Publication Items

As Bird Populations Crash, Local Reporting Can Help Untangle Why [1]

A precipitous decline in bird populations worldwide and in North America has numerous causes and is, at least in part, the result of human activity. But the complexity of the problem doesn’t mean that it can’t be reported on the ground by environmental journalists using nearby resources. The latest TipSheet has more, along with a dozen-and-a-half story ideas and reporting resources.

SEJ Publication Types:
TipSheet [2]
Topics on the Beat:
Biodiversity [3]
Chemicals [4]
Environmental Health [5]
Journalism & Media [6]
Wildlife [7]
Region:
National (U.S.) [8]
International [9]
Canada [10]
Visibility:
Public [11]
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Whether Wetlands or Blacktop, Land Cover Database Provides Foundation for Environmental Reporting [12]

For journalists looking to understand the condition of U.S. rangeland, forests or urban pavement, a high-quality government dataset collected via Landsat can help. And for data geeks who want to go a step further and illuminate human impacts on the environment, mapping overlays on the Landsat data can do the trick. Find out more in the new Reporter’s Toolbox.

SEJ Publication Types:
Reporters Toolbox [13]
Topics on the Beat:
Agriculture [14]
Environmental Health [5]
Environmental Studies [15]
Forests [16]
Journalism & Media [6]
Natural Resources [17]
Science [18]
Water & Oceans [19]
Region:
National (U.S.) [8]
Visibility:
Public [11]
- Read more about Whether Wetlands or Blacktop, Land Cover Database Provides Foundation for Environmental Reporting [12]
From TV Meteorologists, More Straight Talk About Climate Change [20]

Reporters covering floods, fires and other weather-driven disasters sometimes hesitate to link these extreme events to climate change. But TV meteorologists increasingly see an opportunity — and a responsibility — to help local audiences better understand the connections. Their unique relationship with viewers makes it easier to get past partisan divisions, while innovative tools are providing new ways to communicate information.

SEJ Publication Types:
Features [21]
Topics on the Beat:
Climate Change [22]
Disasters [23]
Journalism & Media [6]
Region:
National (U.S.) [8]
California [24]
Southwest (AZ NM OK TX) [25]
Visibility:
Public [11]
- Read more about From TV Meteorologists, More Straight Talk About Climate Change [20]
Announcing Upcoming Transitions [26]

Society of Environmental Journalists president Luke Runyon (pictured, left) shares information on a couple of important upcoming transitions for SEJ. One is an announcement from our current executive director, Meaghan Parker, and our plans to search for SEJ’s next executive director; another is a change in organizational structure.

SEJ Publication Types:
SEJ Presidents Report [27]
Topics on the Beat:
Journalism & Media [6]
Region:
National (U.S.) [8]
International [9]
Visibility:
Public [11]
- Read more about Announcing Upcoming Transitions [26]
Heat Warning — Expect Extreme Temps To Be Local Story This Summer [28]

Some areas of the United States are hot and getting hotter, thanks to climate change and now the coming El Niño. But some areas have little history with extreme temperatures — and those places are among the ones to watch this summer for local and regional reporting. Plus, who are the most vulnerable in your community when it comes to heat waves?

SEJ Publication Types:
TipSheet [2]
Topics on the Beat:
Climate Change [22]
Disasters [23]
Environmental Justice [29]
Health [30]
Journalism & Media [6]
People & Population [31]
Region:
National (U.S.) [8]
California [24]
Great Lakes (IL IN MI MN OH WI) [32]
Northwest (OR WA) [33]
International [9]
Visibility:
Public [11]
- Read more about Heat Warning — Expect Extreme Temps To Be Local Story This Summer [28]
On the Front Lines, When Wildfires Turn Personal [34]

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 [35]
Topics on the Beat:
Climate Change [22]
Disasters [23]
Forests [16]
Journalism & Media [6]
People & Population [31]
Region:
National (U.S.) [8]
California [24]
Visibility:
Public [11]
- Read more about On the Front Lines, When Wildfires Turn Personal [34]
How To Power Through Your EPA Power Plant Rule Coverage [36]

The new proposed limits on climate pollution from existing power plants will be a significant story for years to come, but one with many moving parts and numerous complications. The new Issue Backgrounder explores the larger context and history of the proposed rule, and provides six key developments to watch as you track its evolution.

SEJ Publication Types:
Backgrounders [37]
Topics on the Beat:
Air [38]
Climate Change [22]
Energy & Fuel [39]
Environmental Health [5]
Environmental Politics [40]
Health [30]
Infrastructure [41]
Journalism & Media [6]
Laws & Regulations [42]
Policy [43]
Pollution [44]
Region:
National (U.S.) [8]
Visibility:
Public [11]
- Read more about How To Power Through Your EPA Power Plant Rule Coverage [36]
CAFO SNAFU — Why Emissions Data Are So Hard To Find [45]

Sometimes the challenge for environmental reporters is a mess of data. But sometimes it’s just less data. That’s the case with confined animal feed operations, which have been the subject of a years-long political tug of war over tracking emissions harmful to humans and the environment. The latest Reporter’s Toolbox explains, then offers alternate sources for CAFO data.

SEJ Publication Types:
Reporters Toolbox [13]
Topics on the Beat:
Agriculture [14]
Air [38]
Economy & Business [46]
Environmental Health [5]
Environmental Justice [29]
Environmental Politics [40]
Food [47]
Health [30]
Journalism & Media [6]
Laws & Regulations [42]
Pollution [44]
Waste [48]
Water & Oceans [19]
Region:
National (U.S.) [8]
Visibility:
Public [11]
- Read more about CAFO SNAFU — Why Emissions Data Are So Hard To Find [45]
When Extreme Weather Amplifies Hazardous Waste Threats [49]

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 [2]
Topics on the Beat:
Air [38]
Chemicals [4]
Climate Change [22]
Disasters [23]
Environmental Health [5]
Health [30]
Journalism & Media [6]
People & Population [31]
Pollution [44]
Waste [48]
Water & Oceans [19]
Region:
National (U.S.) [8]
SE (AL AR FL GA KY LA MS NC PR SC TN) [50]
Southwest (AZ NM OK TX) [25]
Visibility:
Public [11]
- Read more about When Extreme Weather Amplifies Hazardous Waste Threats [49]
Grant Prompts Improved Coverage of Indigenous Perspectives at Bears Ears [51]

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 [52]
Topics on the Beat:
Activism [53]
Diversity [54]
Environmental Justice [29]
Environmental Politics [40]
Journalism & Media [6]
Natural Resources [17]
People & Population [31]
Region:
National (U.S.) [8]
Mountain West (CO ID MT NV UT WY) [55]
Visibility:
Public [11]
- Read more about Grant Prompts Improved Coverage of Indigenous Perspectives at Bears Ears [51]

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