News & Commentary

New York Is Exposing the Fashion Industry for What It Is: a Climate Nightmare

February 13, 2023 DispatchNew York, New York City, InternationalNicole Greenfield

The state’s Fashion Act seeks to set a new trend of holding big brands accountable for their exploitation of workers and the environment.

Bitcoin Mining Is Bad for the Climate—and Local Communities Too

April 27, 2022 DispatchNew YorkNicole Greenfield

Upstate New York’s defunct power plants have become a hot spot for cryptocurrency operations, and Finger Lakes residents say they’re just another blight.

A New York Climate Justice Activist with Roots in the Blue Ridge Mountains

December 11, 2020 DispatchNew York City, Washington, D.C.Carmen Cusido

WE ACT’s director of environmental health and education, Taylor Morton, who found their path to environmental justice work through a childhood spent in nature, wants to help the next generation get outside without fear.

The Humble Beaver: Troublemaker or Climate Superhero?

May 27, 2020 DispatchMontana, WestAlisa Opar

Beavers create rich habitats and act as buffers against the effects of drought and wildfire—spurring efforts to pinpoint new ways to help us coexist with North America’s largest rodent.

Montana’s Wildlife Needs Safer Crosswalks

March 13, 2019 DispatchMontanaLora Shinn

A push for more animal bridges and overpasses is aimed at reducing the number of collisions between vehicles and wildlife.

The Fight to Save Plum Island

February 21, 2019 DispatchNew YorkNicole Greenfield

The federal government wants to sell off a wildlife-rich island in Long Island Sound to the highest bidder. No way, say advocates.

These Montanans Don’t Want an Industrial Slaughterhouse in Their Backyard

February 1, 2019 DispatchMontanaLora Shinn

In the small city of Great Falls, residents push back against a Big Ag plant that would consume 3.5 million gallons of water—and produce 102,995 pounds of waste—per day.

This Is Not Your Grandfather’s Birding Club

August 29, 2018 DispatchNew York, New York CityKeith Mulvihill

A passion for women’s and LGBTQ rights is required in Molly Adams’s Feminist Bird Club; birding expertise is not.

Montanans Find Their Scenery More Precious Than Copper or Gold

August 15, 2018 DispatchMontanaLora Shinn

Environmentalists, the recreation industry, and lovers of the state’s great outdoors push back against new mine developments threatening their waters.

For the Delaware River Basin, a Partial Fracking Ban Is a Partial Victory

January 11, 2018 DispatchDelaware, New York, Pennsylvania

Proposed regulations would still allow wastewater to be disposed of in the watershed, with risks to both drinking water and the environment.

When It Rains, It Pours Raw Sewage into New York City’s Waterways

December 12, 2017 DispatchNew York CityClara Chaisson

The Big Apple’s combined sewer system is 150 years old—and in desperate need of improvement.

Resolving a Real-Life Rivalry Between Bears and Honeybees

October 4, 2017 DispatchMontanaCorey Binns

When hungry bears and Montana’s honey industry collide, apiarists and conservationists come together to avoid a sticky situation.

Killing Coyotes with Cyanide? There Must Be a Better Way.

September 25, 2017 DispatchMontana, WestAlisa Opar

Nonlethal methods to protect livestock from predators are gaining momentum as pressure mounts to ban poison-spray traps.

Fixing the Pane Point

January 4, 2017 DispatchUnited States, New YorkJordan Davidson

One woman’s mission to save songbirds from their greatest man-made threat: windows.

The Great Thicket National Wildlife Refuge Is Available for Delivery! (Some Assembly Required)

November 8, 2016 DispatchEast, Rhode Island, Massachusetts, Connecticut, Maine, New YorkClara Chaisson

To protect a massive swath of crucial habitat in New England, locals will use their own shrubland to fill in the blanks.

Spring Break

February 4, 2016 DispatchMontanaAlisa Opar

Bison go from seasonal outlaws to year-round residents in a large swath of Montana.

Roam, Roam on the Range

June 24, 2015 DispatchMontanaAlisa Opar

This Montana cattle ranch is trying to ensure its operations benefit wildlife—and yes, that means wolves, too.

Rat Pack

April 6, 2015 DispatchNew York CityAlisa Opar

New York is the city that never sleeps—and neither do its rat researchers.