducing climate change, is done through its grants program. To help track that spending, the latest Reporter’s Toolbox points reporters to an enhanced EPA grant database tool that lets you search by geography and across other databases. More on how to make the most of it.

SEJ Publication Types:
Reporters Toolbox [2]
Topics on the Beat:
Climate Change [16]
Government [39]
Infrastructure [19]
Journalism & Media [9]
Policy [30]
Water & Oceans [11]
Region:
National (U.S.) [12]
Visibility:
Public [13]
- Read more about Tracking the EPA Agenda Through Agency Grants [38]
Rethinking Rural Reporting — How To Get Past the Cliches [40]

When covering rural America, mainstream media often defaults to stereotypes steeped in politics and ignores the diversity that actually exists there, as expanding news deserts exacerbate the problem. Reporter Claire Carlson on why this matters — including in discouraging investment around climate change or resource industries urban dwellers depend on. Here’s how journalists can report richer, more nuanced stories about rural people and places.

SEJ Publication Types:
Features [41]
Topics on the Beat:
Agriculture [3]
Climate Change [16]
Disasters [18]
Diversity [42]
Economy & Business [25]
Environmental Politics [6]
Government [39]
Journalism & Media [9]
People & Population [20]
Policy [30]
Region:
National (U.S.) [12]
Visibility:
Public [13]
- Read more about Rethinking Rural Reporting — How To Get Past the Cliches [40]
Unique Award-Winner Highlights Risks to Whales From Fight Over Fish [43]

Whales and fishers chasing the same catch can lead to serious impacts on marine mammals, including illegal shootings. To tell the story, journalist Nick Rahaim took an unusual tack — reporting while working as a deckhand on a fishing vessel. His award-winning account won praise for its balance, sourcing and insight. Rahaim talks about his approach in our Inside Story Q&A.

SEJ Publication Types:
Inside Story [44]
Topics on the Beat:
Economy & Business [25]
Fish & Fisheries [27]
Journalism & Media [9]
Natural Resources [29]
Science [45]
Water & Oceans [11]
Wildlife [32]
Region:
National (U.S.) [12]
Alaska and Hawaii [46]
Visibility:
Public [13]
- Read more about Unique Award-Winner Highlights Risks to Whales From Fight Over Fish [43]
Is Your Community Ready for Tornadoes? Are You? [47]

With more than 100 tornadoes hitting the United States so far this year, the latest TipSheet takes a closer look at how journalists can help their communities better prepare for these damaging and often deadly windstorms. Plus, more than a dozen story ideas and reporting resources, from questions about warning systems and shelters to sources at weather agencies and for tornado-preparedness advice.

SEJ Publication Types:
TipSheet [15]
Topics on the Beat:
Disasters [18]
Journalism & Media [9]
People & Population [20]
Region:
National (U.S.) [12]
Great Plains (IA KS ND NE MO SD) [48]
Visibility:
Public [13]
- Read more about Is Your Community Ready for Tornadoes? Are You? [47]
Why the Press Needs To Press for Senate Action on the PRESS Act [49]

A promising federal shield law that would protect journalists from jail for refusing to reveal sources months ago passed the House of Representatives but has since stalled in the Senate. The new WatchDog Opinion column can tell you why … and why this measure, dubbed the PRESS Act, matters so much for reporters, including those that cover climate and the environment.

SEJ Publication Types:
WatchDog [50]
Topics on the Beat:
Journalism & Media [9]
Laws & Regulations [51]
Policy [30]
Region:
National (U.S.) [12]
Visibility:
Public [13]
- Read more about Why the Press Needs To Press for Senate Action on the PRESS Act [49]
The EPA’s Power Plant Rule … We’ll See You in Court [52]

A new federal rule to cut power plant pollution and carbon dioxide emissions promises to escalate a yearslong, highly partisan battle at the core of U.S. climate change policy. Our Issue Backgrounder lays out the shifting regulatory approaches from the administrations of George W. Bush to Joe Biden, and notes the legal tug-of-war that has heightened the importance of another big player — the Supreme Court.

SEJ Publication Types:
Backgrounders [53]
Topics on the Beat:
Air [54]
Climate Change [16]
Energy & Fuel [55]
Environmental Health [5]
Environmental Politics [6]
Government [39]
Laws & Regulations [51]
Policy [30]
Pollution [10]
Region:
National (U.S.) [12]
Visibility:
Public [13]
- Read more about The EPA’s Power Plant Rule … We’ll See You in Court [52]
From Reporter to Author — How I Published My First Book [56]

When freelancer Sophie Yeo first thought of writing a book, it seemed an impossible task. But with a successful website under her belt, she plunged in. Two missed deadlines and one baby later, she had her book, a history of the natural world titled “Nature’s Ghosts: The World We Lost and How To Bring It Back.” How she got there, and lessons learned, in the new Freelance Files.

SEJ Publication Types:
Freelance Files [57]
Topics on the Beat:
Biodiversity [24]
Environmental Health [5]
Journalism & Media [9]
Science [45]
Wildlife [32]
Region:
International [33]
Europe [58]
Visibility:
Public [13]
- Read more about From Reporter to Author — How I Published My First Book [56]

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