Publication Items

The Community We’ve Long Ignored [1]

Veteran environmental justice reporter Yessenia Funes this week launches “Voices of Environmental Justice,” her new SEJournal column. Each quarterly commentary will focus on spotlighting the perspectives of affected communities that environmental and climate journalists often ignore. For her inaugural entry, with Pride month nearing its end, a look at how climate change and environmental pollution exacerbate the already elevated health risks of LGBTQIA+ people.

SEJ Publication Types:
Voices of Environmental Justice [2]
Topics on the Beat:
Activism [3]
Agriculture [4]
Climate Change [5]
Diversity [6]
Environmental Justice [7]
Environmental Politics [8]
Health [9]
Journalism & Media [10]
People & Population [11]
Region:
National (U.S.) [12]
California [13]
Visibility:
Public [14]
- Read more about The Community We’ve Long Ignored [1]
Wildfire Smoke — Now a Local Story in Unaccustomed Places [15]

The harms of air pollutants created by wildfires are clear. What’s lost in the haze, though, is that wildfire smoke can carry those pollutants vast distances, threatening communities that are unfamiliar with the risks. The latest TipSheet explains the dangers and how far-flung wildfire smoke travels, then offers a dozen story ideas plus reporting resources.

SEJ Publication Types:
TipSheet [16]
Topics on the Beat:
Air [17]
Chemicals [18]
Climate Change [5]
Disasters [19]
Forests [20]
Health [9]
Journalism & Media [10]
Pollution [21]
Region:
National (U.S.) [12]
Northeast (CT MA ME NH NJ NY RI VT) [22]
SE (AL AR FL GA KY LA MS NC PR SC TN) [23]
International [24]
Canada [25]
Visibility:
Public [14]
- Read more about Wildfire Smoke — Now a Local Story in Unaccustomed Places [15]
Both Sides Now — How Permitting Reform May Affect Fossil Fuel, Clean Energy Industries [26]

It’s a political knot with the potential to tangle the fossil energy industry, the clean energy industry … or both. Environmental journalists looking to better report on the impacts of permitting reform can start with our latest Backgrounder, which explores the issue’s recent history and the competing visions that have stalled changes. There’s also the “backroom problem.” Plus, get a rundown of key actors.

SEJ Publication Types:
Backgrounders [27]
Topics on the Beat:
Activism [3]
Climate Change [5]
Energy & Fuel [28]
Environmental Politics [8]
Government [29]
Infrastructure [30]
Journalism & Media [10]
Laws & Regulations [31]
Natural Resources [32]
Policy [33]
Region:
National (U.S.) [12]
Alaska and Hawaii [34]
Great Plains (IA KS ND NE MO SD) [35]
Mid-Atlantic (DC DE MD PA VA WV) [36]
International [24]
Canada [25]
Visibility:
Public [14]
- Read more about Both Sides Now — How Permitting Reform May Affect Fossil Fuel, Clean Energy Industries [26]
Watching the Watchers: How Journalistic Teamwork Uncovered Years of Regulatory Failure in Texas [37]

After a massive fire at a Texas petrochemical storage facility, reporters from Public Health Watch and The Texas Tribune worked together to shed light on who was responsible for this disaster and what health threats had been hidden from the public. This behind-the-scenes report from Public Health Watch’s David Leffler and Savanna Strott looks at the challenges the team faced and how they overcame them.

SEJ Publication Types:
Features [38]
Topics on the Beat:
Air [17]
Chemicals [18]
Disasters [19]
Economy & Business [39]
Energy & Fuel [28]
Environmental Health [40]
Environmental Justice [7]
Environmental Politics [8]
Government [29]
Health [9]
Journalism & Media [10]
Laws & Regulations [31]
Pollution [21]
Region:
National (U.S.) [12]
Southwest (AZ NM OK TX) [41]
Visibility:
Public [14]
- Read more about Watching the Watchers: How Journalistic Teamwork Uncovered Years of Regulatory Failure in Texas [37]
Pesticide Data Can Ground Food and Farm Stories [42]

A billion pounds of chemicals are used on U.S. crops each year. Designed to protect them, they can also leave residue on foods we eat and enter the waterways we drink from. Reporter’s Toolbox has some key data sources for journalists, whether they’re looking at the big picture or are drilling down locally around issues of pesticide use and human or ecological health.

SEJ Publication Types:
Reporters Toolbox [43]
Topics on the Beat:
Agriculture [4]
Chemicals [18]
Environmental Health [40]
Food [44]
Government [29]
Health [9]
Journalism & Media [10]
Pollution [21]
Water & Oceans [45]
Region:
National (U.S.) [12]
Visibility:
Public [14]
- Read more about Pesticide Data Can Ground Food and Farm Stories [42]
Threats to Press Come in Many Forms. Some Are Violent. [46]

Attacks of all kinds on U.S. journalists clearly hamper a free press. And environmental journalists are not spared such aggressions, especially when covering contested places like pipeline construction sites. WatchDog Opinion outlines the problem and explores how journalists might be spared from such violations, including with a prospective law explicitly protecting journalists from assault.

SEJ Publication Types:
WatchDog [47]
Topics on the Beat:
Activism [3]
Energy & Fuel [28]
Environmental Politics [8]
Journalism & Media [10]
Laws & Regulations [31]
Policy [33]
Region:
National (U.S.) [12]
Mountain West (CO ID MT NV UT WY) [48]
SE (AL AR FL GA KY LA MS NC PR SC TN) [23]
International [24]
Canada [25]
South America [49]
Visibility:
Public [14]
- Read more about Threats to Press Come in Many Forms. Some Are Violent. [46]
The Seven Stages of Beach Exploitation (and Restoration) [50]

When most people think of coastal tourist destinations, they imagine beaches lined by palm trees and exclusive resorts. But those are exactly the kind of realities that contribute to the environmental and economic decline of coastal communities and their local residents, argues a new book. Contributing Editor Jenny Weeks has our review in the new BookShelf.

SEJ Publication Types:
BookShelf [51]
Topics on the Beat:
Climate Change [5]
Environmental Health [40]
Natural Resources [32]
People & Population [11]
Planning & Growth [52]
Pollution [21]
Water & Oceans [45]
Region:
National (U.S.) [12]
Alaska and Hawaii [34]
California [13]
Northeast (CT MA ME NH NJ NY RI VT) [22]
SE (AL AR FL GA KY LA MS NC PR SC TN) [23]
International [24]
Mexico [53]
Africa [54]
Asia [55]
Australia & Oceania [56]
Central America & the Caribbean [57]
Europe [58]
Visibility:
Public [14]
- Read more about The Seven Stages of Beach Exploitation (and Restoration) [50]
As Bird Populations Crash, Local Reporting Can Help Untangle Why [59]

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 [16]
Topics on the Beat:
Biodiversity [60]
Chemicals [18]
Environmental Health [40]
Journalism & Media [10]
Wildlife [61]
Region:
National (U.S.) [12]
International [24]
Canada [25]
Visibility:
Public [14]
- Read more about As Bird Populations Crash, Local Reporting Can Help Untangle Why [59]
Whether Wetlands or Blacktop, Land Cover Database Provides Foundation for Environmental Reporting [62]

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 [43]
Topics on the Beat:
Agriculture [4]
Environmental Health [40]
Environmental Studies [63]
Forests [20]
Journalism & Media [10]
Natural Resources [32]
Science [64]
Water & Oceans [45]
Region:
National (U.S.) [12]
Visibility:
Public [14]
- Read more about Whether Wetlands or Blacktop, Land Cover Database Provides Foundation for Environmental Reporting [62]
From TV Meteorologists, More Straight Talk About Climate Change [65]

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 [38]
Topics on the Beat:
Climate Change [5]
Disasters [19]
Journalism & Media [10]
Region:
National (U.S.) [12]
California [13]
Southwest (AZ NM OK TX) [41]
Visibility:
Public [14]
- Read more about From TV Meteorologists, More Straight Talk About Climate Change [65]

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